Branding is important to small business success for a number of reasons. When done right, it helps you build credibility, attract customers, and promote the stability of your business. Unique brand identities can also give you an edge over the competition by making your business more memorable among consumers.

But what exactly is a brand and how can you make your brand better? Simply put, branding is a combination of the little identifiers that make your business unique. Your brand encompasses your business name, your logo design, and any symbols and terms that tell consumers who you are and what you do.

The trick to great branding is to establish a captivating business identity from the very start. Here are some tips for building a better small business brand.

Logos and document design are essential if you want to make your business instantly recognizable. But it’s also important to fine-tune your brand. Use consistent color schemes and fonts on all marketing collateral. That includes everything from your business cards to your e-newlsetters.

When branding your small business with a tagline, make your statement as short and powerful as possible. Focus on the aspects of your business that separate you from your competition, because your message should make you instantly recognizable to clients.

Finding the right voice and personality for your brand identity will help you connect with your ideal customers. Most small businesses do better taking a down-to-earth and conversational approach to message branding, but you can’t count on it. Do your research.

From logos and colors to fonts and messaging, it’s imperative that you maintain consistency. When business is slow, you might be tempted to fiddle with your brand by testing a new trend. However, once you’ve settled on a brand, changing things up without good reason can cause you to lose any footing you previously gained in the marketplace.

Every time you communicate with a potential customer or a current customer, it’s an opportunity to reinforce your brand. From email signatures to forum posting signatures, use your logo and tagline every time you connect with consumers.

Measuring your success is the only way you’ll know what works and what doesn’t. When you’re branding efforts are no longer driving the results you expect, it’s time to revitalize your brand. It’s up to you to decide whether that means it’s time for a complete overhaul of your business’s identity or if it’s time for a few minor tweaks to bring your message up to date.

It’s hard to put a number on the value of a great brand, but there is no denying that good branding efforts get noticed. It’s a like a promise you make with your customers, and it’s a promise they won’t soon forget. What steps are you taking to make sure your brand remains consistent across all marketing platforms?

Written by Carol Tice 

Strong branding is critical in our ad-cluttered world. After all, you want to ensure that you're the first provider in your niche that comes to customers' minds.

But what if your brand is, well, just you? How can you be memorable and stand out?

Never fear -- solopreneurs can have snappy branding, too. Here's a quick guide and some examples of one-person businesses that have great, memorable brands:

1.  Make it visual. Simple branding is best, especially if you can make an association in people's minds that helps them remember you. Two of my local realtors are Ed Aro and Penny McLaughlin. You guessed it -- Ed's logo is an arrow, and Penny's is a one-cent piece with her face on it in profile instead of Lincoln. Penny has had so much success with her brand that she grew into a real-estate empire with eight brokers, a.k.a. "Penny's Team." Their trucks are often seen around town, with that familiar penny logo on the side.
    
2. Be sure it's tweetable. Social media is increasingly important in coming up with your brand concept. Look what happened to Netflix when they didn't check if their chosen spinoff brand name, Qwikster, was available on Twitter. It turned out to be already taken by someone who wanted to post about their drug use. When you're choosing a brand name, consider how and whether it would work in social media.
    
3. Have fun. Some of my favorite solopreneur brands have humorous or whimsical elements. For instance, a proofreader and writing-consultant friend of mine, Stefanie Flaxman, is the Revision Fairy -- check out her cool cartoon. And franchise expert Joel Libava is the Franchise King, down to posing with a red-velvet-and-gold crown (once again, great visual). What better way to instantly communicate that he's the top expert in his field?
    
4. Make sure it fits. If the entrepreneurs I've cited above were uncomfortable with the brands they've created, their brands would flounder. You may be living with this brand for a long time, so don't go with a brand concept that embarrasses you. Customers will sense that, and you won't promote your brand as enthusiastically.
    
5. Be consistent. Once you've come up with your branding, you want to use it everywhere. Get new business cards, magnet signs for your car, stationery and a new sign for your store. Don't leave any of your old, less-awesome branding lurking around to confuse people.