The Branding Secret Overlooked by Most Businesses

We hear a lot these days about the power of branding, the importance of branding, and the need for branding, but you can’t really gauge the success of your branding without the all-important, yet under-used, technique of brand tracking.
Before we define what brand tracking is, let’s discuss what it isn’t. It isn’t something that requires a lot of time, money or effort. It doesn’t call for special tools. In simple terms, it’s the way to monitor the value and health of both your brand and your brand management. And it can be done for less than 5% of your annual marketing budget.

If brand tracking is so easy yet so essential, why do only 10% of companies use this tested-and-trusted management tool?

Unfortunately, it seems that most brand managers simply don’t understand the meaning or the importance of brand tracking, which is unacceptable if a company truly is committed to building and upholding its brand. Another reason why 90% ignore this critical tool is the idea that they can’t afford it.

“The truth is, companies can’t afford to not invest a mere 5% of their communications budget in determining whether their brand is working,” says Michael Del Gigante, president and executive creative director of MDG Advertising. “The small amount they spend will make their remaining budget go much farther and allow their brand to grow much faster.”

Shrewd brand managers know that brand tracking provides a realistic picture of their position in the marketplace and in the minds of their target audience. Tracking your brand over a few years shows that you’re taking a long-term approach to strategically marketing and managing your brand, rather than constantly changing your tactics based on trends of the day.

Brand tracking is the easiest and most effective way to determine whether your campaigns are worthwhile, your promotions are successful, and your brand is achieving its full potential. That 10% of brand managers who rely on brand tracking can be confident in their brand’s standing and clear-sighted in their brand planning. Brand tracking is a powerful technique whose value to your brand’s integrity is truly beyond measure.

Michael Del Gigante is president and executive creative director of MDG Advertising. MDG Advertising, a full-service Florida advertising agency, with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, specializes in developing targeted, Internet marketing solutions, exceptional creative executions and solid branding and media buying strategies that give clients a competitive advantage. To view all MDG corporate identity projects, collateral design, signage, TV and Web design, click here.

Written by Michael Del Gigante