TIRED OF ALWAYS BATTLING HEAD-TO-HEAD WITH YOUR COMPETITORS?
Do you want to stop competing mostly on price?
Are you frustrated because customers see you as being identical to everyone else in your industry?
If so, then you need to properly differentiate yourself from the pack.
This is what branding is all about.
It clearly tells the customer how you’re different and why that difference will solve their problem. It will position you as a top player in your industry, and new leads will be leaning in your direction even before you speak to them.
ZIG WHEN THEY ZAG.
Odds are, your competitors don’t put much thought into their brands.
They don’t have a point of differentiation, and they don’t look trustworthy because their brands look junky, unclear, or non-existent. It won’t take many bad Yelp reviews to sink them.
Having a well-thought-out brand will make them look like amateurs by comparison.
PERFORM A JEDI MIND TRICK ON YOUR CUSTOMERS.
People DO judge a book by its cover.
We may have the best product, the highest quality, the most useful software, etc.; if we present them in a slipshod manner, they will be perceived as slipshod;
if we present them in a creative, professional manner, we will impute the desired qualities.
-Mark Markkula, Apple, Jan 3, 1977
The brands I create tell customers what to think and persuade them to take action.
Without a thought-out brand, you’re letting the customer formulate their own opinion of your company, good or bad.
Most large, established companies take total control over the impression left in the customer’s mind. Apple, Nike, BMW, and countless others wouldn’t be where they are now without great branding.
SO MUCH MORE THAN A LOGO.
My brand platforms are made up of nine components that permeate through your entire business. These are:
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Differentiating Strategy and Research
Identifying what makes you different and why a customer should care is the single most important part of your brand. Everything else will serve to etch your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) in customers’ minds.
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Logo
Your logo is more than a little design for your name. It’s an ad for your company that will get seen more than any other advertising you’ll ever run, so should do a ton of heavy lifting.
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Name
Your name should be unique so it doesn’t get buried way down in SEO, or your customer’s minds. If you already have a lot of equity invested in your name, I can reverse engineer the brand around it.
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Manifesto
Not to be confused with a ‘mission statement’ which is usually a dry statement about corporate goals. A manifesto is customer-facing, written with engaging charm, and tells what’s in it for them.
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Taglines
Think Different. It’s Finger-Lickin’ Good. The Happiest Place On Earth. You probably know the companies behind these taglines. Your tagline is your elevator speech, written concisely and persuasively.
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Brand Image
If you’re a professional, then your entire brand should look just as professional; as well as unique, consistent, and quickly-recognizable.
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Tone
Not paying attention to your tone is a huge mistake. With the wrong tone, you may be turning customers off without realizing it.
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Voice and Copywriting
Having personality in your brand is a huge opportunity for you to differentiate yourself. ‘The Most Interesting Man in the World’ is a perfect example of a brand using voice as a differentiator.
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Brand Book
All brand elements are written into a comprehensive guide with a full set of digital files so there is no deviation from your brand. The brand book lays out all of the specifics, rules, and procedures.
WHO AM I?
I have 25 of years of experience as an ad agency Creative Director. Trained as both an art director and copywriter, I’ve created award-winning national campaigns for Jack in the Box, Kraft, Qwest Telecom, Activision, IKEA, LifeLock, Nissan, and many more; and I’ve seen my campaigns greatly expand clients’ market share.
I have a BFA from Parsons School of Design and an MS in Communication Strategy from Northwestern University. I live in LA with my wife, daughter, and a small dog that looks like some kind of a rat-boy creature.
You can view my complete creative advertising portfolio at www.davegassman.com
TESTIMONIALS
Jason Land – Owner, Guitar Ninjas Music School
Alanis Morissette – Rock Star
“Dave is a branding wizard. He’s doesn’t just make things pretty. He takes a marketing approach to the brand and makes it special and differentiated from the competition. He listened to our story and our thinking, and from there built the entire system for Brätworks. He created the strategic direction, including the name and concept for LemonShark. Without Dave, we would have been just other players in saturated markets. With Dave, our restaurants were turned into something unique, compelling, and profitable.”
Tobi Miller – Founder, LemonShark Poke and Brätworks Hot Dogs
“David invented an entire branding program for a new major entertainment complex in Ridgecrest, California that is currently under construction. He made everything from the name to the logo and all of the signage and communication and pulled it together in a beautiful package. His branding also informed the architecture, environmental design, and communication materials.”