I bet you saw that headline and you wondered ‘cake, what does great tasting cake have to do with Marketing’. I felt compelled to use this headline, thanks to a training session I attended this week. I attended a session that on the surface had nothing to do with Marketing per se, but as we delved deeper and the importance of communication was revealed, the facilitator made this important statement: “great tasting chocolate cake doesn’t make you money!. You know what makes you money? consistently great tasting chocolate cake”!

On countless occasions I have hinted at the need for brand consistency but I feel that in this time of tight budgets, I should reiterate the need to have a brand consistency plan- this applies also to MSMEs.

Every time someone visits your website, your social media pages, sees a brochure, speaks to a customer service agent/a member of your team, it builds a perception of your business. If you bake and sell cakes but one day, the cake tastes great and another day, it’s missing an ingredient and the next day, you open late to the public, it means you are all over the place – you’re inconsistent.

Keeping consistent and professional branding strengthens your image. That consistency is seen through your messaging and visuals in printed materials and digital media. Creating a cohesive look and feel across all media makes your brand recognizable and helps you to stand out.

Here are a few tips for establishing a brand consistency plan:

Establish a brand style guide – Work with a professional graphic designer or consultancy. Your brand standards are a set of rules and guidelines to protect the look and feel of the brand. There’s nothing worse than seeing a logo that’s distorted, squished or with the wrong colours.

Create pre-designed templates – Online software such as Canva is a great place for templates. Be that as it may, it’s not best practice for businesses to use Canva templates without consistent branding. Each time you see a Canva template, you shouldn’t wonder if it’s a different business/brand. You can establish your style guide in Canva.

Review! Review! – Review all the marketing materials produced for your brand. Ensure your logo and other elements are used correctly both in print and in digital media.

Candice Sealey is the Founder & Principal Consultant at Ignite! a Full-service Marketing & PR Consultancy that helps businesses/brands to stand out and communicate the right message to the right people at the right time through Strategy, Marketing, Media services and Design solutions. She is also a freelance content writer, advertising copywriter, voice over talent, media personality. Follow us on FB & IG @igniteresults Phone:784-432-2223. Email: igniteresults@gmail.com