A Brand Strategist does much more than just work on social media. He or she is consumed with many different fields and must pay attention to detail while being multi-faceted - not only does he or she manage a company's reputation, he or she builds it from the ground up.
Their job requires general knowledge of SEO, web development, graphic design, social media and psychology.
A Brand Strategist will find ways to further improve the branding of a product or service, as well as develop a marketing plan through analysis of current market data and trends. In addition, he or she must be familiar with statistical and research analysis, as well as proactive in predicting future trends and the success of a product or service.
The position of Brand Strategist requires - as a rule - a degree in business or marketing - However, if there is suitable experience, a degree is optional.
So what can you do to succeed as a Brand Strategist?
You will need to specialise in the following:
Audience Research
One of the first tasks is to thoroughly understand the audience the brand wants to connect with.
By creating a marketing persona (or multiple ones), the brand gets a clear goal and can focus on those who want to interact with it.
Using the status, demographics, consumer habits, hobbies and emotions of the audience it wants to capture, it devises a plan to connect with them, thus improving the brand's appeal.
Competitor Research
By understanding the audience and their needs, you can start to observe the options that are already available for them in the market.
The brands that offer these options represent the competition and to position the brand effectively, the strategist must have a proper and comprehensive understanding of the competitive landscape.
Thus, it identifies the gaps that exist in the market and exploits any opportunities offered to the benefit of its brand.
Brand Positioning
Defining a brand's "position" through a unique differentiation strategy is one of the most important roles of the strategist.
Through a proper understanding of the market landscape, including the audience and competitors, the brand strategist, in close collaboration with the leadership team, must determine what will differentiate them from competitors and what they will represent.
This difference and its subsequent value to the audience becomes the focus of the messaging strategy and influences the entire branding process.
Marketing Personas
If the role of the brand strategist is to bring the audience and the brand together, then they need to use every tool available to make that happen.
The personality of the brand, the language and the tone of voice chosen are extremely important and humanize the brand.
This humanisation shapes the way the brand will communicate its message and allow the brand to connect and resonate with the audience through its features and human expression.
Copywriting: the words you choose do matter
One of the most important tasks in developing a brand strategy is the development of strategic messaging.
The work up to this point, including research, development, strategic positioning and human personality, is already setting the tone for the messages the brand wants to convey.
Thus, defining the key messages that will shape the public's understanding and perception of the brand will go a long way in establishing its position.
Keep in mind that few tasks affect the success or failure of a brand as much as its messaging strategy.
Understand the significance of brand names
Few brand strategists have the opportunity to work on a brand name.
But why does this happen?
Because the brand name is often chosen by the leadership team very early in the business development process and they are often emotionally attached to it, making it impossible for them to accept it being changed.
That said, it is the role of strategists to persuade (or at least try to persuade) the leadership team to allow the development of a proper strategic name and appropriate taglines.
