Study brand management at IIE-Vega Strategic selfies, trend-worthy tweets and familyoriented Facebook snaps are critical to establishing powerful social media personas and brands worthy of a never-ending list of followers. It’s for this reason that social media has made brand management a real concern for entrepreneurs looking to kick-start their business in the digital age. “For aspiring entrepreneurs, developing and managing their brand is key to their success. In the same way that a social media profile can resonate with its followers based on what it posts and the content it communicates – and not just a glamorous profile picture – starting a business requires brand management that extends well beyond designing a company logo and beautiful website,” says Shevon Lurie, managing director at Vega (a brand of The Independent Institute of Education). The road to starting a business is no easy task, and most entrepreneurs would be mistaken in thinking they can ignore the importance of brand management when starting their business.
Why is investing in a brand so important? Established brands can answer the much-soughtafter what, where, when, who and how questions that customers may ask about the business. This is done through strategic communication that maps out a brand’s messaging. It can, therefore, be said that brand management encapsulates the advertising and marketing elements of a business and ensures that businesses remain visible to consumers. A well-thought-out brand strategy forms a perceived idea of the quality of a business’ offering and establishes its position in the market, which, in an already cluttered market, is extremely important. To ensure this is done effectively, businesses need to undergo the somewhat complex task of identifying the mission, the benefits and features of the products and services being offered, and the quality entrepreneurs would like customers to associate with their brands. Continued on the next page...
