19+ Branding Terms, Glossary, & Definitions
What is brand equity? What’s marketing vs. branding? What does ‘selling’ even mean? Whether you are a founder, marketing director, or CEO you’ll struggle if you don’t know the true definitions of branding terms like these. Don’t worry though, keep reading to solve this.
Branding Terms: Society Has Lied To You
You’ve heard the word “branding” pretty often. You’ve probably used it yourself. And if you’re like most, you’ve been mis-taught its meaning. Experts, gurus, teachers, parents… they’ve likely given you the wrong definition for many branding terms.
Which sucks, because a strong brand can multiply your leads, prospects, and sales… but only if you understand branding terms, at the very least. Because…
If you don’t know the right branding terms, you can’t even ask Google or ChatGPT the right questions.
If you don’t know the right branding terms, you won’t know if you’re hiring competent designers or copywriters, vs. ones who will cluelessly harm your brand.
If you’ve experienced any of what I’ve outlined here…
You’re in the right place, because below I’m giving you the most clear, simple, friendly brand glossary, plus some myth-busting to correct misbeliefs others may have given you about certain meanings of certain branding terms.
awareness
/’ uh · wehr · nuhs /
noun
the amount of recognition an audience or market gives to a brand.
Awareness, in branding, refers to how familiar your target audience (and related parties) is with your brand and its offerings. It’s about recognition. High brand awareness means your brand comes to mind easily when people think about your product or service category.
For example, when someone needs coffee, Starbucks might be the first brand that pops into mind. That’s brand awareness in action.
Myth-Buster: Awareness is not different than ‘mindshare.’ Both measure the amount of recognition given to a brand.
brand
/’ brænd /
noun
a fancy word for ‘reputation.’
A personal brand is your personal reputation, and a company brand is your business’s reputation.
For many influencers and celebrities, these two things are one and the same.
Either way, your brand is shaped and molded by a) the choices you make every moment of every day, b) every interaction you or your biz has with the world, and c) other human beings’ perceptions of both A and B.
Myth-Buster: Your brand is not a logo, a business, a color scheme, social posts, content pieces, SEO terms, or any other tangible, concrete thing. Instead, those are called ‘brand expressions’ or ‘brand assets.‘
brand assets
/’ brænd ah · setz /
noun
things that express a brand to the world.
Brand assets may include a brand’s fonts, logos, and colors. Or an archive of content, testimonials, and email contacts. Or a signature sound, look, or phrase.
Individually they are helpful, but united, a brand’s assets can create a powerful brand image and perception in the market.
Myth-Buster: Your brand assets are not always tangible things you can track, measure, or auction off.
brand expression
/’ brænd ek’spres · shun /
noun
anything that expresses your reputation into the world.
The most common brand expressions that jump to people’s minds are logos, colors, social posts, content pieces, SEO, business cards, merch, and so on.
But there are many others: sound signatures and soundbites, speech mannerisms, venue choices, behavioral tics, choice of collaborators, hand gestures, fashion choices, use of AI, and more.
Almost anything can be an expression of your brand, whether you realize it or not.
Myth-Buster: A brand expression is not solely visual, nor is it a ‘way’ of communicating.
brand foundations
/’ brænd fown · day · shunz /
noun
the core essentials needed to intentionally steer a brand.
At Ryze, we consider a ‘One Person‘, a sweetspot niche, a claimed market position, and solid brand values to be foundational.
These things are essential, and without them a brand will struggle to accomplish much.
These things are so foundational that others will instantly assign default values for them to your brand once they perceive you (though those assigned values will likely be less than flattering.)
Myth-Buster: A brand foundation is not a logo, a brand name, or a website.
brand guidelines
/’ brænd gaid · lainz /
noun
Rules that define how a brand is intended to look & feel.
Brand guidelines help ensure a brand’s visual and verbal expression is consistent across all platforms and channels, and that any team members have clear direction on how to best represent the brand from their role.
If done well, clear brand guidelines can be a time and energy saving asset in all aspects of your business.
Interestingly, although clear brand guidelines can help any business that adopts them, many businesses never get clear enough on their brand values & foundations to lay their guidelines out.
Myth-Buster: There’s little difference between brand guidelines and a ‘style guide’ or a ‘brand style guide,’ one should include the other.
brand identity
/’ brænd ai · den · tuh · tee /
noun
the cohesive meaning a brand intends to be perceived as.
Brand identity is the traits, character, and narrative a brand owner or employee aims to project through their brand image and branding efforts.
Myth-Buster: A brand identity is not a logo, visual style, or personality.
brand image
/’ brænd i · muhj /
noun
the perception of a brand by others, individually or collectively.
Brand image is how the public perceives an entity. It’s what people think and feel when they interact with a particular brand.
Myth-Buster: A brand image is not a logo, visual style, or personality.
brand strategy
/’ brænd strah · tih · gee /
noun
An overarching plan for steering an entity's reputation.
Brand strategy is the long-term, over-arching plan an entity aims to use in every aspect of it’s operations. It aims to act as guideposts for everyone involved in interacting with the brand.
Myth-Buster: A brand strategy is not a marketing campaign.
brand values
/’ brænd væl · ju:z /
noun
The values you intend for your brand to express externally.
For some companies, the most important brand value is “community.” For others it’s “wealth.” For some it’s “happiness.” For others it’s “awareness.”
It’s up to you to choose which human value is most important to you, which is secondary, which is tertiary, etc.
And then it’s up to you to ensure your brand aligns with the value hierarchy you’ve committed to.
In service to that, it helps to set up clear brand guidelines.
Myth-Buster: Brand values aren’t your brand’s foundations, but they are part of them.
brand voice
/’ brænd voyz /
noun
the personality used to communicate a brand's messaging.
Brand voice is the unique personality an entity curates to communicate with its target audience across various mediums. It includes a certain tone, style, and messaging nuances aimed at boosting brand awareness and audience rapport.
For example ‘water brands’ Fiji, Nestle, and Smartwater all sell bottled water, but their brand assets and brand expressions all have very distinct ‘brand voices.’
Myth-Buster: A brand voice does not have to be auditory.
branding
/’ brænd · ing /
verb
the act of clarifying & steering a meaningful reputation.
Branding is the process of steering an entity’s reputation.
This can be done through obvious visual interactions, such as logos, or more subtle interactions, like constantly arriving late.
Branding is always happening because no interactions are neutral.
Whether a personal brand or a business brand is involved, someone is perceiving the entity, therefore affecting it’s reputation to some degree.
(Branding can be done consciously or unconsciously, and branding is not marketing, though they are related.)
Myth-Buster: Branding is not the process of creating an identity (one exists already), or a business, or a visual style.
business
/’ biz · nuhs /
noun/verb
Repeatedly (and persuasively) serving perceived value to (an increasing amount of) others, profitably.
If you miss any step of the above, you’re likely throwing your money away, slowly losing your investment, or *failing* to do business.
A kid’s lemonade stand, Beyonce, and Netflix (when run properly and well) are all examples of a successful business. Your friend with the “great app idea” who refuses to network, pitch, or sell… is not.
Myth-Buster: Business does not just mean exchanging goods or services. That is just a single business deal, not a thriving, successful business.
logo
/’ low · goh /
noun
a visual symbol representing a branded entity.
A brand’s logo (or logomark) is a recognizable visual icon that acts as a company’s flag, or as a literal ‘brand’ like the once stamped on cattle.
See Nike’s Swoosh, Apple’s Apple, or McDonald’s Arches for examples.
A logo is sometimes referred to as a trademark or brandmark, and is usually different from a ‘wordmark.’
Myth-Buster: Your logo isn’t that important during your early years, especially since it can evolve over time. Look at McDonald’s, Starbuck’s, or Apple’s first logo versions for proof.
marketing
/’ mar’kit · ing /
verb
Intentionally shaping perceptions to boost perceived value (sans sales.)
Marketing is the act of intentionally promoting something intended for commerce, such as a brand, a product, a service, an event, etc.
Marketing is positively (or negatively) shaping the perceptions of others to pay more attention or see more value in something, usually with the aim of moving them closer to taking a specific action, but generally without a direct or final sale of the intended item occurring during the process.
‘Effective marketing’ is performing the above compellingly enough that the desired end result is achieved.
‘Ethical marketing’ isn’t really relevant to the definition, but marketing can be used for kind, loving aims or for fearful, agenda-driven ones.
Marketing is closely connected to sales, but is generally seen as a distinct and different discipline.
Myth-Buster: Marketing is not branding, but it does serve branding.
market position
/’ mar’kit pih · zi · shun /
noun
Your brand’s perceived position in regards to competitors.
Every brand –and offering– in the market has a perceived position in the minds of the public.
Being perceived as a dominant market leader is often a highly coveted goal. Being perceived as a paltry or lame contender is often highly avoided.
You can influence your brand’s –or offering’s– market position by understanding, clarifying, and emphasizing your brand’s “superpowers”, “edge”, or “competitive advantages” in your brand expressions.
(Note: Market position is sometimes also referred to as “brand differentiation.”)
Myth-Buster: Market position is not the official number of customers a company has vs. all the companies that offer similar products or services.
messaging
/’ meh · suh · jihng /
noun
Intentional communication from a brand to it's audience.
Intentionally crafted communication, made up of various touchpoints, targeted towards a brand’s audience and ideally serving their mutual goals.
Well-designed brand messaging “speaks” effectively to it’s audience, while using the nuance, tone, and style the brand intends.
Myth-Buster: Messaging is not copy, copywriting, emails, websites, logos, social media, or brand names, but those items should aim to capture and convey a brand’s messaging.
niche
/’ neesh /
noun
A specialized market category for an offering.
Your niche starts with committing to one of the core three niches: either health, wealth, or relationships. You commit to one because it’s silly, overambitious, arrogant, or delusional to think customers will believe you’re good at more than one of these things per decade. No one resonates with a brand that promises to elevate more than one of these.
Then, since those core niches are too broad for anyone but the biggest corporations to target, you niche down further into a sub-niche. Health -> mental health. Wealth -> marketing. Relationships -> Love coaching.
And then, since those sub-niches are still hyper-competitive and saturated, it’s advisable to commit to a sub-sub-niche. Mental health -> CBT Methodology. Marketing -> Affiliate marketing. Love coaching -> tantric coach.
Plus, you can niche down even further if your niche is still too big and competitive for you to stand out in.
All of these niching decisions should be made primarily in light of the “One Person” you’ve committed to serving, and secondarily what you’re most passionate about offering, NOT vice-versa.
Myth-Buster: Your ‘niche’ is not just “whatever you like best.”
one person
/’ wan · puhr · sun /
noun
An evolved version of an ‘ideal customer profile.’
Also referred to as your ‘client avatar,’ ‘client persona,’ ‘target audience,’ ‘demographic,’ etc.
Your One Person acts as a north star, or guiding light, for the majority of your brand decisions. You do this by committing to –and serving– one, real, tangible, authentic human being, who actually exists, and in doing so, resonating strongly and rewardingly with the many others who are like them, as well as those who connect to them.
Serving in this way is how Nike, Facebook, and any other megabrands you can think of got started.
Myth-Buster: Your One Person is not your “niche.”
sale
/’ say’l /
noun
An exchange of money for something between 2+ parties.
Unlike barters, sales transactions involve currency.
During a sales negotiation, the seller attempts to convince or ‘sell’ the buyer on the benefits of their ‘offer.’ If the buyer wishes to strike a deal, they will give the seller an agreed upon amount of money in exchange for the seller’s product/service.
A direct and final exchange of currency for a specific product usually doesn’t happen during marketing, and this is a key difference between marketing and sales.
Myth-Buster: Not an event that Walmart holds weekly. (OK it’s that too, sometimes.)
selling
/’ sehl · ing /
verb
Persuading others' perspectives towards your own.
To sell is human. We’re all selling, constantly.
Even kids sell their parents on various agendas.
‘Effective selling’ is performing the above definition compellingly enough that the desired end result is achieved.
‘Ethical selling’ isn’t really relevant to the definition, but it’s wise to note that selling can be used for kind, loving aims, or for fearful, agenda-driven ones.
A salesperson will typically ‘sell’ a customer a product or service. A marketer will typically ‘sell’ leads and prospects on a narrative or call-to-action.
Interestingly, although both the salesperson and the marketer have the task of ‘selling’ others on something, we still consider sales and marketing separate disciplines.
Myth-Buster: Selling does not necessarily have to do with money.
touchpoint
/’ tuhch · poynt /
noun
Any interaction a brand has with its audience.
Touchpoints are any positive (or negative interactions) that help brands build relationships with consumers, each touchpoint contributing to an overall impression.
Touchpoint examples include a social post, a service call, a website, a business card, product packaging, online reviews, and many more.
Myth-Buster: A touchpoint is not a pressure-point.
Branding Terms: Now You’ve Got It
There you have it, a bunch of oft-misunderstood branding terms, explained and clarified in plain English.
There are other branding terms pages out there, like this one from Emily Banks Creative or this one from OVO but I like to think this one is the clearest, most accurate, most helpful, and… well… the prettiest.
And if you think of other branding terms of phrases you’d like explained, email my partner (cynshineonline at gmail dot com), and we’ll do our best to address them for you.
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