Why measure the effectiveness of your company’s brand awareness?
First, what is brand awareness and brand recognition? When a consumer refers to a product or service as a household name, for example: Pepsi, Coca-Cola (Coke), Shell Oil, McDonald’s, Nike, or Kleenex, the consumer is speaking of its brand recognition (or brand awareness). The consumer recognizes and associates the golden arches with McDonald’s, or the swoosh design with Nike, and many are conditioned to refer to a tissue as “a Kleenex.”
For businesses, small to large, brand recognition is very important. Brand recognition refers to how people, preferably in your target market, are aware of your company’s name and the products and services you offer. A company brand, however, is not just about the company name. A company brand can be represented as a logo or design that identifies with your company’s products or services, and differentiates it from competitive brands. Additionally, a brand must exemplify what your business stands for, and how it resonates in the minds of consumers. Your brand also has to communicate the value of your products or services, and do so in a way that consumers can remember – despite the thousands of marketing and adverting campaigns consumers are bombarded with on a daily basis.
Brand recognition is the potential of the consumer to retrieve the knowledge of the brand when questioned about the brand or shown an image of the brand logo or design. Brand awareness is the ability of the consumer to remember the brand with reference to the product or service when it comes time for a consumer to make a purchase or conduct a transaction. The higher the brand awareness of your product or service, the higher sales will be.
