Brand Awareness vs Brand Recognition

In today’s world, where we have so many start-ups and brands, it becomes inevitable to pull up our socks and accelerate our pace. Especially during pandemics and lockdown, we came across a super boom in the number of creative ventures, content, and, therefore, creators. All this led to decent competition in the market. 

All the creators and brands who wish to stand out even in a chaotic crowd require unique strategies and resources—for example, good content, marketing, and much more. However, when it comes to spreading the word about the venture, brand recognition, and brand awareness are the two primary things that strike. That is where everyone should start. 

Let us dig deeper and explore these two essential terms closely.

Brand Awareness

It is pretty clear from the term itself that brand awareness deals with spreading awareness about the brand. It is that ice-breaking thread from where a brand connects with its audience for the first time. However, the interaction may not be formal or technical but casual. Brand awareness is not the point where people do selling or lead generation.

Now the question arises, how to conduct brand awareness at the very beginning stage? Let us dive into knowing the various stances to do so.

• Say it LOUD – Shout-out is the first thing one can do to gather an audience. Coming up with creative announcement posters and short videos is an excellent idea to spread the word.
• Campaigning – Saying it loud is essential, but that is not enough. It is advisable to run multiple campaigns to make the potential audience stay. It is certainly not a one-time job to convince people.
• Not for sale – In the most initial stage, the audience may not be comfortable enough to buy something since there is no solid base for relying upon it. Therefore, casual marketing is the key.

Brand Recognition

After brand awareness comes brand recognition in the league; in the most basic term, brand recognition is the ability to identify any brand with the help of its user interface, messaging, products, and other visual figures. With the help of brand awareness, a venture can get some acquaintances, but that does not generate potential leads for the business. 

That is when brand recognition enters the scene and makes it worthy for both business and the audiences. It targets the relevant audience and pitches them about the products. Every brand may have a unique approach, but some standard tactics might help in better understanding.

• Q & A – Asking questions to the team about their exact motive is essential. What is unique about the brand? 
• Taglines – It might seem a very minimal step to use a tagline, but it makes all the difference. A tagline resembles DNA that carries all the information about the brand. 
• Marketing – The sole purpose of any venture or brand is to sell its product. Marketing makes sure that the services convince the target audience.

Brand Awareness & Brand Recognition are Complimentary.

Is it possible to focus on either brand awareness or brand recognition? If yes, how far is it feasible to go with just one of them? As per various brands’ track records and strategies, it is advisable to use brand awareness and brand recognition to draw the best results. 

Following are the key points that might help transform brand awareness into brand recognition and get the best out of it.

1. Focus on the relevant audience.

2. Always be consistent.

3. Tell the audience about the x-factor.

4. Deliver valuable and massy content to the audience.

5. Maintain the social media presence.

6. Promote word of mouth while campaigning.

The bottom line is that never choose between brand awareness and brand recognition, but choose both of them simultaneously. It depends on how effectively a brand showcases itself in front of the audience. The choice of resources and strategies can make or break a brand.