Remember, remember, the month of November
When so many product are bought.
I can think of no reason, this key shopping season
Your business should be forgot.

November is that rare month where historical events and convenient rhyme schemes meet. Whether you’re recognizing ‘the war to end all wars’ on the 11th or the end of a revolution that never happened on the 5th, the reason for the season is remembrance.

It’s fitting, then, that this month we’re focusing on brand memorability.

We’re kicking it off by explaining why brand memorability is important, how it can be obtained, and then finally closing with a special limited-time ‘Novemberance’ offer.

Already know about branding? Follow the link to skip to the offer.

Why is a memorable brand marketing strategy important?

You can’t recommend what you don’t know.

First, let’s state the obvious: If your branding is memorable, people are more likely to remember it.

That isn’t to say that elements outside of your branding and marketing can’t be memorable on their own: If you’re a plumber who is friendly, skilled, and reasonably priced, then your clients are going to want to refer them to their friends and family. But will they remember the name of your company? Could they recommend you when they don’t have your card handy, to a friend in line at the cinema or a friend at work? Even more, if they lost your card, could they find you at all?

If it’s not worth remembering, it’s not worth noticing.

Memorability is a keystone in your entire brand marketing strategy: It represents the likelihood that you will stand out from your competition. Studies have shown that most people don’t even consciously register half of the advertising they come across on a daily basis. Making sure that you’re seen, acknowledged, and remembered takes time, effort, careful planning, and solid marketing.

To be remembered is to be respected.

Memorability works on a subconscious level, serving as a measure of authority. People expect quality business to stand out from the crowd. If you’re the first name that pops into their head when they think of your field, then their brain registers you as being the foremost authority.

This is also why unmemorable branding that blends into the white noise of the marketplace results in associations with ‘no-name brand’ or ‘knock-off quality’. And, since these associations are subconscious, that means these associations could taint every aspect of your business.

How do I make sure my marketing is memorable?

The easiest way? Ask us.

The specifics of an effective strategy will vary greatly based upon your industry, your location, your target demographic, your brand image, and a number of other factors. You won’t be able to find the answer in a blog post. (If you could, then everyone would be the same, and it wouldn’t be memorable.)

In broad terms, there are three keys that a solid brand marketing strategy will pursue:

Be Great

The first step is to have branding that’s actually worth remembering. For many companies, this could necessitate a complete re-branding, particularly for old companies whose brand marks use old design elements, dated fonts, or simply aren’t designed to be as flexible as modern marketing requires.

You’re also going to need brand consistency across the board. We’ve already done an article on this, which you can find by following the link.

Keep in mind that changes to branding doesn’t always have to be a complete tear-down; sometimes a unique colour scheme, a more unique font, or a letter-mark for smaller applications is enough to bring your old brand up to date.

Be Seen

The more often someone sees your branding, the more likely they are to remember you when they need your services. Remarketing or strategically-focused AdWords campaigns, billboards on commuter routes can accomplish this out-of-home, monthly newsletters, regular mailers—there are any number of ways to hit your target demographic repeatedly with your branding and message.

This will vary widely based upon a number of factors such as target, service area, industry, advertising budget, and so forth.

Be Useful

The ultimate goal that any decently brand marketing strategy should pursue is something that potential customers will directly engage with. I had a direct marketing specialist call this the “Hey, Martha!” appeal: Your target sees your material and, rather than ignoring it, throwing it away, or becoming frustrated with you, they nudge their significant other to show them.

This is the primary purpose of branded promotional materials: Every time someone uses your branded pen, sticks something to their fridge with your branded magnet, pours a drink from your branded decanter, plays a game with your branded playing cards, tightens a screw with your branded screwdriver, gets down with your branded condoms, or whatever, they’re exposed to your branding.

Even better, they’re associating you with usefulness, practicality, and whatever clever association you made with your brand items. (Just make sure you spring for a decent quality; you don’t want to be associated with something that’s cheap and busted.)

Be Remembered and Save with our Novemberance promo

To run with the theme of remembrance, we’re pleased to announce our ‘Novemberance’ promo: For the entire month of November, we will offer a free consultation on how you can increase your memorability through branding and marketing.

On top of that, we’re knocking 15% off of graphic design for all non-stationery promotional items. This means pens, lanyards, posters, collectible figurines—you name it.

We’ll make this a November to be remembered.

Want to request a free ‘Novemberance’ consultation? Already know what you need and want to take advantage of that graphic design discount? Contact us today. Want to learn more about the pitfalls of poor branding and marketing? Check out our article on how poor marketing can reduce the value of your service.