The distinction between brand visibility and brand awareness is the riddle that many businesses think they understand but actually don’t. However, once they grasp the difference, they can strategically and sustainably propel their business to new heights of success. Both are important business goals, but they require different strategies to achieve.
Visibility and awareness both help businesses build a presence and reputation. Although these two intricate concepts are interconnected, they must evolve independently for any business to benefit from them.
To understand the two concepts, let’s first begin by understanding your brand. Your business brand is the identity, experience, and personality of your product, service, or person if you are a solopreneur. It is also the reputation, logo, color concept, and energy of your business or product.
Brand visibility is defined in terms of exposure, referring to how many times your brand identity is seen or experienced. When your brand is visible to the public, it includes the visibility of your brand visuals. Thus, brand visibility can be measured by the frequency of people engaging with, viewing, or being exposed to your brand in terms of countable impressions. Brand visibility is a quantitative metric, and while numbers are useful, they’re incomplete without a human element.
Brand awareness gets into that human element – it is essentially how aware the public is of your brand. It relates to the public’s ability to recognize or recall your brand identity based on their interactions and experiences. Along with the associated feelings and reputation, brand awareness is about customers knowing it’s YOUR brand, not just seeing it around. Thus, brand awareness can be measured through qualitative studies and tests done on a large or small scale.
These two interconnect because they are learned, cultivated, and achieved through strategic marketing. Strategic marketing plays a crucial role in representing your brand’s overall presence in the business world and, more importantly, your industry. Increasing your brand visibility can lead to increased brand awareness, but it is not an automatic or one-to-one lift. Social media, creating high-quality content, building a community worth engaging with, reaching out to connect with your audience through email marketing, being visible in the community, and face-to-face sales are all great ways to increase your brand’s visibility.
Increasing brand awareness is a complex process that requires sincerity, intentionality, and a deep understanding of how to communicate effectively with your target audience. Greater brand awareness is the result of forming meaningful connections with a brand, which takes time and leaves a lasting impression. This is how brands establish their reputation, which can be either favorable or unfavorable in the eyes of their audience or competitors.
So, which should businesses aspire to – visibility or awareness? The answer is both, meaning your business should understand how both are attained. Visibility and awareness are two silent business partners working simultaneously toward your business goals, representing who your business is and what your business stands for. It is crucial for companies to understand the roles of emotion and transparency in shaping how their brand is perceived. Building emotional connections and being transparent with your audience are the most effective ways to achieve and maintain a beloved brand. Every business should strive to build a brand and a product that consumers can trust. Consistency and reliability are vital in building trust and brand awareness. Increased brand visibility and consumer trust lead to increased loyalty.
In summary, businesses require both digital marketing for brand visibility and a human touch for brand awareness. However, not every business knows how to navigate this space effectively. That’s where we can help. If your business is having difficulty engaging with your target audience to enhance brand visibility, awareness, or both, Credico is here to assist you. We can help your target audience interact with and experience your brand, fostering a sense of connection and emotional investment in your products or services.
We have been helping businesses grow and reach their goals since 1991. Contact us today.