I can’t tell you how many times I have heard companies say they want to revise and improve their company brand. Nine out of 10 times, what they really mean is that they want to come up with a new and improved logo, website or other visual presentations of their brand’s “look and feel.” A company’s logo/corporate identity, website and other visual elements are important in communicating a brand, but by no means are they the only things that represent your brand.

Your brand is a relationship you have with your customers, prospects, suspects, partners, vendors and the general business community. It’s hard for me to imagine how a logo, website or other visual elements solely convey what your brand represents. My personal feeling is that strong brands require much more thought than just a shinny logo or slick website.

I believe that strong brands, first and foremost, are strategically designed around what space you want to own and why your company is better than the competition. The company has to know just why it is better, and know how to effectively communicate that simple message clearly and concisely.

Great companies know how to effectively market and get their message out, not only through advertising, but through multiple mediums that reach their targets via the mediums that their targets interact with. You must accept and believe that these days it requires many mediums to be able to make a connection that is real and cuts through the clutter to drive results.

First, you have to know how to integrate this message into your company internally. Get the operations, sales and marketing all on the same page and understand what the brand stands for and how to deliver on the stated brand promise.

Great companies also understand that it takes more than looks. Your product or service has to fulfill the promise that it is cracked up to be. It has to be able to deliver the goods and make customers and clients true brand believers.

For a brand to be great these days you have to have strategy, substance, succinct message, and yes, a good logo and nice website. But you also must have the determination and commitment to succeed. A great brand requires a holistic and integrated approach, much more than just a snappy logo.

Written by Michael Doyle, President of Brand Iron