THE MISSING LINK BETWEEN YOUR BRAND IDENTITY AND BUSINESS GROWTH
- Jenny Henderson
- Aug 26
- 4 min read
Updated: Nov 3
It’s been my experience that the vast majority of small business owners will prioritize a brand identity over a brand strategy. Heck, even I started as a brand designer then later branched out into offering brand strategy. It makes sense. A brand identity is the easiest part to identify, so naturally we add that to our starting a business checklist.
But when it comes to landing new business, your brand identity and brand strategy play very different but equally important roles. Listen, we don’t know what we don’t know and I have a sneaky suspicion that you’re reading this because you’ve got the brand identity, but you don’t know why your sales are struggling.
So allow me to give you the answers you’re looking for as I explain the different roles a brand identity and brand strategy play in your business growth.
CONTENTS
THE BASKETBALL BRANDING METAPHOR YOU DIDN’T ASK FOR
I understand why small businesses prioritize a brand identity over a brand strategy. It gives a business the visual elements they’ll use to distinguish their business from another business. But is that all it does?
Think of your brand identity as the perfect setup for a slam dunk. Unfortunately, a lot of small businesses end up dropping the ball. Yes, your brand identity helps you get in the game, but without a brand strategy, you’ll miss most of your shots—i.e. sales. Here’s what I mean.
A BRAND IDENTITY CAN ONLY TAKE YOUR BUSINESS SO FAR
Your brand identity is what your audience sees first and instantly their subconscious mind is making fast judgements about your business. It piques their curiosity and starts to paint a picture of your business in their mind. But it’s an incomplete picture that leads to questions like:
who are they?
what’s their vibe?
are they like me?
do they have what it takes to solve my problem?
can I trust them?
So your brand identity helps earn their attention and, if you’ve designed your brand identity strategically, it will earn the curiosity of the right people.
But on its own, your brand identity doesn’t answer any of those questions. It just begins to shape their perception of your business. Research suggests that 95% of our decision-making happens subconsciously.
A brand identity alone isn’t enough for sustainable sales growth. It simply raises questions to which they’ll draw their own conclusion or you take control of their perceptions with a brand strategy.
Reflection: What does your brand identity say about your business, factoring in the various places a potential client may first experiencing your brand?
A BRAND STRATEGY PROVIDES THE ANSWERS THEY NEED
All those questions that your brand identity raised in the mind of your ideal client, it’s your brand strategy that gives them the answers. Think of it this way: it’s one thing to recognize a person’s style and draw conclusions about who they are. But it’s another to actually get to know the person, their stories, their personality, and values. This is what brand strategy does for your business: it adds depth and builds connection.
The time spent doing the brand strategy work allows you to get ahead of those common questions by filling in the gaps around your brand experience. It’s the simple specificity that’s found in your brand strategy that you’ll use to help them:
understand your business
qualify your business
become interested in your business
WHY SMALL BUSINESSES CAN’T SKIP STRATEGY TO SCALE
As a small business trying to scale, it really has nothing to do with how qualified you are and everything to do with how competitive the market has become. That brand identity your business has become known for, it gave you your start. But I don’t need to tell you that ongoing success and plans to scale will become increasingly challenging if you forgo the benefits of brand strategy.
Your brand identity plays a very important role in your sales strategy but it’s only half the equation. A high-converting brand isn’t just about looking confident, it’s about embodying a brand that gives your ideal clients confidence in you and only you to solve their very real problem.
It’s normal to reach a turning point in business, where what got you to this very point no longer works like it once did. It’s been my experience that there’s very little brand strategy can’t solve for a business. Strategy-curious? Book an intro call with me or explore my brand strategy services for small businesses here.
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Jenny Henderson Studio develops memorable brand experiences and strategic brand foundations to improve recognition and revenue for service-based small businesses.
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