At each step of your company’s development and expansion, it’s very likely you’ll have quite a list of fundamental prerequisites for further success. But have you placed branding on that list? While the aesthetics of your business may seem like a secondary priority, in reality, having a strong image is one of the most essential steps towards standing out in your field and building a loyal clientele. Your potential for expansion in particular will be largely influenced by your branding, and it should therefore be one of your top priorities when growth is your goal.

 1. With a cohesive image, your company can be sought out and identified with ease

Almost anywhere in the world, people recognize the golden arches of McDonalds, the classic red and white Coca-Cola typography, or even the white and green lady of the Starbucks logo. In unfamiliar environments, these familiar logos give us a sense of comfort, of predictability, of something we know and can trust to serve us well. As demonstrated in each of these cases, the psychological connection between your image and positive experiences with your company should not be underestimated. In the same way that getting to know a person makes us feel a connection with them and enables us to pick them out of a crowd, presenting a clear and consistent image of your company’s identity allows for more meaningful engagement with clients, gives them the comfort of familiarity when working with you, and, in turn, promotes customer loyalty and the potential for growth.

2. To clients, you’re only as professional as your branding

As much as we’ve been told not to judge a book by its cover, we all do it constantly. Imagine you are conducting job interviews. The first candidate comes in with a smart black suit, her hair neatly coiffed and her shoes clean and shiny. The second candidate comes in unshaven, tracking mud into the office on his boots, wearing a baggy flannel shirt and ripped jeans. Now the truth that we all know is that both candidates may actually do the job equally well. However, you are much more likely to hire the first candidate as she has communicated professionalism and a higher respect for the work by the way she has presented herself for the interview. The same principle applies to the way you present your business. If you are competing with Company X for clients, even though both of you may do the job equally well, clients will be drawn to the company that does a better job of presenting its image. This is why it’s critical not to think of branding as just making your company look pretty; rather it needs be thought of as your main opportunity to instantly communicate who you are as a business, while giving the client an idea of the quality of experience they can expect while working with you.

3. Developing cohesive branding gives you a blueprint that eases future business management and maintenance

One of the best parts of developing cohesive branding is that once it’s done, maintaining your image is a piece of cake. Once colours have been decided on, typography has been selected, and a logo is designed, these elements can be referred to and reused with ease. As your business expands and new branches open, maintaining a cohesive image and presentation of professionalism is now effortless, with a million tiny details sorted even before they become an issue.

4. Presenting yourself well is critical to making people want to work with and/or for your company, and is therefore a crucial part of your potential for expansion.

Like a good friend or new acquaintance at a dinner party, your company has soul, personality, and appearance. Where a person is comprised of their sense of humour, virtues, ambitions, history, physical appearance, gait, laugh, and more, your company is a fusion of its history, team, values, goals, and commitments. When your company presents its identity in a manner that is clear, consistent, and professional, you give clients and collaborators a sense of confidence in their knowledge of you and relationship with you. Furthermore, you make yourself much more attractive to work with and for. By showing that you are attentive to every element of your business and don’t let anything slip through the cracks half-done, clients trust that you will dedicate the same care and attention to the work you do for them, while employees will recognize your work environment is a passionate and rewarding one where they will be involved in work that is exclusively of the highest quality in the field.