Have you ever wondered what makes a brand a GOOD brand?

I’m pretty sure the first thing that comes into your mind is the logo. Yes, you may be right; but branding is not just the logo. There are other key elements in branding that are quite interesting, and that can differentiate your brand from the competition.

John Jantsch, the best-selling author of the books Duct Tape Marketing, The Commitment Engine, and Duct Tape Selling presented the key elements that define your branding.

According to Jantsch, the design of your logo does not entirely define your company.

These are the elements that would overall give your brand a unique identity:

1) Business Cards – Your business cards must not only include your logo and colors, but reflect the quality of your product and your business. Flimsy paper cards, while effective at distributing information, will reflect poorly on your brand.

2) Emails – You should create and use a uniform email signature for all of the employees. This creates immediate credibility for every employee who may have contact with a client with whom they have not previously interacted, and it helps your emails stand out in inboxes.

3) Workplace – Your location and your logo on the wall are not the only things that have an impact on clients. The sounds, smells, and cleanliness of your workplace can also affect their view of your company.

4) Customer Service – Everyone knows the importance of great customer service. If a company has bad customer service, it can often result in bad reviews and negative referrals. But sometimes it’s small components of your customer service that people remember most.

5) Forms – A lot of businesses use forms to gather information on their clients and customers. While it may be easy to simply throw something together in order to gather the information needed, it is worth it to spend some time designing the forms so they fit with your logo and branding. This goes for Web forms, too.

Read the full article here.