A brand, in the eyes of marketing experts, is a good or service that distinguishes itself from competitors. Design, packaging, and advertising components work together to form the brand and set the product apart from its rivals.

The brand equity of the company that makes the product is enhanced by the product. A well-developed brand adds significant value to a business and gives it an advantage over rivals in the same sector. In order to protect their brands legally, many businesses register trademarks.

An intangible asset made up of numerous components is a brand. Together, these components give buyers information about a product and motivations to choose it over rivals. The brand may suggest that the product is superior to its rivals in terms of efficiency, usability, taste, price, class, hipness, or environmental friendliness.

Of course, when the product is nearly identical to less expensive rivals, this is the most difficult. Ibuprofen, for instance, is sold under the brand name Advil. Its parent firm works to persuade customers that Advil’s ibuprofen is a superior option to the less expensive generic forms of ibuprofen that are displayed next to it on pharmacy shelves.

Elements of a Brand

A product’s logos and slogans are elements of its brand and are designed to support a product’s brand identity.

Allstate’s slogan, “You’re in good hands with Allstate,” was introduced in the 1950s. It suggests that its insurance customers can count on it being reliable and competent when they need its help. Its commercials reinforce the message.

Other slogans are harder to translate but nevertheless become an intrinsic part of a brand’s identity. Since the 1930s, the slogan for Kellogg Rice Crispies has been “Snap! Crackle! Pop!” It says that the product adds a pleasing noise to your breakfast but also evokes images of the cheery elves that serve as the cereal’s commercial spokesmen.

Standing Out From the Competition

Successful marketing keeps a company’s brand front and center in people’s minds, at least at the moment of decision-making. That’s why the brand is considered to be one of a company’s most valuable and important assets. It carries tremendous monetary value, affecting both the bottom line and, for public companies, shareholder value.

A company can become inseparable from its brand. Coca-Cola the soft drink is synonymous with Coca-Cola itself, even though the company now owns Schweppes, Dr. Pepper, and Hi-C, among hundreds of other brands.

Newer brands face a great deal more urgency in establishing themselves with consumers. Findstack estimates that a product’s website has precisely 0.5 milliseconds to convince a consumer to stay or go.

Top 100 Brands That Get Branding

Despite the intangibility of a brand, it is difficult to dispute how powerful it can be at increasing a company’s bottom line. Any company’s intangible assets may include brand value, which can be essential.

These types of intangible assets, including patents and brand names, are becoming more important to a company’s overall value. According to a 2020 estimate, intangibles now account for 90% of the market value of the S&P 500, up from 22% in 1995.

Based on an annual ranking from Brand Finance, this graph displays the top 100 brands in the world as of 2023, illuminating the importance of brand equity for a company’s position in the market.

In 38 countries, Brand Finance looked at more than 5,000 businesses (and, in the example of organizations like Alphabet and Meta, their subsidiary brands).

Read Also: Top Branding And Marketing Speakers

In general, a brand’s worth reflects the distribution of profits attributable to the brand.

Even after recording a 20% year on year decline for 2023, the $6.9 trillion total value of the world’s top 100 most valuable brands still sits well above the rankings’ 2020 level of almost $5 trillion. And this $6.9 trillion also comes out higher than the value predicted by the rankings’ pre-pandemic growth trajectory.

Highlights from the new brand valuation ranking and report, based on the opinions of more than 4.2 million respondents about 21,000 brands across 540 categories, include:

• Apple remains the number one most valuable global brand, with a brand value of US$880bn, followed by Google (No.2; $578bn) and Microsoft (No.3; $502bn)
• Coca-Cola re-joins the Top 10, rising seven places to No.10 and increasing its brand value by 8%
• 16 brands grew in value with Indian telecom provider, Airtel (No.76; +24%) the fastest riser in the global ranking
• Two Chinese brands join the Global Top 100: Shein (No.70; $24bn) and Nongfu Spring (No.81; $22bn)
• Nine brands returned to the brand ranking, including Pepsi (No.91; $19bn) Colgate (No.95; $18bn) and Pampers (No.100; $17bn)
• Across 13 categories, brands from Food & Beverages, Fast Food and Luxury proved to be the most resilient as they retained the greatest share of 2022 values

Top brands have been able to contain and lessen the impact of negative stock market sentiment because they have continued to invest in positive consumer sentiment, or in other words, their brand equity. Explore the results in the infographics presented below showcasing the 2023 Global Top 100.

The idea of branding may have originated as early as 2000 B.C. when merchants started to think about how they could sell their goods more successfully. In order to entice customers, merchants in ancient Babylon created sales pitches. On their products, artisans branded or carved insignia to denote their provenance. Outside, the owners of the bar put appealing placards.

When Western cattle ranchers began using hot irons to mark their livestock with the ranch’s initials or a symbol in the 19th century, the term “branding” for product marketing may have first entered the lexicon. Their primary goal was initially less marketing and more defense against cattle rustlers, but the association stuck.

The 19th century saw the rise of branding as a form of mass marketing as producers of goods like flour started to consider how to set themselves apart from the competition.

The type of brand used depends on the entity using it. The following are some of the most common forms of brands:

• Corporate Brands: Corporate branding is a way for companies to enhance their reputations and distinguish themselves from competitors in their industries. The company’s pricing, mission, target market, and values all reflect the corporate brand.
• Personal Brands: Social media enabled ordinary people to become influencers. Their financial success depends on their ability to create a brand that attracts an audience that certain advertisers want to reach. Personal brands are built through social media posts, sharing images and videos, and conducting meet-and-greets.
• Product Brands: Introducing a new product or supporting an existing product involves creating and maintaining its brand. Branding a product starts with market research and identifying the right target market.

Creating a brand provides numerous benefits to a corporation or an individual. A company that gets its message across is able to induce and evoke emotion within its customer base. Consumers develop unique relationships with these companies. The companies rely on these customers to help draw in others.

This helps companies build trust and credibility that give them a competitive edge against the competition.

It also helps companies introduce new products and services. Consumers stay loyal to brands they know and trust, and with whom they already have a relationship. That makes them more likely to spend when new products are released, even if they’re more expensive.

Apple is a classic example. The company built a hugely loyal customer base that is willing to overlook the higher price tag associated with an iMac, MacBook, iPad, or iPhone because of their loyalty to the brand. Its customers don’t hesitate to replace their existing Apple gadgets with new Apple gadgets as the company releases them.

How do I Choose a Brand Name?

So you’ve finally decided to launch that wonderful concept as a legal company—congrats! You probably already have a long list of tasks on your to-do list, including how to promote your product, how to identify your target market, and how much money you’ll need to start things off.

Of course, each of them is crucial to your business plan, but have you already decided on your brand’s most fundamental component?

Yes, we are discussing your brand name, and it is very normal for you to have trouble coming up with one.

Finding the ideal name for your brand isn’t about adhering to a predetermined “standard.” Don’t categorize your brand because you believe it needs to adhere to some artificial benchmark of what other companies are doing. Every brand is different.

Think of your brand’s positioning, purpose, and history as stepping stones that might help you arrive at a brand name that naturally fits. Getting your creative juices going by returning to these fundamentals will help you come up with a few name ideas.

And if you still need assistance, these five suggestions will enable you to choose a brand name that people will recall.

1. Gather ideas and brainstorm

Before anything else, we recommend starting a brainstorming session. Gather your business partners (or friends and family if you’re a solopreneur) and just start throwing things on the page. Add in any words, phrases, or feelings that sound right – don’t worry about perfection at this stage.

The trick is to come up with as many names as possible, list them all down, and slowly tick away the bad ones until you are left with the best candidates.

2. Use clear, descriptive, easy-to-remember words

In our experience, the best brand names aren’t the super odd or out there ones, but the ones that are easy to remember (and spell when you’re looking them up online). 

Try using words that can be easily connected back to your product or service, the mission your company stands for, and what customers can expect from your brand.

3. Make sure it’s unique

The last thing you want to deal with is a lawsuit, so before setting your heart on a brand name, make sure another brand isn’t already using it.

If you get an exact match, there might still be some wiggle room though. For example, is the business in the same industry or location? Even if it isn’t, we still recommended tweaking your brand name (adding initials or locality, for example) to avoid confusion.Another note here: As you’re considering brand names, check to see if the domain name is available. If your team has their heart set on a certain name, you may be able to purchase the rights to the domain from the owner, but you’ll definitely want to find out if that’s a possibility before making your final decision.

4. Skip the buzz words

Using trendy new words in your brand name is one way to make it memorable. It can even help you appeal to a younger target market. But at the end of the day, trends come and go.

If you want your brand to stick around, it needs to withstand the test of time – and that means picking a name that won’t lose its meaning (or won’t become cringy) in a few months time. 

Save the trendy lingo for timely marketing campaigns instead!

5. Make sure the name can be carried over to your logo, slogans & taglines

Brand consistency is critical to growth, and it all starts with your brand name. Whatever name you choose should look and sound great alongside the rest of your branding: logos, taglines, slogans, etc.

For example, if your brand name is clever or humorous, you’ll want to follow that up with branding elements that match – not clash with – that more relaxed and friendly tone. Now that you’ve got a great brand name, it’s time to start putting it out there.

Conclusion

Most of the time, when we hear the word “brand,” we picture a logo, a tagline, or some other recognisable identifier. However, that is only one aspect of the term. The term “brand” is basically an abstract marketing idea that aids in the recognition and identification of a product and, at its finest, encourages consumers to choose it over a rival.

One of a company’s most significant and valuable assets is its branding. They can either make or break a business. Because of this, businesses conduct in-depth study before introducing a new product. They work to determine who the ideal customer is for their offering. The brand identity they aim to establish for that market is then taken into account in every area of the content, design, and marketing.