The number of IT start-ups today is quite overwhelming, and with that comes a great deal of competition for the market. Many of these start-ups are now realising that to stay ahead of the competition and stand out from the crowd, they need much more than just a great product. This is why professional services branding is taking route in the tech innovation industry.
Natasha Thornsworth a branding expert says many startups have tried to carry out their own branding but after a number of poor results they end up coming to her for help. “It is a pity that they have to waste their money to realise that they actually need a professional to do the branding for them,” Thornsworth said.
The mistake many IT companies make is thinking that they can simply put a unique colour and have a website that stands out and they will consider that to be great branding as they concentrate on coming up with a product.
Harvard Business Review advises that professional services branding should be used to ensure that a company is able to influence public perception of itself and create an image that is in line with a company’s mission and all that it stands for.
If you look at the companies that have hired professionals to handle their branding, you will realise that it is not some random set of activities but a well thought out systematic strategy that influences far more than the image of a company, but stretches farther to the conduct of the people that work at the company.
Investment in professional services branding is helping start-up tech companies grab a foothold in the market and focus on growing a brand that will bring return on investment. Natasha Thornsworth says it may be hard to present a product or service as completely unique but when you add professional branding to the mix, you make your product stand out and more appealing to your target.
“Branding is a key marketing tool, it can be the difference between making that big sale or losing out to the competition.” Ms Thornsworth explains. She adds that branding helps a start-up company get the target customers to understand what their product or service is and how it helps them as well as associate it with particular things.
What may seem like a simple logo for a company is really the result of careful planning, understanding of a product and extra attention to detail.
Experts indicate that one of the reasons a number of great innovations fail to make it far in the market is the lack of professional branding. Many of these may have good services or products but they fail to let the market know that these products exist or to stand out effectively from the crowd and in the end a product that may not be as good but has the benefit of professional services branding will be more successful.
Branding done by professionals can in some instances help a tech company improve its product because it would need to live up to the image created by the professionals so that it does not turn out to be deceptive.