Branding can be a complicated web. Logos, websites, blogs, videos, Instagram, Facebook… on and on and on it goes. The layers you can add to your brand are seemingly endless. 

But what makes it a brand?

Is it about the look? The feel? The message? The audience?

If you’re a savvy entrepreneur, you know branding is important. But it can be hard to put your finger on exactly what it is and determine whether or not you’re doing it well.

The truth is, all the assets are just parts. What makes a brand is the three C’s:

• Content 
• Clarity 
• Consistency

Without these C’s in check, all the other stuff won’t have as big of an impact.

Content

Producing content is an absolute must for any brand. What kind of content you produce is entirely up to you though. Our advice for anyone debating on what kind of content to do is simply this: Do what comes easily to you.

That’s it.

You may think you “should” be doing video. Or that you “should” have a podcast. But if you like writing best, create content on a blog. Produce stellar Instagram captions. Tweet to your heart’s content. 

Don’t let anyone should all over you. 

The important part is that you are producing content about yourself and your brand and your products. Not how or where you’re doing it. 

Clarity

Now producing content just for the sake of content, isn’t going to get you very far. If you write about brownie recipes one day, pool safety the next day, and career tips the day after, your audience might have a hard time understanding what your brand is all about. 

We all flounder a bit in the beginning as we figure out who we are and what our brand represents. It’s frequently a part of the process when just getting started. 

In order to truly distinguish your brand, you have to get clear on your intent.

This is why we recommend spending some time drilling down your “buckets.” (If you want to know more about buckets, check out our description here.) Knowing what your content should be focused around is a really important part of all of this. 

If you aren’t conveying a clear message it will be hard for your audience to decide if your brand is right for them. 

Consistency

So you know you need to produce content. You know it needs to be clear. Now the last piece of the puzzle boils down to consistency. 

We think you know what this means. We also know how hard it is to STAY CONSISTENT. We also know it is what makes the difference between a brand that is going all the way and one that goes stagnant.

So instead of describing consistency, we want to talk about how you achieve it.

Most people will run right at content with a lot of enthusiasm and lose steam as time goes on. We recommend starting out slow. Once a week. Once a month. Whatever is abundantly doable for you. Start there. You can always build up and add more. Your audience will love that. What’s hard to recover from is starting strong and then disappearing. 

Consistency is about trust. And trust is built slowly over time. When you are delivering your content with consistency, you’re telling your audience that you are a reliable resource and that you aren’t just going to disappear on them. 

For a lot of people, the three C’s aren’t the sexy elements of branding. They want color palettes and branded photoshoots and fancy web design. The truth is though, that all of those things are just packaging and delivery. You have to be most focused on the content in order for your brand to shine. The other pieces will come, but nailing the three C’s has to happen first and foremost.