Product branding is the process of using different branding strategies to differentiate one product from the rest of the market. It includes everything from the name and logo of the product to its messaging, values, and even the materials it’s made of.
In this guide, our branding experts tell us all about product branding, from essential strategies to actionable insights and tips for developing a winning product branding strategy and making your brand stand out.
Table of Contents
- What Is Product Branding?
- Product Branding vs. Corporate Branding: What Are the Main Differences?
- The Product-Brand Connection
- 3 Main Product Branding Elements
- 3 Essential Benefits of Product Branding
- How To Devise a Successful Product Branding Strategy In 3 Steps
- Best Examples of Product Branding Done Right
- Product Branding Takeaways
- Product Branding FAQs
What Is Product Branding?
As we’ve hinted at, product branding is the process of creating and promoting a unique and recognizable identity for a specific product or line of products offered by a company. Its main goal is to help you stand out from the competition and, as a result, grab your audience’s attention and improve your sales.
Product branding is prominent in popular brands like Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, and Nike. Still, this isn’t the case with every company and product. Product branding will highly depend on the type of industry you’re in and the type of product you’re developing.
For instance, imagine you’re shopping for a smartphone. In this scenario, product branding impacts your purchasing decisions because brands like Apple and Samsung have distinct product branding. In some other cases, such as buying household supplies like nails, branding is less of a factor.
Product Branding vs. Corporate Branding: What Are the Main Differences?
Corporate branding includes company values, visual identity, taglines, and brand stories, to leave a lasting impact on your customers. Product branding takes this a few steps further.
Apart from incorporating the assets above, product branding strives to create a unique identity. Product names, design, packaging, and brand-influenced logo variations can strengthen your company’s branding but also incorporate a sense of independence into the product itself.
In other words, the company brand becomes less important while the product’s own identity gains more significance. In this sense, branded products become extensions or mini brands of the company that made them.
The Product-Brand Connection
To tie into what we’ve discussed above, you need to define your brand clearly before you start branding your products. Look thoroughly at your brand and dig into whom your products are made for and what makes them stand out.
For starters, you might need to assess your brand values clearly and ask yourself a few questions. For example:
- Is your company about sustainability or making quality products at more accessible prices?
- Who are your buyers?
- What do they care about?
- What do they want from your product?
- Does it follow product design trends, or is it in a league of its own?
- Will it be available on every store shelf, or will it be an exclusive offer?
- Do you offer any perks with it?
- What makes your product different?
By answering these questions, you can implement the right product design ideas and visual approach that aligns with your established branding guidelines into your product branding, enhancing brand recognition.
3 Main Product Branding Elements
Colors have always been among the most critical branding elements as they impact mood, stress levels, and behavior. Still, they are only one aspect of branding. Product identity includes several components that each contribute to creating a unique connection for the customer:
- Product logo
- Product name and description
- Product package design
Apart from this, successful product branding is influenced by several other factors, including:
- Brand Positioning: How the product is positioned in relation to its competitors in the market. This involves identifying the unique selling proposition (USP) and communicating the value proposition that differentiates the product.
- Brand Persona and Values: The personality traits and core values associated with the brand. A strong brand persona helps establish an emotional connection with consumers — something proven by science, too — and builds brand loyalty.
- Packaging and Product Design: The physical appearance and presentation of the product, including packaging design, labeling, and product aesthetics. Effective packaging design reinforces brand identity and influences purchase decisions.
- Brand Experience: Consumers' overall experience with the product, from pre-purchase interactions to post-purchase satisfaction. Positive brand experiences contribute to brand loyalty and advocacy.
- Brand Consistency: Ensuring consistency across all touchpoints and interactions with the brand, including advertising, marketing campaigns, customer service, and product quality. Consistency builds trust and reinforces brand credibility.
- Brand Extensions and Product Line: How the brand extends its presence through related product offerings or expansions. This involves leveraging the brand equity and reputation to introduce new products under the same brand umbrella.
3 Essential Benefits of Product Branding
While your overarching branding strategy does help your products stand out, creating a complementing brand identity for your products can help you in several ways.
1. Targeting Submarkets
Your target market is a group of consumers most likely to purchase from you. By creating unique product brand identities, you can target specific groups with individual products in your lineup.
For example, you can create a product identity around sustainability with eco-friendly materials. With the right branding and messaging, you can better target Gen Z consumers, who prioritize sustainability when browsing products.
A more obvious example would be McDonald’s Happy Meal, which offers different product packaging, marketing strategies, and a free toy as a marketing proposition.
2. Creating Stronger Value Propositions
Products will only stand out from others on the shelves if they are recognizable. The toothpaste industry is a prime example of this. The ingredients of each toothpaste are pretty much the same, still, all manufacturers want supermarkets to stock up on their products.
In their cases, value proposition becomes a major revenue-driving force. A strong product brand will make people consider choosing one brand over the other, especially if it’s recommended by professionals.
3. Building Product Loyalty
If a product has a strong brand identity, it will also help convince your customers to stick with it. Those who have an emotional attachment to a specific brand have a higher lifetime value.
Take Fender, for example. They have been in the business of manufacturing instruments and amplifiers for almost 80 years. In that period, Fender not only managed to become a pioneer of modern music in the 40s, 50s, and 60s but also established a loyal community of musicians who still stand by the company's products to this day. Despite using the same principles for decades, Fender's community of loyal customers continues to grow.
How To Devise a Successful Product Branding Strategy In 3 Steps
Whether you’re introducing a new product or revamping an old one, a sound product branding strategy is essential to connect with your customers.
1. Research
If you are building a new identity from scratch, you need to take a thorough look at the market and explore various creative branding ideas. Contacting design agencies and asking them to come up with a few ideas can be a good start.
Also, put some time into researching your audience and competition. Once you have the data, you can go ahead and start creating a branding strategy that addresses the needs of your target market and helps you stand out from your competition.
2. Be Consistent
Successful product branding requires you to stay consistent with the wider brand messaging while also creating a cohesive identity with the product itself. As such, you should establish a clear brand message that every product must convey while ensuring each offer retains specific unique characteristics (think regular Coke and Coke Zero). Ensure you have designated brand color palettes for each design that still follow your branding guidelines and your brand tone.
3. Involve Your Team
This isn’t just about brainstorming ideas. You can create more vital brand messages when your staff understands your company’s mission and the value propositions behind your products. They can incorporate your brand’s tone and voice into their interactions with customers, reflecting your company’s personality during in-store and offline conversations.
Best Examples of Product Branding Done Right
Branding a product allows the market to offer uniqueness to customers. No two products are the same if a product branding strategy is employed the right way. Below are 3 examples to show you how good product branding sets companies apart.
1. Coca-Cola
Focusing on a single product, Coca-Cola is one of the most perfect product branding examples. With 138 years on the market, this company has hardly changed its branding strategy. A Coke is immediately distinguished by 3 things: the red and white color palette, the unique logo with a script font, and the curvy bottle. So, whenever you see one of these things, you instantly know it’s Coca-Cola.
2. Apple
Apple has multiple products but it’s interesting that it has employed the same product branding strategy for each one. The iPhones are one section, with features and prices just for them; the iPads are another distinct part; the same can be said about the iMacs, Macbooks, Airpods, etc.
Every Apple product has the logo on it — and that’s all it’s needed for customers to know what they’re getting. The modern design and top-of-the-line features are just an added bonus. Its packaging is very simple which has prompted other companies on the market to follow suit — a perfect example of product branding done right!
3. McDonald’s
McDonald’s is one of the most famous brands in the whole world. Some of that fame is all thanks to its crafty product branding strategy. For each new product, McDonald’s creates separate branding advertisements that attract new customers. Featuring the golden arches or the slogan “I’m lovin’ it”, every McDonald’s product is carefully branded to be part of the whole.
What makes this company one of the best product branding examples is that it also tailors its food to the place where it's situated, combining the cuisine and culture. For instance, McDonald’s in Shanghai offers different products (as in the picture) from the one in New York — talk about clever product branding!
Product Branding Takeaways
Strong brand identities leave a lasting impression on consumers. They not only define what a brand is but also shape all the interactions customers have with a company, both in-store and online.
Branding your products means injecting your overarching brand guidelines into individual products with a subset of unique characteristics. Getting this right is just necessary to help your products stick out from each other and your competition’s offerings.
Successful product branding also helps you create mini brands that target specific consumers within your target audience, strengthen your value proposition, and build even deeper customer relationships.
Speaking of customer relationships, learn all about the six best CRM tools next, or check out the top consultants in the field.
Product Branding FAQs
1. What are examples of product branding?
Great examples of product branding always show consistency. Take Coca-Cola for example which conveys a consistent vibe and message with every product along with online and offline marketing assets.
When we look at the relationship between emotions and branding, Harley-Davidson is a stellar example of a company that knows who it’s for. Every aspect of the company’s branding makes customers feel like they’re part of an exclusive community that wants nothing more than the open road and freedom.
2. How can small businesses use product branding to compete with larger enterprises?
By focusing on authenticity, niche positioning, and personalized customer experiences, small businesses can brand strong product identities that resonate with their target audience. Leveraging social media, influencer partnerships, and community engagement can also amplify product visibility and credibility. Effective product branding allows small businesses to compete based on value and uniqueness rather than solely on price or scale.
