By Ornit Sade-Benkin

Today, Digital Branding Strategy is one of the most important components of a new brand.

A brand without a digital presence is like a car without tires, and a digital presence without a strategy is like a tire without air...

Here at Stratigo we don't believe in just "flat" websites, or just "designed" websites - we believe in a complete process in which we check strategy first and only then design and create the site. We’ll explore everything from a brand's existing customers, from social media to SEO and influencers to current marketing needs so you can make sure your digital brand needs checks all the right boxes.

The Brand is the single most important element of a business or an organization. When developing a new brand today, we look at Digital Branding as one of its most important components. Online considerations are essential to being able to present and then fulfill the promise. 

Digital Branding refers to the multiple techniques we use to develop brands over the wide range of digital channels; websites, individual landing page, portals, email marketing, mobile networks and social media – all have to be carefully considered when building the brand and all these channels need to be backed by a meticulous strategic process.

Exactly like all other brand elements, the digital assets must be carefully defined and designed. It is not enough to make sure that the logo looks great, or the fonts work digitally and the color pallet fits. Much more is required; the brand must become a digital experience!

In this blog, I intend describing how a well-crafted online presence should be planned and executed:

New technologies are redefining the way companies communicate with their target audiences. Branding, both online and offline, is all about strategy, communication and connectivity. We understand that Digital Branding is more than just a web design, or how a logo appears on the screen. It is the total experience... it must tell a story in and of itself.

The customer’s digital journey should seamlessly deliver the same message that the off-line brand delivers; and when I say “off-line” I don’t only mean collateral, print and signage. The brand’s promise must be fulfilled in every possible way. If I go to a store, a tradeshow booth or just pick up the phone for service support – I will expect, and should receive exactly the same promise and experience.  So should it be in the digital world. That’s why a digital presence is one of the first things we look at when starting a new branding project for our clients. 

To plan a client’s first encounter with their new digital presence we have to ask some penetrating questions:

• What does the site need to accomplish? – Its objective

• Who exactly is the target audience and what do they want?

• Is there a compelling reason to purchase?

• Does the client have a current digital presence? If so, what is working or not working in this experience?

• Is the content consistent with the brand’s positioning?

• Is it relevant to the new goals?

When we are asked to develop a digital branding strategy, we take many additional things into consideration: how often the company is capable of updating its digital presence and how its content management system (CMS) should be designed. What Call to Actions (CTAs) would we like to implement?

Our goal is to tell a great story through a well-designed brand experience to make our client’s customers recognize, remember and love the brand. We know that when a brand is well communicated, we create expectations. That’s our job; to digitally create those expectations. It’s the client’s job to fulfill them!

Since digital communication between the brand and the user is direct and immediate, the impression we create allows no second chances. We also know that technological capabilities replace words. We need to be clear, sharp and bold.

 

Case in Point

To better explain the above, I would like to use as an example a project we completed for CodeValue, a leading dynamic software development, UI/UX design, and consulting services firm.  When we met with the CodeValue people they told us they felt the site was cluttered and didn’t provide the right message to the target audiences. Their digital presence didn’t do the job it was meant to do – instead of a powerful and well-established company, it delivered multiple, confusing messages, no clear brand identity, very unclear navigation flow, confusing UX (User Experience), outdated UI (User Interface) and an excess of information.

Check out below CodeValue's old website

 

And check out below the brand new CodeValue's website we created for them...







It took us almost two months just to redefine the digital strategy. We investigated the customer pain points, interviewed people inside and outside the organization, and we thoroughly learned about the market category and the competition. Our solution was presented in an essentially very simple, yet powerful way. We enabled the end-user to find the requested information in a very simple way. During the strategic process we decided to emphasize the HR needs from within the organization and created a unique look for this matter.

It was one of our really inspiring projects and we love the results.

Are you ready to give some life to your digital brand? contact our experts.