If you have been in advertising for more than a day, you must have been involved in some kind of branding argument.

The most common, ulcer inducing phrase that you will ever hear must certainly be: “… make the logo bigger.”

There is just something about companies and their logos. Seems like many of them have a one-to-one direct corelation between their logo and their brand. For many companies, that is actually a sad truth. The only element of their business that is recognisable and distinct from the competition is their logo.

Is your brand just a logo? Your brand represents the total experience of who you are, what you stand for and how you are percieved by your publics. In this context, the logo is but a small part of your brand. In fact, when you create your brand properly, you can be identified even when no one sees your logo. Walk pass any McDonald’s, or Pizza Hut. Before you even see the logo or if you somehow missed the logo, chances are, you will still be able to identify them. The layout of the restaurant, the color of the tables, chairs and the overall design already communicate sufficiently to identify them. Think of the BMW “grill”, the Harley Davidson “growl” and many others; certainly the logo is not the only defining factor for a brand.

I just read this really interesting article over at Forbes. Title was “Beyond the Logo” and it makes for a really interesting read. But branding at that level is really limited to the top of the branding tree. Until and unless your brand is “ubiquitous”, I doubt if you will have the same results. But there are elements that we will all do well to take note of.

I find it really sad when people are not able to fully leverage every aspect of their business to support their brand. Usually, small business owners try to save money by cutting off the “fluff” and just getting the “essentials” done. What they fail to realise is the incredible amount of branding that they are missing out on. Very little incremental costs, but a lot of long term effects. Even big companies are guilty of this. Especially when they have just spent a few million dollars on a campaign, many managers mistakenly believe that they have done all that they need to do.

Branding is not about your logo. It is not just about advertising. It goes beyond mere marketing. Think about this.