BRAND CONSULTING

In the development of an international brand, two questions arise in B2B brand consulting: Are we actually talking about a brand? What makes a company or product a B2B brand? Brands are perceived differently and above all generate an emotional connection. It is important to build and maintain this emotional connection.

Increased profile, visibility, and market success.

Questions are the starting point in B2B brand consulting. The first step is to find out where your company stands and where your problem areas lie. The situation in every project and company is different, complex, and challenging. For sustainable brand consulting, we need to understand your company in depth. We approach this with an entrepreneurial perspective — always with the goal of finding pragmatic and effective approaches.

Brands can boost success. With strong B2B brands, industrial companies can attain over 10% higher EBIT margins in the long term. Rigorous brand management can lead to lasting trust and strong loyalty through brand profiling in the competitive environment and the brand experience for customers. Sooner or later, this results in a monetarily measurable value that increases profitability.

The brand is a value-adding factor.

Brand consulting begins with questions about the current brand strategy and brand architecture. Strategic considerations in the interplay of the market, competition, customers, employees, and relevant social environment are a first starting point. Another topic is questions about the current and future positioning. Successful companies have clear, understandable positioning with differentiating statements and clear guidelines. A coherent brand strategy and unique positioning make the B2B brand a beacon of orientation with which goals can be achieved.

Brand processes change the company, moving it forward.

Working on the B2B brand usually triggers a process of change inside the company. Courage to change and openness to transformation are required at all levels of management and among employees. This is challenging, because everyone has to be taken along on such a journey. Success in the market, customer loyalty, and customer acquisition can only be achieved if each employee sees themselves as a brand ambassador and is motivated to fulfill this role.

In the B2B brand consultancy, it is important for us to combine the emotional and rational aspects of brand development and brand management. This is because one thing is certain: In the end, working on the brand also has to generate profits.

Structured B2B brand consulting

Brand management, as many other disciplines, follows certain underlying techniques. To achieve a defined goal with solid results which is pursued by all parties, we proceed step by step:

  • Step 1: Analyze the as-is and to-be situation
  • Step 2: Define corporate and marketing goals
  • Step 3: Develop the brand identity and brand strategy
  • Step 4: Positioning, USP, and brand essence
  • Step 5: Create action plan and time frame
  • Step 6: Implement in the corporate design, corporate communication, and corporate behavior
  • Step 7: Implement in product development, sales, service, purchasing, recruiting, and HR processes …
  • Step 8: Ongoing measurement and success monitoring
  • Step 9: Continuously optimize

Employees, customers, and trends — relevant aspects of brand analysis

With B2B brands in the industrial and technology environment, the aim is to be perceived internationally as a brand by the right target audiences and stakeholders. It’s about the mystique of the B2B brand and the pre-trust that is attributed to the brand as a result of reputation, previous impressions, and ongoing positive experiences. In the brand consultancy, we work with you to precisely identify this for your international B2B brand.

One focus is on the sales market and decision-makers in those markets. These include developers, product managers, buyers, as well as teams in the buying center, and depending on the market, can be as few as 100 or 500 people in key positions. Emotional ties to a brand are only one part of their decision-making process. Price, performance, availability, and service also play an important role. That is why it is essential in holistic brand consulting that your international B2B brand also conveys aspects of comparative competitive advantages. Effectiveness should be perceivable and meaningful for the decision-makers. Efficiency in terms of performance-specific and economic factors must be reinforced by the brands’ messages.

The labor markets are of great importance as well. Competition to attract employees, managers, and potential applicants is fierce worldwide. Your profiled B2B brand, which appears with authenticity, clearly communicates its values, and consistently pursues its goals, is at an advantage. On an idealistic level, it provides security, which is increasingly in demand today. Regarding the internationalization of companies, appropriate localization is recommended in certain cases. Other cultures and mentalities may require a different weighting and emphasis of values and core messages.

All markets in view

Opinion markets and financial markets are likewise part of holistic brand consulting. They are important multipliers for your brand. These target groups need to be addressed with suitable messages.

The goal of brand consulting: trust and loyalty

Our B2B brand consulting aims to strengthen the markets’ trust in your brand and to increase loyalty toward your brand. Ultimately, the aim is to attract and retain the best employees, gain and retain customers, earn money, and build loyal supporters for your B2B brand. Targeted and holistic investment in the brand is the prerequisite for building a basis of trust that pays off in the long term‎‎ —‎ including financially.

What are the distinctive characteristics of B2B branding?

For B2B brands, in B2B brand consulting we have to move away from the images of global brands. These address broad target groups worldwide in their overall communication as a company and with their products and services. They live from their strong presence, characterized by brand name, trademark, quality of the branded object, and availability and desirability. In addition, in B2B brand consulting, we need to detach ourselves from the image of branded goods, in which the marking and branding serves the functions of indicating origin, differentiating, protecting, guaranteeing, and advertising, in order to differentiate from other suppliers in general.

INCREON

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