15 Effective Brand Awareness Tactics You Should Definitely Try in 2023
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Every business starts out to gain new customers, promote their business, and ultimately sell the products or services. However, whether you are a new or existing business, creating a brand awareness campaign is the ultimate solution to growing your customer base and product sales.
Brand awareness is the foundation of every successful business practice. It oversees how your potential customers discover your brand, interact with your business on online and traditional channels and keep your product, services, and brand on top of their minds till they are ready to make sales.
As easy as it may appear, building a successful brand goes beyond just developing a successful product or service that serves the customers’ needs. You need to put in efforts to promote your brand actively and build brand awareness campaigns that put your brand in the face of your customers and compel them to choose you over other brands. As a matter of fact, statistics show that strong brand awareness leads to increased sales and brand loyalty.
A survey found that 59% of consumers prefer buying products from familiar brands, while 21% are willing to pay more. Needless to say, brand awareness is crucial for businesses to succeed in a competitive marketplace. Do you struggle to create effective brand awareness campaigns that increase brand recognition and sales?
Not to worry. In this blog, you will learn about brand awareness strategy, its importance, and 15 effective strategies for your business.
What is Brand Awareness?
Brand awareness refers to the extent to which consumers are familiar with a particular brand and can recognize it among other brands in a specific category of product. It is a measure of the ability of a brand to establish a strong presence in the minds of its target audience. Brand awareness can be created through various marketing efforts such as advertising, sponsorships, and content marketing.
The ultimate goal of building brand awareness is to create a sense of familiarity and trust with the target audience, which can lead to increased brand recognition, customer loyalty, and, ultimately, higher sales. Therefore, companies often conduct surveys and analyze data to evaluate their brand awareness and track how it changes.
A study revealed that companies with high brand awareness enjoy a 33% premium over their competitors. Additionally, research shows that brand awareness plays a significant role in customer decision-making, with 82% of consumers reporting that they consider brand awareness when making purchases.
Brand awareness is essential to building a strong brand identity, driving business growth, and establishing a competitive edge in the marketplace.
What are the Different Levels of Brand Awareness?
There are generally four levels of brand awareness that businesses must attain to boost their brand presence. Each level of brand awareness represents a higher degree of consumer recognition and indicates the strength of a brand’s identity and market position.
Companies must strive for the highest levels of brand awareness possible to establish a competitive edge and drive growth. Here are the four levels:
1. Brand Recognition
This level of brand awareness is achieved when consumers can identify a brand when presented with its name, logo, packaging, or other visual cues. For example, a consumer may recognize the Nike Swoosh logo.
2. Brand Recall
This level of brand awareness is achieved when consumers can remember a brand when prompted with a product category. For example, a consumer may think of Nike when prompted with the question, “Name a brand of athletic shoes.”
3. Top-of-Mind Awareness
This level of awareness is achieved when a brand is the first one that comes to mind when a consumer is asked to name a product or service in a particular category. For example, when asked to name a fast-food restaurant, many might say McDonald’s.
4. Brand Dominance
This level of brand awareness is achieved when a brand is so dominant in the product category that it is the only one consumers consider. So, for example, when it comes to MP3 players, many consumers may only consider Apple’s iPod.
Why is Brand Awareness Important?
Brand awareness is crucial for building a strong brand identity and establishing a competitive edge in the marketplace. Companies prioritizing building brand awareness through effective marketing strategies are more likely to succeed and grow over time. Brand awareness is important for several reasons:
1. Recognition
Brand awareness helps to create recognition and familiarity with a brand among consumers. This can lead to increased brand recall, where consumers can remember the brand when prompted with a product category.
2. Differentiation
Strong brand awareness can help a brand to differentiate itself from competitors. When consumers are familiar with a brand, they are more likely to choose it over others, even if similar products are available from competitors.
3. Trust and Loyalty
Consumers often perceive brands with high awareness levels as trustworthy and reliable. This can lead to increased brand loyalty, with consumers choosing to continue purchasing from the same brand over time.
4. Increased Sales
A higher level of brand awareness can lead to increased sales. When consumers are familiar with a brand, they are more likely to consider it when making a purchase decision, which can lead to increased revenue for the brand.
5. Competitive Edge
Brand awareness can also provide a competitive edge for a brand. When a brand is well-known, competitors can find it more difficult to enter the market and establish a foothold.
How to Get Started with Brand Awareness
Building brand awareness takes time and effort, but following these steps and being consistent with your marketing efforts can increase brand recognition and establish a strong brand identity over time. Here are some steps to get started with building brand awareness:
1. Define your target audience
Identify the audience you want to target and what their needs and wants are. This will help you create messages and marketing strategies that resonate with them and raise brand awareness.
2. Develop a brand identity
Create a brand identity that accurately represents your business, including a logo, brand colors, tagline, and messaging. Ensure that your brand identity is consistent across all marketing channels.
3. Use social media
Social media is an effective way to reach a large audience for increasing brand awareness. Identify the social media platforms your target audience uses the most, and create a social media strategy that includes regular posting, engaging with your audience, and running paid social media campaigns.
4. Invest in content marketing
Content marketing involves creating valuable content that resonates with your target audience. This can include blog posts, videos, infographics, and other content that provide value to your audience.
5. Collaborate with influencers
Influencers have a large following on social media and can help you increase brand awareness by promoting your brand to their audience. Identify influencers who align with your brand values and target audience, and collaborate with them to promote your brand.
6. Use paid advertising
Paid advertising can help you reach a larger audience quickly. Consider running ads on social media platforms or search engines to support your brand-building tactics and increase brand awareness.
7. Measure your results
Track your brand awareness metrics to see what’s working and what’s not. This can help refine your marketing strategies and ensure you get the best return on investment.
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What is Brand Awareness Strategy?
A brand awareness strategy is a plan developed by a company to increase familiarity and recognition of its brand among its target audience. This includes identifying the target audience, creating a brand identity and messaging that resonates with them, utilizing various marketing channels to promote the brand, and measuring the strategy’s effectiveness.
Brand awareness strategies aim to create a strong brand identity, establish a competitive edge in the marketplace, and ultimately increase revenue through increased brand recognition and customer loyalty.
15 Effective Brand Awareness Ideas To Boost Sales
Brand awareness ideas are marketing strategies or tactics used by companies to increase the familiarity of their brand among their target audience. These ideas can include various activities such as social media campaigns, influencer partnerships, content marketing, events, promotions, and advertising, among others.
These ideas aim to create a strong brand identity and increase brand recognition. Here are 15 effective brand awareness ideas that can help boost sales:
1. Run social media contests
Running social media contests is a brand awareness idea where a company hosts a contest or giveaway on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or LinkedIn. Participants must follow the company’s social media account, like or share a specific post, or tag their friends to enter the contest.
The winner is then selected randomly or, based on specific criteria, receives a prize such as a product, service, or gift card. This brand awareness idea is effective because it encourages engagement with the brand on social media, attracts new followers, and generates excitement and buzz around the contest or giveaway.
To leverage social media content, encourage your followers to engage with your brand by running contests and giveaways requiring them to follow, like, and share your content.
2. Create valuable content
Creating valuable content is a brand awareness idea where a company produces high-quality, informative, and engaging content that resonates with its target audience. The content can be blog posts, videos, infographics, podcasts, or social media posts.
Most marketers create valuable content that conforms to their brand voice to establish the company as an authority in its industry, provide value to its target audience, and ultimately drive traffic to its website and increase brand awareness. When the content is shared and engaged with by the audience, it also has the potential to reach new potential customers and expand the company’s reach.
Hence, consider using content marketing to create valuable content that engages and educates your target audience.
3. Host events
Hosting events is a brand awareness idea where a company organizes and hosts an event to showcase its products or services and interact with its target audience in person. Events can be in-person, virtual, or a combination of both. Examples of events include product launches, trade shows, seminars, workshops, and open houses.
By hosting events, companies can create a memorable and unique experience for their audience, build relationships, and demonstrate the value of their products or services. Hosting events can also generate media coverage, social media buzz, and word-of-mouth promotion, increasing brand awareness.
For this reason, consider hosting events that showcase your products or services and allow customers to interact with your brand in person.
4. Offer discounts and promotions
Offering discounts and promotions is a brand awareness idea where a company offers special discounts or deals on its products or services to incentivize potential customers to try them out. Examples of promotions include buy-one-get-one-free offers, free shipping, and percentage discounts on purchases.
This brand awareness idea is effective because it can attract new customers interested in trying out the company’s products or services and encourage existing customers to make repeat purchases, mostly used to support other brand awareness efforts.
By offering promotions, companies can create a sense of urgency and excitement around their brand, leading to increased visibility, sales, and brand awareness.
5. Collaborate with influencers
Collaborating with influencers is a brand awareness idea where a company partners with social media influencers with a large following in the company’s target audience. These influencers can create content featuring the company’s products or services and share it with their followers, exposing the company to a broader audience.
This can include sponsored posts, product reviews, or brand endorsements. Influencer collaboration can be particularly effective in reaching younger audiences who are difficult to target through traditional marketing channels. By collaborating with influencers, companies can increase their brand visibility, reach new audiences, and potentially drive sales through the influencer’s endorsement.
To increase your brand awareness and sales, partner with influencers in your industry to promote your brand to their followers and increase brand awareness.
6. Create branded merchandise
Creating branded merchandise is a brand awareness idea where a company produces and distributes products with its logo or branding on them. These products can include t-shirts, hats, bags, phone cases, water bottles, and more.
Companies can turn their customers and fans into brand ambassadors by creating and distributing branded merchandise, as they wear and use the branded products daily.
This can create a ripple effect as others see the branded merchandise and become aware of the company and its products or services. Brand merchandise can also help build community and brand loyalty among customers, as they feel more connected to the company and its brand.
7. Use influencer marketing
Influencer marketing is a brand awareness idea where a company partners with social media influencers with a large following in the company’s target audience. These influencers can create content featuring the company’s products or services and share it with their followers, exposing the company to a broader audience.
By using influencer marketing, companies can increase brand recognition, grow their customer base, and drive sales through the influencer’s endorsement.
The difference between influencer marketing and collaborating with influencers is that influencer marketing is typically more focused on promoting the company’s products or services than a long-term partnership with an influencer.
8. Run paid social media ads
Paid social media ads are a brand awareness idea where a company pays to display its ads on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Social media ads can be highly targeted, allowing companies to reach specific demographics and interests.
They can include a variety of ad formats, such as image ads, video ads, carousel ads, and sponsored content. Running paid social media ads can be effective for creating brand awareness, reaching new audiences, and driving website traffic or sales. In fact, research revealed that More than 1 in 3 online users go to social media for more information about a brand or product.
Targeting specific audiences with tailored messaging and creativity can generate more engagement and interaction for your brand, increasing brand visibility and awareness.
9. Use search engine optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a brand awareness idea where a company optimizes its website and online content to rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs). By using SEO, companies can increase their website traffic and visibility, leading to more brand awareness and potential sales.
SEO tactics can include optimizing website content with relevant keywords, building high-quality backlinks, improving website loading speed and mobile responsiveness, and creating valuable content that ranks well in search engines.
By implementing effective SEO strategies, companies can increase their organic visibility and establish themselves as trusted and authoritative sources in their industry, leading to increased brand awareness and a stronger online presence.
10. Host webinars
Hosting webinars is a brand awareness idea where a company holds online seminars or presentations on a specific topic related to its industry or products/services. Webinars can be hosted live or pre-recorded, including various interactive elements such as Q&A sessions, polls, and surveys.
By hosting webinars, companies can establish themselves as thought leaders and provide value to their audience by sharing their expertise and knowledge. This can help to build trust and credibility with potential customers and increase brand awareness. Webinars can also be an effective lead-generation tool to capture new clients and improve brand awareness.
Companies can collect contact information from attendees and follow up with them after the webinar to nurture them as potential customers.
11. Utilize email marketing
Email marketing is a brand awareness idea where a company sends promotional emails to a list of subscribers who have opted-in to receive marketing communications from the company. Email marketing can be a highly effective tool for building brand awareness, allowing companies to reach their target audience directly and regularly.
Companies can use email marketing to promote their products or services, share valuable content, offer exclusive discounts or promotions, and build relationships with their subscribers. Companies can increase their brand visibility and credibility by creating engaging and informative email content that provides value to their subscribers and potentially drive website traffic or sales.
Email marketing can also segment subscribers and personalize messaging, increasing the effectiveness of brand awareness campaigns.
12. Create shareable content
Creating shareable content is a brand awareness idea where a company creates engaging, informative, and easily shareable content on social media and other online platforms. Shareable content can include blog articles, videos, infographics, and other visual content relevant to the company’s target audience and industry.
People who share the content on social media and other online platforms essentially promote the company and its brand to their own network of followers and connections. This can increase website traffic, social media engagement, and potentially new customers or clients.
To create effective shareable content, companies should focus on creating content that is valuable, interesting, and visually appealing to their target audience and that encourages social sharing.
13. Leverage user-generated content
Leveraging user-generated content (UGC) is a brand awareness idea where a company uses content created by its customers or followers to promote its brand. UGC can include photos, videos, reviews, and social media posts that feature the company’s products or services.
Using UGC, companies can showcase real-life examples of how their products or services are being used and enjoyed by their customers, which can help build trust and credibility with potential customers. In addition, UGC can be shared on the company’s website, social media channels, and other marketing materials, effectively increasing brand awareness and engagement.
Companies can encourage the creation of UGC by incentivizing customers to share their experiences, running contests or promotions that require UGC, and simply encouraging customers to share their experiences on social media using a specific hashtag or mention.
14. Utilize remarketing
Utilizing remarketing is a brand awareness idea where a company targets ads to people who have previously visited their website or engaged with their brand online. Remarketing works by using cookies to track the online behavior of website visitors and then showing them targeted ads on other websites or social media platforms.
By utilizing remarketing, companies can increase brand awareness and potentially drive more conversions by keeping their brand top-of-mind with potential customers who have already expressed interest in their products or services.
Remarketing ads can be highly targeted and personalized based on visitors’ actions on the company’s website or other online platforms. This can help increase the ads’ effectiveness and improve the campaign’s overall ROI.
15. Partner with other businesses
Partnering with other businesses is a brand awareness idea where a company collaborates with another business or brand to promote each other’s products or services. This can be done through co-branding initiatives, joint marketing campaigns, or cross-promotions, where both companies work together to increase their exposure and reach a wider audience.
Partnering with other businesses can be especially effective for small businesses or startups looking to increase their brand awareness, as it allows them to leverage the established audience and reputation of a more established brand. In addition, by partnering with a complementary business, companies can expand their reach into new markets and attract new customers interested in products or services.
To partner with other businesses, companies should focus on finding businesses that share a similar target audience, values, and brand identity and are open to collaboration and partnerships.
How to Measure Brand Awareness?
Measuring brand awareness is important to understand the effectiveness of a brand awareness strategy and to make informed decisions for future marketing efforts. Here are some ways to measure brand awareness:
1. Surveys
Conducting surveys to measure brand recall and recognition can provide valuable insights into how well your brand is known among your target audience.
2. Web Analytics
Analyzing website traffic, search engine rankings and social media engagement can indicate how many people are actively engaging with your brand online.
3. Social Media Metrics
Tracking metrics such as likes, shares, comments, and followers on social media platforms can give insights into how well your brand resonates with your target audience.
4. Brand Awareness Index (BAI)
BAI is a metric that measures the percentage of people aware of your brand and is calculated by dividing the number of people who are aware of your brand by the total number of people in your target audience.
5. Ad Tracking
Tracking the performance of brand awareness campaigns through metrics such as click-through rates, impressions, and conversions can provide insights into the effectiveness of your marketing efforts.
6. Brand Lift Studies
These studies are conducted to measure the impact of advertising on brand awareness and perception. This is typically done by comparing the results of surveys before and after a specific advertising campaign.
5 Successful Brand Awareness Strategy To Inspire You
The following five successful brand awareness strategies demonstrate the importance of creating emotional connections with customers, building a strong brand image, and leveraging user-generated content and social media to engage with customers. They include:
1. Nike’s “Just Do It” Campaign
Nike’s “Just Do It” slogan has become synonymous with the brand and is one of the most successful brand awareness campaigns of all time. The campaign inspires people to take action and has helped create a strong emotional connection between Nike and its customers.
2. Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” Campaign
Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” campaign involved printing popular first names on its bottles and cans, encouraging customers to share a Coke with someone they know. The campaign was a huge success, generating a lot of social media buzz and driving sales.
3. Apple’s Product Launch Events
Apple’s product launch events are highly anticipated and generate much media attention and social media buzz. In addition, the events serve as a platform for Apple to showcase its products and generate excitement among its customers.
4. Red Bull’s Extreme Sports Sponsorships
Red Bull has become synonymous with extreme sports and has built a strong brand image around its association with these sports. In addition, by sponsoring extreme sports events and athletes, Red Bull has created a strong emotional connection with its target audience.
5. Airbnb’s User-Generated Content
Airbnb’s marketing strategy relies heavily on user-generated content, encouraging its customers to share their experiences and travel stories on social media. This has helped create a strong sense of community among Airbnb users and helped build the brand’s reputation as a trusted travel platform.
Bottom line
Building brand awareness is a critical component of any successful marketing strategy. It involves creating a strong brand image, connecting with customers on an emotional level, and using a variety of tactics to increase visibility and recognition.
The 15 brand awareness tactics discussed in this blog can help businesses of all sizes and industries to boost their visibility and engage with their target audience. However, it is essential to remember that brand awareness is not a one-time effort but requires ongoing efforts and consistent messaging across all channels.
By implementing these tactics and measuring the results, businesses can strengthen their brand and build a loyal customer base that can drive growth and success in the long run.
