Why does Google care about brands?

Mohamed Sahardid
4 min readMar 1, 2024

Why does Google care about brands?

Google values brands because consumers value brands. As consumers prioritize brands, Google prioritizes users. To excel in SEO, one must possess not only technical expertise but also a holistic understanding of the business, with a high level of empathy playing a crucial role.

Brand marketing

If you come to SEO from a non-marketing background, but you are still involved in SEO, it’s important to have a broader understanding of brand marketing. In short, this involves building brand awareness in an accessible, non-technical way. An effective brand strategy, also referred to as ‘brand strategy’, can assist a company in conveying an image of expertise, authority, and reliability in a meaningful manner. In this piece, we’ll explore some basic principles of effective brand marketing that can facilitate this goal

Why do we shop?

Often, the decision to choose a particular product over others is not a conscious one; in many cases, it’s driven by emotions and intuition. It’s evident that a ‘brand’ can make a significant difference…

You’re familiar with the scenario: You repeatedly attempt to dictate precisely how others should perceive you. Yet, each time, they resist; that’s traditional marketing…

Branding, on the other hand, is about evoking emotions. It fosters a connection with your target audience, enhances brand awareness, and ensures your brand remains at the forefront of their minds.

Branding — Marty Neumeier

“Aesthetics is the language of feeling, and in a society that’s information rich and time-poor, people value feeling more than information.” — Marty Neumeier

Marketing VS branding

Marketing and branding are distinct concepts, yet they share similarities. Both aim to cultivate a favorable image of an organization, product, or service, and expand awareness to reach a broader audience. They both contribute to enhancing the reputation of a company, product, or service, and fostering customer loyalty.

The primary disparity between marketing and branding lies in their focus: marketing centers on sales and profits, while branding centers on shaping a positive perception. Marketing endeavors to persuade customers to make purchases, whereas branding endeavors to establish a distinctive identity and foster customer loyalty.

Your brand serves as the heart of your organization, rooted in enduring emotions and experiences that consumers associate with it.

Differentiation Key to success

When you think of a brand, you might envision specific house style designs, packaging, catchy taglines, and logos. However, this is a misconception. A brand is merely a perception that solidifies into a reality in the customer’s mind. These elements serve to reinforce the brand but do not constitute the brand itself.

Brands are abstract, multidimensional ideas

It’s your personality that sets you apart. The first step in branding is always introspection, understanding the core energy driving your business. Stay authentic, identify your audience, and define your objectives.

Personality is defined by unique traits that distinguish you. Take Tesla, for instance; it’s characterized by traits like stubbornness, brutal honesty, passion, directness, determination, and goal orientation. These traits reflect in the business’s personality. By opting for the color red and infusing humor into their messaging, Tesla ensures its personality shines through.

Photo: Chris Hunkeler

Brands are abstract, multidimensional ideas. A brand is a combination of a number of different qualities. These qualities are not always fixed.

Prefer unique over commonplace

A brand targets a particular group. They are characterized by a desire to create an emotional bond, while ignoring rational product features.

Following

People prefer to buy from a brand they trust rather than an unknown option. In fact, 81% of consumers say they prefer to buy from someone they trust. Therefore, it’s crucial to prioritize your brand, as it’s the first thing people consider when contemplating doing business with you.

How do you know the difference?

Following trends and imitating competitors isn’t sufficient to make your brand stand out in a saturated market. Incorporating humor, using familiar language, or employing intuitive design elements helps establish an emotional connection with visitors. Dedicate as much effort to crafting the brand experience as you do to conveying your message; this fosters genuine connections that truly resonate.

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