In today’s instant access, multi-platform online world, maintaining a consistent marketing message and a strong brand presence is more important than ever. With the rise of social media technology, information on your company is available at the touch of a finger, making your brand highly visible to consumers throughout the world. A company’s brand can be defined simply as what people think about you and your product, including first impressions and opinions. From a public relations standpoint, it is very important to inspire confidence and a sense of reliability in your company’s brand and to do this the message you project about your company must remain essentially consistent. This is a practice implemented by all of the best branding agencies in Chicago and across the country.
A consistent marketing message is important for advertising because it makes it much easier for consumers to remember your company. By reducing confusion and utilizing repetition, you work to reinforce the memory of the product or service you are trying to market. This consistency helps to influence your popularity because it leads people to believe that your company is focused and will follow through on your promises. Therefore, the audience is more likely to want your product or service because most people prefer to work with something that is reliable and familiar. Consistency builds upon previous successes, so there is no need to change something that has already worked for you.
It is important to ensure that your company’s brand including its logo, slogan, key messages, color-scheme, and other visual marketing representatives are the same on every social media platform you utilize. Of course, it is fine to update all of these things periodically if they are starting to feel old and worn out, especially in a large market like Chicago where you must work to stand out from the competition. A brand-refresh is something a lot of companies do when its graphic design begins to feel dated or out of touch with the times. However, it is very important to make the switch at the same time across all platforms. If you only switch it up on some of your accounts, this may lead the audience to believe that your company is unorganized or unprofessional. A sloppy approach could also lead your audience to be confused about your advertising and assume that there are two different businesses with the same name. This confusion would most likely prompt a consumer to look elsewhere for their needs.
It is also a good idea to consistently post and promote content on social media that upholds and highlights your focus and value as a company. This may not necessarily mean posting the same story promoting the same thing across all platforms every time, though this is a good start in reaching as many consumers as possible. However, a more tailored public relations approach is often more effective at appealing to the different types of people who use social media. A person on Pinterest may not have the same values or interests as someone who frequents Twitter, and the same story may not translate well across the different setups on these two sites.
For example, look at the social media pages of Target. The color red is everywhere, and you would be hard-pressed to find someone who wouldn’t connect the white puppies with the brand. Target’s Facebook page is friendly but not overdone, and its posts feature mainly large pictures of products with captions detailing a new release or sale. There are minimal hashtags or full article links.
Compare this with Target’s Twitter, which also displays large amounts of red graphics and product photos. However, with the generally sillier and more informal spirit of the Twitter community in mind, Target’s Twitter presence displays more “gifs” and funny pictures, as well as communications with popular celebrities using their products. Target’s vibe as an approachable and friendly company remains consistent across the two sites, but the way they project this feeling is subtly different.
These days, consumers are discovering your brand in many different places on the internet. It is key that your company maintains a consistent message across all platforms to consistently increase audience trust and recognition.