Nagpur: The Entrepreneurship Forum of Vidarbha Industries Association organized a programme on 'The power of product and personal branding for the growth of your business' by marketing strategist and corporate trainer Suhasini Kirloskar from Pune at VIA Hall, Udyog Bhavan, on Wednesday.
It is difficult for SMEs to enter and survive a market where big business brands have already made a mark, and they need to change their game plan to earn a profit. Marketing is not just limited to products, but service professionals too need to upgrade themselves to stand out in the crowd, said chairman of the forum Akash Agrawal.
The concept of branding has been in existence since a long time and Cadbury established in 1824 is one of the oldest. People look up to their favourite brands for years as it gives them a bundle of benefits. They possess trust in the company, admire the functioning and experience. They also relate the brand with their personality, informed Kirloskar, who has been in the sector for more than two decades.
She suggested that the brand should be visually recognizable, differentiable and must have distinct features as compared to others. The name, logo, tagline and colours should be unique in order to make an impact on people's minds. These basic things are valuable assets for a company and should not be taken for granted.
"One must brief the logo agency well about the product and explore it from all angles to come up with the most appropriate output, which aligns with the personality of the brand," she advised.
Kirloskar informed about brand personification, which is followed by a lot of brand managers. She said, "Try to think of your brand as a person to clearly define the target audience. Note down if your brand is young or old, female or male, rural or urban, outgoing or quiet, prefers gym or yoga. This will help you attain consistency in doing business, and market you product efficiently."
According to her, knowing your particular area of interest and proving your expertise in that field and expanding your business on the same lines can prove to be beneficial. But switching the track completely, trying your hand at something new, which is poles apart from your previous genre, can be risky and even the good reputation of the brand might not help in that case.
Stressing on collective efforts and joint ventures, Kirloskar believed, "Our education system has taught us competitiveness but in real world it is collaboration which works better."
