Refuel your brand: Standing out in the crowd
Whether you are in general aviation, charter, business or corporate aviation one thing is certain your business will not be alone.
A brand is so much more than just a name, a slogan, or a logo; it’s a culmination of everything and anything that distinguishes a company or product from its competition. As one of the most valuable assets a business can have, it is important to fully embrace what makes them and their proposition unique when developing, or redeveloping, their brand and brand strategy. Consider what makes you different; what are your USPs? This is especially true in a crowded marketplace like private aviation.
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We can all appreciate how important it is to be professional in any industry, but in private jet or business aviation, customers expect safety, reliability and the highest standard of service as a bare minimum. Whilst these expectations need to be clearly reflected in a company’s brand, there is still plenty of room to incorporate something unique that makes a brand prominent and distinguishable.
It can be particularly challenging for those within private aviation whose offering is an intermediary service (such as charter or aircraft broker), where competition is high and developing a discernibleproposition is either hard to come by or tough to accurately portray. This creates a challenge for many companies within the industry to build a unique brand that stands out, meaning that they are almost interchangeable.
Whether it’s an out-of-the-box name or logo, a catchy tagline, a strong and engaging presence on social media, or an easily identifiable website design, there are many ways that a company can build a strong brand that not only successfully represents who they are and what they have to offer, but makes them instantly recognisable to their customers no matter where. But your brand is not just your corporate identity or logo….your customer’s experience dictates the perception of the brand. At every touch point the customer’s experience of the brand must resonate with the brands values and intentions. If your brand positioning is ‘Excellent at Customer Service’ a poor customer track record undermines the brand.
It is equally important that brand representation is consistent across the entirety of a company's marketing, communication and promotional activities (both online and offline), including:
- Corporate literature & marketing collateral (e.g. brochures and promotional items)
- Company stationery (e.g. business cards and letter heads)
- Website design, development & content
- Social media profiles & content
- Partnerships & affiliations
- Advertising and PR
- Exhibition and events
Whether you’re starting from scratch or just giving your brand a little boost, research should always be one of the first steps you take to establish your brand value and understand your brand equity. Branding should enable you to stand out from the crowd, so having a fair understanding of what that crowd is already offering is important.
- Check the plausibility of your ideas, like whether or not a suitable domain is available.
- Establish whether there are any companies within your sector with a similar name or if your name is too close to a generic phrase - would this make it difficult for your audiences to find you online?
- Take a look at how competitors present themselves - is everyone using a grey-scale colour scheme? Whynot chose something more vibrant and memorable?
Author: Sindy Foster
