Why startup branding shouldn't be an afterthought

A bad first impression is hard to recover from. As a business leader, you know this. It's why you're conscious of your appearance, your command, even your handshake when you meet a new contact. 

The same holds true for your company. But instead of relying on things like grip strength and eye contact to make a strong first impression and build trust, your company has its brand. And a strong, consistent brand can make or break a successful startup.

The most important elements of effective branding

Yes, brands are multifaceted; there are layers and layers to them, and some of those layers are intangible. But in terms of making a first impression and an emotional connection with your target audience, two really matter: your visual identity and your brand messaging (aka, your brand's verbal identity). 

Think of your brand's visual identity as its clothes and physical comportment. It's the total impression of your brand's visual elements: logo, typography, color palette, and more. Your brand messaging, on the other hand, is what your brand says, how it says those things, and why it says them. It's dictated by a brand messaging strategy that captures brand elements like:

• Brand name
• Brand positioning and value proposition
• Brand essence
• Your tagline (if appropriate for your brand)
• Hero messages and key messages
• A galvanizing brand story
• Mission and vision statements
• Core values
• Glossary of brand terms
• Brand personality
• Brand voice and tone of voice
• Style guide

Your target audience sees the culmination and output of this strategic work in the words on your homepage, social media, digital ads, one-pagers, sales decks, and other marketing materials. It should even be apparent in the real-life conversations they have with members of your team.

Both components need to convey some manner of  trustworthiness and competence (the essentials of any business relationship), and they need to be clear and compelling—all in the matter of a couple of seconds. That's about how long you have before your new contact—be they a potential customer, an investor, or a premier recruit—makes their first (and sometimes final) decision about your company.

That's a tall order, and it takes a strong brand, guided by a consistently applied brand strategy and brand guidelines, to pull it off.

How startups get brand messaging wrong

Unfortunately, in the startup world, where small teams are already stretched thin, brand messaging strategy tends to take a back seat. Why? Because the branding process is time consuming and complex, and stakeholders have too much on their plate as it is.

This tends to result in brand messaging that's devoid of personality and entirely product-led, which misses the big picture and causes problems down the road as products iterate and evolve.

Meanwhile, with no brand messaging strategy to guide them, individuals and teams within a startup tend to develop their own ways of talking about the brand and product, confusing their target audience in the process. All told, it's a recipe for slapdash, muddled, and/or inconsistent company branding that doesn't do your startup or your product justice. 

Worse than that, it's holding you back. It's infinitely harder to convince an investor, potential customer, or amazing talent that you are the winning choice unless your brand already talks like a winner. If you've been hoping it will happen the other way around, consider this your wake up call.

Build a winning brand

Learn how Block Club built a successful brand identity for Argyle, then discover how Block Club's experienced brand strategists can work with your team to create your brand image and position your startup for success.

Block Club is the premier content marketing and branding agency for B2B tech startups. We work remotely with clients around the world to create strong brand identities, build their brand awareness, earn them brand recognition, and give them the competitive edge they need to grow. Learn why Plaid, Argyle, Alloy, Codat, CultureAmp, PingPong, Stytch, and Rho trust Block Club to achieve their business goals.