What is Brand Familiarity?

Hanifa Sekandi

Project Manager

Build a recognizable brand that’s simple, intriguing, and consistent.

Every brand wants to be a breakout star that stands the test of time, a goal only a select few can claim to have achieved. Luckily, the digital marketing landscape allows brands to gain visibility and an opportunity to cut through the noise. 

Fifteen minutes of notoriety is possible, but what’s next once those minutes are up? 

• What makes your brand unique? 
• What makes it memorable? 
• How much have you invested in building your brand?

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Why Brand Familiarity Matters

Brand familiarity is rooted in an emotive connection your audience feels when they see your brand. Distinct markers allow people to identify your brand. This could range from product photos, logos, colors, mascots, or any visual signature to your brand. Brand familiarity is an essential variable that contributes to strong performance.

The Benefit of Brand Development

Without strong branding, you cannot tell your story. 

Ask yourself:

• Who are you? 
• Why do you think your product or service is worthy of attention? 
• Who is your target audience? 

Underlining your story should be your “why,” your reasoning for existing, and how this product, service, or “amazing sandwich” will satisfy or enhance the lives of your target audience. 

Due to poor brand development, many products and services do not receive the recognition they deserve. Brands that achieve breakout success in today’s fast-paced modern world, where grabbing people’s attention is not easy, spend their time wisely on brand development. These brands understand that they need a hook to draw in their audience. They zero in on their audience’s desires and illustrate clearly why they can meet them.

Photo by Peter Aroner on Unsplash

Two Brand Development Must-Haves

1. Use fewer words 

You have 5 seconds to draw people in before they lose interest. A savvy brand slogan that is short and succinct is all you need. 

Everyone knows who these brands are when they see or hear the following slogans:

• “Just Do It” 
• “Think Different” 
• “The Happiest Place on Earth” 
• “A Diamond is Forever”
•  “I’m Lovin’ It” 

These notable brands convey their brand ethos with few words—words that can be placed on a blank canvas but remain recognizable to their consumer. Your brand needs a slogan that reminds people who you are and what you mean to them. 

2. Curate effective visuals

This is an investment that newer brands often shortchange. Understandably, it is costly to launch a brand. However, spending time curating visuals, whether stock or custom photography, motion graphics, or simple video content, for your brand is crucial. Since social media is a driving force for brand visibility, you will need visual goods to reach your audience.

But, purchasing stock photography over time will be costly, and you cannot truly create a brand identity with images that other companies can widely use.

As your brand grows, your visuals should become more exclusive to your company and reflective of your brand messaging.

Creating Brand Familiarity

Generally, the beginning stages are focused on building a home base where people can find you. During this time, your team will research your audience and competitors. This will help you maximize your marketing efforts and reach your target market. 

At the onset, basic brand development should get you started. Your marketing team will create a logo, select colors, photograph products if needed, and build from there. 

Every element you create will be a building block. Each building block should draw a connection to your brand. It is like creating layers to a cake, each layer provides a foundation for the next. The perfect slice will show the consistency of your brand colours, the mood you want to convey, and the feeling you want to evoke when your audience takes their first bite. An unforgettable bite that should forever stay in their memory bank.

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Of course, we must leave you with an example of notable brand development by a familiar brand loved by people around the world. McDonald’s, in one of their recent campaigns, illustrated the power of brand development with adverts that only showcased their breakfast offerings. 

Those who consume McDonald’s products can spot an Egg McMuffin or their famous hashbrowns easily. They do not need to see the brand logo or slogan. 

This is a great example of excellently curated brand development through effective visuals. Yes, a picture is worth 1,000 words.

Editor’s note: While conducting background research for this article, we came across this video simply titled ‘Egg McMuffin’ produced by TBWA\Paris and McDonald’s in 2019 that we just had to share. Yum.

Do you need help making your brand visuals stand out on their own? Let’s talk.