Strong assets help differentiate a brand from its competitors when there’s little else to choose between them.
‘Brand Assets’ include elements such as names, logos, taglines, packaging and identifiable product styling. They are, I believe, often underused in B2B marketing. Sure, unlike a bottle of wine, nobody buys a machine tool because they like the label. But just because they’re not as crucial as they are in the consumer sector doesn’t mean they should be neglected.
Anyone studying the benefits of brand assets in the consumer sector will learn that these include making the brand a more reassuring presence. And that’s something that’s also important in B2B markets. In addition, B2B transactions often involve long sales cycles, where consistent and recognisable branding is a huge help.
In many B2B markets, different suppliers’ products and services can be quite similar. Strong assets help differentiate a brand from its competitors when there’s little else to choose between them. We should all take a step back and see how our branding comes together, from marketing to product design to administration. I’m sure we can all do a lot better.