The Importance of Branding

We’ve talked about advertising and marketing, social media, having a good website, and even finding the right name for your company. Amongst all of these things, branding is your foundation, so it’s absolutely vital to your business as well!

What is Branding?

Although there is no 100% agreed upon definition, here we’re going to define a brand by the story and identity that shape a company. Thus, branding is a process where you mold said identity and story followed through with materials that back-up your brand. Branding is a never ending process because you always need to be constantly, and consistently, building it up. Furthermore, in time, you may change and your business may have new meaning to you. This means your branding should reflect these changes and is another reason why you are always working on the business’s brand.

A common question asked is “How is branding different from Marketing?” The key difference between these two is that branding is ultimately for reputation whereas marketing is for sales/revenue income. Branding’s objectives are to create relationships, instill value, attract clients/customers, and ensure long-term motives and goals are in alignment with their brand. Marketing’s objectives are to retain those relationships and attention, promote the brand (instead of building it), and flow with the current state of demands in market trends/customer wants. Branding and marketing are very closely intertwined but are critical to differentiate.

Why is Branding so Valuable?

Differentiating marketing & branding, as stated above, is crucial as both are likely to fail if either one is not kept up with. If you have not defined your brand, your marketing is stuck with no direction and loses a lot, if not most, of its effectiveness. Branding helps advertising by outlining what it should look like and guiding it with the business’s visions. Branding has many upsides to your business. For starters, having a defined brand can build trust and improve recognition. Being clear in your brand looks more credible to customers and can create attachment for them. Also, the right branding can pop out to customers, gaining their attention. Even if a customer uses that product/service right now or not, it’ll still stick out in their mind; and they even come back to you in the future because of the impression it made. Another benefit to great branding is increased employee morale. With a well-built brand, employees can feel proud of where they work. You could also develop more unity within the workspace by creating merchandise (that matches your brand of course).  

Over time, strong branding spreads from person to person, called word of mouth reviews, and can give you more clientele, even those who may have never seen your business before. Many customers may even start to come to your business just because the name/ brand sounds familiar! Furthermore, a recognizable brand can even interest investors/others in financial power as they see your brand rise in popularity. Ultimately, a business with an established brand has great value both to customers and as an asset. With all the many positives, how does one start building up their brand?

How do I go about Building my Brand?

We’ve established why it’s important to have a brand, now, how do we go about building it? To begin, think about your origin story – what made you want to create this business? Remembering this purpose can aid you throughout building your brand. Next, establish your target audience. According to HubSpot, “70% of consumers say that they want a personalized experience.” If you don’t know your audience, how can you give them the best experience? After this, make your mission statement. A mission statement outlines your purpose (as mentioned earlier) and reiterates that meaning everywhere within it. Then, ascertain what makes your company unique. What qualities or benefits are you getting at this company over another?  

The final two ways to build up your brand should be put last. These are key things to think about when you move into marketing. First up, visual design! Here is where you choose what colors, fonts, logo(s), and more. It is imperative that you do your best here as otherwise, a bad logo or obnoxious colors, for example, can push some customers away. In general, constructing the visual side of your business can be overwhelming; don’t be afraid to hire someone else with more experience in this area. Finally, personify your brand. What would your brand sound like if they were a person? The way you communicate to others with your brand should be consistent across all platforms. It is invaluable that you really set time aside to create your brand; if you need more help, check out this link that comes with a free guide!

Branding is Vital to Your Business!


Branding is one of the major pillars of business so it’s essential to build and keep working on it all the time!

Finding the Right Name for Your Future Company

More often than not, deciding a new name for something can take some time. For some it may come easier; like choosing silly names for their pet, or inheriting names from previous family members. Whether names come to you quicker or take some time, it is essential to take the time to decide on a business name that works for you.

Why Choosing a Good Business Name is Crucial

Your company’s name is the first impression of your company. Just like meeting someone, you want this impression to be good, and more importantly, leave an impression. Think about the fact that your business name speaks for itself. You aren’t around to explain it or defend it, and the wrong name could leave a bad impression without ever interacting with your business at all. Your business name is also significant as it makes your establishment stand out; thus leaving a better memory of it long term. Finally, your chosen name can attract future customers and even future coworkers. Depending on the type of business, your name can innately gain traction with future employees as they search for the right job, and customers as they search for the right service. With a name being so paramount to your business, you may wonder how to get the right name for me…

How do I Go About Picking a Good Name?

To start choosing the perfect name for your business, here are a few tips that can help guide you in the right direction. For starters, it’s best to avoid the following: unclear acronyms/words, overused words for that industry, and any locational or current trendy names. When it comes to understanding why you should avoid locations and trends, this is because these can change over time. Perhaps your business grows from the state(/place) you’re living and now the name is not as fitting. Same with trends- these, obviously, come and go and it can easily no longer catch attention/or you may not follow that trend as time goes on.

Another way to see if your new name will work out is by doing some “tests” online. First off, do some keyword searches. For those who are unfamiliar with what this means, this means putting your business name into Google and seeing what the top results pull. Consider if there are other organizations with the same or very similar names and try to change up your business name to make it more unique against these competitors. You can play around with these searches and type in keywords – keywords are words that prompt Google to find a match with said word(s) – to see what is popping up the most. In addition to searching through Google, be sure to check social media for similar names as well. Also, ensure that the name you’ve come up with doesn’t infringe on any copyright of another business. Check out this incredibly helpful guide here to give you some more ideas on creating your business’s name!

Names are Important!

Overall, crafting the quintessential name has many benefits to the entirety of your business. Although there is always the option to change your name, picking a good name from the get-go can save you money and time and create a bigger brand name from the start.

Separating Business & Personal Finances

When you decide to open a new business, you may not think it is important to create a separation between yourself and the business. Although that may seem easier to start with, longterm, it can actually hinder you, and even be damaging to your personal life. There are many reasons to separate your business and personal finances and it does not have to be difficult to do!

Why it’s Crucial to Separate Your Finances

Separating your business financials from personal has one encompassing importance: a clear understanding of your business. This clarity has many benefits. For one, bookkeeping becomes easier for everyone. The separation of accounts means you don’t have to sift through each transaction to see if it’s business related or not. Thus, saving time on monthly bookkeeping, allowing you to see deductible business expenses, and having more refined reports on your cash flow, budget, and more! Another way having different accounts is beneficial is that it protects your personal assets. If anything were to happen to the company, having intertwined accounts can mean loss of these personal assets as there was no distinction in the beginning. Next, taxes can be time-consuming, stressful, and even confusing for some. By having distinct accounts, it makes tax season a little more effortless and even reduces your risk of filing something incorrectly, or triggering an audit. Finally, having independence as a business can build credibility and show professionalism. This is because some individuals, and even financial institutions, may find business names to be more trustworthy over personal names. Also, by allowing it to run on “its own,” this can show confidence in your company, and gain further trust. 

Where Do I Begin to Do This?

Once you have decided to start the process of establishing your business as its own entity, it may be hard to know where to begin. A good place to get the ball rolling is connecting with a CPA (certified public accountant). CPAs can guide you in what the best type of business set-up (think LLC, etc.) is for your needs (and wants) and ensure your personal finances remain segregated. If a CPA is currently out of the question, as they can be quite expensive, consider speaking to other business owners and where they started as well as researching the different types of business structures. (Feel free to check out this link to decide on what business structure will work for you.) Next, it’s time to create an EIN for your business. EIN stands for “employer identification number” and works similarly to a social security number. You can do this through the IRS’s website or your CPA can do it for you. After this, you’re going to open a bank account solely for your business. Spend time researching what the best bank is for your needs and what type of account will benefit you the most. Furthermore, don’t forget to apply for any credit cards you need and make sure that anyone in the business who may need to use company money has a business card/account as well. Additionally, it may be likely that you will use personal funds to kick off this account. If you are working with a CPA, you’ll want to ensure these transfers are clear and coded correctly for your business. Finally, choose an accounting software that works for your company. There are many different types of accounting software to choose from but it is crucial to pick one to keep your business books clean. Spend time looking up what would work for you and what needs you require for your business. Alternatively, hiring a CPA, or even other accountants/bookkeeping professionals, can aid you by cleaning up your books every month and then regularly reviewing them so you have a greater understanding of where your financials stand. Moreover, keep track of your receipts! While this can be quite tedious, receipts prove that the money you spent is correctly coded, and for some expenses, guarantees the tax write-off for X category is true. Making this habit from the start can make any audit run more smoothly if that were to happen. What’s more is that some software, like QuickBooks Online, allows you to upload receipts from your mobile device. So, again, choose business software that works for you. Once all these steps are taken, you are ready to move forward to start the journey of transforming your (small?) business!

Separation is Very Beneficial!

Overall, maintaining different accounts is vital to the longevity of your business, can help your business grow, save you from difficulty in the future, and isn’t overly complicated to begin with!