Branding your food and drink company can give you the best chance of long-term success.
It’s no secret that the food and drink sector is one of the most competitive globally. However, the spoils for those who forge their way into people’s hearts and stomachs can be seemingly endless.
The journey for budding entrepreneurs who want to venture into the food and drink sector is often hampered by much larger opposition. To find your way to those sought-after spoils, you need a whole lot of innovative thinking and an eye for the wants and needs of the consumer. The beauty of the sector itself is that it’s an incredibly fun, high-paced and enjoyable place to be.
First of all, you need a brilliant product, something as tasty as Galaxy Caramel or as moreish as Pringles. There are other snack options available, but those are our faves, so we are going with those. Anyway, we are pretty sure; if you’ve made it to this blog, you’ll be past the development phase. So we’re utilising our experience and know-how to share some tips about how best to brand your business.
Brand or a business
We remember the days growing up and dreaming of building a business of our own, but how many of us dreamt of owning a brand? Well, not many, if any at all. This is mainly because the term ‘Brand’ wasn’t fashionable way back then. The dinosaurs never spoke of the brands they wanted to work for; it was all business.
However, times have changed, and now the business world understands that it’s a brand that we all want to own. If you’ve never read one of our blogs before, you may be wondering what the difference between the two terms is. Well, to keep it simple, when we say ‘Brand’, we are speaking about every aspect of your work which dictates the attitudes of the potential customer towards you. Your food and drink company branding is essentially everything you do and equally what you don’t do.
Your brand will be governed almost wholly by what you lay out in your brand guidelines. This document will highlight everything that represents your business so that any freelancers or design agencies you may hire will thoroughly understand your brand.
Guidelines
Your food and drink company branding guidelines will include information such as the fonts you use on your marketing and the tone of voice of your website, the colours associated with your brand and the dimensions in which your logo must be displayed. Failing to put the necessary legwork into your branding can result in mixed messages and poor brand recognition further down the line. Plan now and reap the rewards later!
Our top tip would be to make sure you understand what it means to build a brand. The food and drink sector can be a fickle place, and consumers tend to buy the brands they already know. To force yourself into their minds, your brand needs to be relatable and also stand out against the crowd.
Build a thorough brand guidelines document. Once you are in love with your food and drink company branding, maybe after the help of a brilliant branding agency… make sure people who may help you along the way understand all the dos and don’ts and know what it is that your brand stands for.
Packaging design
Every great brand is propped up by eye-catching and innovative design work. Starting with the baby steps when sculpting the perfect logo and the in-depth and arduous hours spent piecing together your dream website.
Every decision you make will help your growth within the sector, that’s why it’s essential you know what you want to achieve before you dive into the deep end. In the food and drink sector, there isn’t any room for belly flops; you’ve got to be smooth and aerodynamic if you are going to swim, not sink.
One of the truly essential design elements of the branding process is when it’s time to work on your package design. Packaging is crucial in the food and drinks sector for several reasons. Cutting corners is a massive no!
Stand out packaging
Firstly, it’s vital that your packaging is well branded and easily noticeable when placed amongst your competitors (literally if you’re in the shops). You need to think about what it is that drives your customers to purchase. For example, if we look at the energy drinks sector, do we think a simple packaging design will stand out beside Monster and Relentless?
Will a brand that’s easily forgettable be able to rival Red Bull? It is essential to understand what customers want from your packaging before passing your brief on to a package design agency.
Secondly, your packaging has the extra job of keeping your product in perfect condition. It’s pointless spending your hard-earned cash on a brand in the food and drink sector if your product arrives spoiled. In fact, it’s outright madness.
Reach out to those with sector experience. An agency with an understanding of the best materials to use and design know-how within your desired sector will significantly improve your chances of success.
Branding with Create8
When it comes to bespoke branding projects, look no further than Create8. Our team has heaps of experience and specific food and drinks sector knowledge to help catapult your project into the world of food and drink. Check out some of our work and let us know what you think.
Taking it to market
You’re probably sick of the word branding, but this is where the fun begins. Marketing your business can be a scary process, but with some help, there’s no reason why you can’t enjoy the journey.
The beauty of building a brand is that it goes hand-in-hand with a brilliant marketing campaign. This is because you will already have established what the brand itself stands for and how you want to interact with your potential clients or customers.
Starting with your socials, brand your business as one that values those who interact with your posts. Try building a following by incentivising interaction.
For example, giveaways can be immensely popular, as well as freebies and competitions. Find out quickly what products your clients want to purchase and start offering them at discounted rates to those who subscribe to your channels and email marketing.
Your marketing efforts should always align with your website, logo and all other elements of your branding. A uniform and recognisable marketing campaign can drive traffic to your food and drink company branding quicker than word of mouth and different, more traditional approaches.
Our top tips for marketing your brand are consistency and clarity. Once you share a message that differs from how your customers have previously related to your brand, you cause confusion and potentially alienate them.
Think long and hard about how you want to interact with all of those eyes that are fixed firmly on you, or, if you’re struggling, revisit your brand guidelines and get it spot on.
Mould breakers, not rule-breakers
Every piece of branding your food and drink company puts out is being watched stringently, don’t forget that. The food and drink sector is governed by lots of rules and regulations as to what you can and can’t say, as well as those food standards regulations which cannot be broken.
Whilst you want to reinvent the sector in your own unique way, you must be careful that in doing so, you adhere to all the necessary regulations. Failing to follow the rules in this sector can lead to hefty fines and lots of wasted money, and we wouldn’t want that now, would we!
It’s true, there is a whole lot of money to be made if you are successful in your food and drink adventure; however, this isn’t an easy journey you are about to embark on. If it were, we’d all be doing it!
The food and drink sector is incredibly competitive, but finding your slice of success can be very lucrative; hey, Red Bull own an F1 team!
The truth is that reaching the very top can seem almost impossible without a helping hand. So, why not look for an agency that can help you with all of your branding needs?
So, here’s a suggestion, take a look at some of our recent projects, from logo design to brand packaging and everything in between. Have a look around and feel free to get in touch, and let’s discuss how we can build something amazingly bespoke for your business.
Take a look at some more of our blogs for helpful tips, tricks and advice:
