One of the many questions that we ask potential clients is, "do you brand yourself well?"  Some say they think they do, others stare blankly at us and say, "what is a brand exactly?"  There are many definitions of a "brand" that you can find on Wikipedia or in Webster's, but basically it is how you want your customers to see you.  We see a lot of companies, typcially small to medium sized, that do not have one single brand, but many.  The company starts out with one image, then picks another one, and then subsequently chooses others and before they know it, they don't know who they are anymore. This leads to brand confusion.

Strong Branding characteristics are:  is it immediately recognizable (like the Nike swoosh), well perceived identity (Your in Good Hands With Allstate), demonstrates continuous quality (Starbucks), has sustained presence (Coca Cola), but most of all does it drive customer demand (any of those already mentioned).

There should be a brand connection to existing and potential customers through emotions, feelings, associations, and expectations.  Does your brand do all of this?