A good business owner knows that his brand is his economic asset. He knows that his business will need the services of a brand consultant to develop, manage, and evaluate a successful brand. However, if you are struggling in business and need assistance to solve it, stay glued to this piece as I go deeper to help you understand some major facts about a brand consultant.
A few years ago, my friend Jane owned a handmade jewelry business in which she invested a lot of resources. She has a great passion for her jewelry business, and she also uses quality products, yet she struggles and cannot stand out in the market. I applied my expertise as a brand consultant and redefined her brand. Afterward, she identified her selling point, and her sales increased, including customer loyalty. My experience with Jane explains the role of brand consultants in turning a struggling business into a thriving brand. Furthermore, I will help you learn about brand consultant services, and how to become one.
Key Points
- Brand consultants focus on creating an identity for a company, product, or service by applying strategies that help brands create memorable, engaging, and sustainable brands.
- The salary rates of a brand consultant can differ based on the location where you are employed
- To become a qualified brand consultant, you need to get a proper education, obtain professional experience, pursue a brand strategist certification, study brand consultant duties and responsibilities, and also compose your brand consultant resume.
- A brand consultant offers services in web auditing, market analysis, the voice of customer research analysis, developing buyers’ personas, developing brand strategy, and defining brand architecture.
Brand Consultant
Brand consultants offer advice and guidance to help transform and improve your brand. They focus on creating an identity for a company, product, or service. Brand consultants employ strategies that help brands create memorable, engaging, and sustainable brands. Additionally, some new businesses need more ideas and advice from the brand consultant on how to build their business and make their identity known.
As a brand consultant, we are known to perform comprehensive evaluations on all aspects of the brand materials of your company. Also, to promote the growth of your company, brand consultants may focus on fostering a unique voice or image to attract the attention of people to patronize your business.
Brand consultants often provide consulting services to multiple companies at the same time, but I will advise you to reach common agreements to avoid conflicts of interest. In this agreement, they will promise not to consult with competing brands at the same time. One time, I was helping two fashion companies. While on this project, I realized that the strategy I was using for one could help the other.
So, to avoid conflicts, I agreed with both companies. In the agreement, I promised not to assist any other competing fashion brand at the same time and also to keep the strategies for each client separate. They accepted the idea and appreciated my commitment to their brand’s success. Indeed, my suggestion for a common agreement between both companies helped to prevent a conflict of interest while providing each client with full attention and expertise.
Read Also: Digital Marketing Consultant: Duties, Salary & Becoming One
Brand Consultant Salary
The salary statistics of a brand consultant in the USA as of March 2024 state that the represented employees earn $70,319. Precisely, the pay rate per month is $5,860, and per week it is $1352, or $35.02 per hour. Being in this profession and after proper research on the job market, I learned that salary rates can differ based on where you are employed. I derived an average wage, stating that the lowest annual salary is $70,319 and the highest rate is $70,319.
Read Also: BRANDING STRATEGY: Meaning, Examples, Marketing Strategies, and Consultant
How to Become a Brand Consultant
For someone aspiring to be a brand consultant, I recommend that you learn, research, and understand the primary elements involved in brand consulting. When you have more knowledge and professional experience in branding, you will be able to improve your skills in analysis, communication, technicalities, and design, which will skyrocket your career. Here, I offer some steps you can take to become a qualified brand consultant.
#1. Get a Proper Education
The first step to becoming a brand consultant is to pursue your education and get a bachelor’s degree. Getting a degree in courses like English, marketing, economics, design, and communications offers techniques and knowledge one can utilize when pursuing a career in brand consulting. Also, you must consider how much education you want to acquire. According to my findings, 85% of brand consultants have bachelor’s degrees, and 20% have master’s degrees. Even some are college degree holders.
#2. Obtain Professional Experience
Professional experience provides a deeper comprehension of the processes involved in brand management. I suggest that you apply for positions in social media as coordinator, brand ambassador, brand designer, and marketing assistant, which will permit you to acquire more experience in implementing and creating advertising strategies. This is also a great opportunity for you to learn how professionals collaborate to improve workflow and how to deliver effective advertising campaigns.
#3. Pursue a Brand Strategist Certification
A brand strategy certification will help enhance your knowledge and skills in branding. It is a practical method that provides you with insight into the process professionals utilize in brand consulting. This will impress your prospective employers that you are dedicated to growth in your profession and also increase your job opportunities.
#4. Study Brand Consultant Duties and Responsibilities.
The primary responsibilities you need to become a brand consultant consist of conducting market analysis, advertising, sales promotion, and sampling. They are also responsible for managing social media sites, advising on product development, and organizing celebrity placements. Moreover, other responsibilities can include monitoring marketing trends, overseeing advertising, executing brand management plans, and marketing activities to ascertain the delivery of the message.
#5. Compose your Brand Consultant Resume
When you finish gaining all the requirements to become a brand consultant, write your resume. Ensure that you include the key information recruiters expect to see on a brand consultant’s resume. Here is a template that will make writing a resume much easier and faster.
BusinessYield Templates for Brand Consultants
Brand Consultant Services
My experience in brand consulting qualifies me to present proven ways to render services as a brand consultant and also create a short- or long-term paycheck. Furthermore, I will reveal ways you can render various services as a brand consultant.
#1. Website Audit
Web auditing is a very good and beneficial service a brand consultant can provide. Some businesses are looking for an SEO/marketing consultant to help them rank on their website. Instead of doing so, I advise you to get the services of a brand consultant to help you figure out areas where you need improvement to achieve your goals. Some areas that need optimization on-site include:
- Content pages that need to be modified or added to match the intended needs of their target buyers.
- Making proper SEO optimization principles like adequate H1 and H2 tags, metadata, and image tasks.
- To assist in proper compliance factors like a site map, terms of service, and contact information.
- Identify improper linking structures and broken links
- Identify low-quality and duplicate content
#2. Market Analysis
I suggest three basic components that are necessary to be used together: competitive analysis, market intent, and online presence. Moreover, combining the onsite and market analysis is a simple combination to sell. People will buy both if they are in the right position. You cannot understand how to optimize your client’s website if you don’t know the price of their market share, the competitors, and how much the market share can gain.
If you do your competitive analysis properly, you won’t just identify the main competitors; you will also underestimate why you outranked them and what you need to do to dominate them.
I recall one time a client, Mr. Dan, approached me. He was struggling to compete with some big companies and to stand out in the competitive market. I conducted a comprehensive market analysis of his competitors, which helped Mr. Dan not only stand out but dominate the market. Indeed, my guidance and expertise in assisting my client to make some changes that took him to the peak of the market, prove that combining onsite and marketing analysis, along with understanding your competitors, will help you succeed in the market.
#3. Analyze Voice Of Customer Research
As a brand consultant, I advise you to find out what the customers’ wants, wishes, and needs are, it will help you understand what motivates them to buy. I call it understanding the customer’s pains, gains, and some other crucial things. A few years ago, while performing my duties as a brand consultant, I met a pottery maker named Chris. He was struggling to sell his products. I employed voice of the customer (VOC) research to learn about his customer’s wants, wishes, and needs.
With this knowledge, I guided him to reshape his brand and advised him on the importance of addressing the customer’s pain and gains. He took my advice to make pottery into more than just items but also memories. Afterward, he began to connect with people through art, and it made him popular. So, understanding customers’ desires and sharing stories can help transform a struggling business into a successful one.
#4. Develop Buyers Personas
This involves creating a real-life sketch of each target customer. Here, you identify your key points for action. I suggest that you create customer personas for primary, secondary, and tertiary audiences to assure greater relevance. It is best to understand what the customers care about to connect with and influence them.
Some time ago, I encountered a local businessman, David, who was in great need of help on how to reach his customers despite having a great product, I encouraged him on how to reach his customers by suggesting that he develop detailed buyer personas for his primary, secondary, and tertiary audiences. Afterward, David was able to tailor his marketing to connect with his customers, which led to more sales and loyalty from his customers. Indeed, I stated the importance of understanding your customers on a personal level because it helps develop the buyer’s persona to help your business connect with your customers and improve sales.
#5. Develop a Brand Strategy
The brand consultants render services that help identify key goals for brands. A brand consultant determines the best strategy and how the client achieves its goals. The main role of a brand consultant is to give expert advice and guide you to position your brand in the market in a different way from your competitors. As a brand consultant, I provide my clients with actionable recommendations and support throughout our process. These recommendations may include developing marketing campaigns, refining brand messaging, and optimizing brand communications.
#6. Define the Brand Architecture
Businesses with multiple brands can seek the expertise of a brand consultant to make sure that each brand stays within a brand architecture. Brand architecture provides the framework that notifies how a brand is structured and how a company’s master brands and subbrands relate to each other. Furthermore, the services of a brand consultant include helping brands develop a brand architecture that matches their overall business strategy and objectives. This means defining the role of each brand in the portfolio and clarifying their relationship with each other. Also, they ensure that they are consistent with the company’s overall brand positioning.
Read Also: PERSONAL BRAND STATEMENTS: Definition, Examples & Benefits
What Is the Difference Between a Brand Consultant and a Brand Strategist?
They sometimes work together because some companies advertise that they provide both services. However, the difference lies in their type of work. A brand consultant’s work is most often tactical and operational. Brand strategists investigate the market, competitors, and current trends.
What Should I Look for in a Brand Consultant?
- Make sure they understand your company and what it’s trying to accomplish.
- Study their background and experience.
- Assess how they communicate
- Make sure you understand their workflow and process
How Much Does Branding Cost for a Small Business?
Initially, it costs $2,000 to $10,000 on average for small businesses. Their cost depends on the level of work they do for you.
What Is the Difference Between a Brand Manager and a Brand Consultant?
A brand manager works on the maintenance and internal execution of the brand, while a brand consultant offers strategic guidance and external insights.
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