Branding is said to be necessary for the success of owned media.
This time, we will explain the necessity of branding and the four keys to successfully building branding.
What is branding?
Branding
is creating a brand image.
An easy way to understand branding is to think of companies that have actually succeeded in branding.
You will find that companies that are successful in branding have several image items.
The first is
color
.
As an easy-to-understand example, let’s think of a Japanese megabank.
You can see that the branding is successful with the colors red, blue, and green.
The second thing is
the design
.
The most obvious examples of branding through design are logos, marks, and icons.
You should be able to easily recognize the brands of automobile manufacturers, electronics manufacturers, search engines, etc. by looking at their brand logos and icons.
The third thing is
images, impressions, and sensations
.
Apparel brands that are said to be “○○ for good value for money,” “○○ for beautiful coloring” or “○○ for luxury brands” are successful in branding.
Why is branding necessary for owned media?
Why is it said that branding is necessary even for
owned media
?
There are four reasons for this.
・Differentiation from competitors
By keeping your branding in mind, you can differentiate your company from your competitors.
Owned media can convey a large amount of detailed information about companies, proposed services, and products.
Owned media is perfect for promoting your branding.
・Improve the credibility of the company
Customers and potential customers increasingly search for information online when considering purchasing products or using services.
Customers and prospects check the content of owned media for a sense of security and trustworthiness.
Improving your branding with owned media will lead to increasing your company’s credibility.
・Acquisition of customers/prospects
Owned media that takes branding into account tends to leave an image of the company, proposed services, and products, which increases the possibility of acquiring customers and potential customers.
・Advertisement effect
Companies advertise through various means, such as commercials and paper-based advertisements.
Owned media that takes branding into account is also effective as a promotional tool for companies, proposed services, and products.
Many advertising tools are unilateral messages sent from companies to consumers, but with owned media, customers and potential customers can also send messages to companies through contact points and membership registration.
Four keys to successfully building branding with owned media
There are four keys to successfully building branding with owned media:
・Communicate the vision clearly
Clearly communicating a company’s vision is fundamental to successful branding with owned media.
A company’s vision is to clearly communicate that “this is what your company’s brand is”, and it allows you to strongly appeal your branding to future customers and potential customers who view owned media.
Cybozu, which develops and provides tools to support team collaboration, operates an owned site called “Cybozu Style”.
As a media for teams that create new value, “Cybozu Style” clearly communicates our corporate philosophy of “creating a society full of teamwork” to readers through interviews and easy-to-understand articles.
・Create a sense of unity
Customers and potential customers consider products and services offered by companies through various advertising tools other than owned media.
Branding will not be successful if the content of each tool is inconsistent.
Advertising tools sent by companies, including owned media, need to have a sense of consistency in content.
CAMPANELLA, an owned media operated by Asahi Breweries, is a site that posts articles that match the four themes of work, food, life, and culture.
Although it has four themes, “CAMPANELLA” is a media that is unified by the image of its main product, beer, similar to the advertising tools sent out by Asahi Beer.
・Be conscious of customer first
Owned media, which is mainly operated by companies, can transmit a large amount of information, so there is a possibility that it will be constructed from the company’s perspective.
Branding is the image that customers have of your company.
Owned media must be created with customer-first content in mind and from the customer’s perspective.
An example of owned media that puts the customer first is Muji’s “Kurashi no Ryohin Research Institute,” which proposes a variety of lifestyle-related products.
The “Living Quality Research Institute” has set up a space where readers can post requests such as “I want something like this.”
We sometimes produce new products that meet the requests of our readers, realizing owned media that puts the customer first.
・Pursue ease of use
One of the main reasons readers choose owned media is because it is easy to use.
Creating a structure that allows readers to quickly find the information they are looking for without stress will also improve your brand image.
Nippon Ham operates an owned media called “BBQ GO!” that introduces information on barbecue spots across Japan.
“BBQ GO!” is designed with an easy-to-use structure that allows readers to quickly find the barbecue spot they want to research by searching for it from a list of areas or prefectures.
summary
◆Branding is said to be necessary for the success of owned media.
◆Branding is creating a brand image.
◆The reasons why branding is said to be necessary even in owned media are to “differentiate yourself from competitors,” “improve the credibility of your company,” “acquire customers and prospects,” and “advertisement effectiveness.”
◆To successfully build branding with owned media, the keys are to “clearly communicate the vision,” “create a sense of unity,” “be conscious of customer first,” and “pursue ease of use.”