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Brand Strategy
Brand Identity
Brand Clarity
Brand Positioning
Brand Building
ARTICLE #86
Brand Platform: Why is it important and how to build it?
Brand Strategy
Brand Identity
Brand Clarity
Brand Positioning
Brand Building
Brand Strategy
Brand Identity
Brand Clarity
Brand Positioning
Brand Building
Written by:
6 min read
Updated on: August 14, 2024
Samson Mosilily
Senior Regional Manager
African Market, Regional Management, Growth
Samson Mosilily
Senior Regional Manager
African Market, Regional Management, Growth
When you run a small business with just a handful of people, keeping your branding, messaging, and marketing all in sync feels almost effortless. But as the company gains ground, your team gets bigger, and the marketing plan stretches, chaos can creep in. Suddenly, brand identity starts to fray. That’s when you’ll want a brand platform.
A brand platform shakes up how you manage your brand assets and guidelines. Instead of juggling multiple folders, tools, and random chat threads, you’ll have everything in one tidy digital home. Some brands set it up themselves, using their house-style brand guidelines, while others lean on an agency’s expertise. Whichever route you pick, you’ll be better equipped to keep things consistent—even as your organisation scales.
When you run a small business with just a handful of people, keeping your branding, messaging, and marketing all in sync feels almost effortless. But as the company gains ground, your team gets bigger, and the marketing plan stretches, chaos can creep in. Suddenly, brand identity starts to fray. That’s when you’ll want a brand platform.
A brand platform shakes up how you manage your brand assets and guidelines. Instead of juggling multiple folders, tools, and random chat threads, you’ll have everything in one tidy digital home. Some brands set it up themselves, using their house-style brand guidelines, while others lean on an agency’s expertise. Whichever route you pick, you’ll be better equipped to keep things consistent—even as your organisation scales.
What is a brand platform?
What is a brand platform?
Consider it as a guiding framework—a strategic and centralised source of truth for your brand. It merges key details like brand guidelines, collaboration features, and digital asset management into one system. Often called a brand portal, it ensures everyone knows how the brand should look, feel, and even talk.
Armed with solid tools and services, a brand platform helps you polish your deliverables and create a cohesive brand identity in the eyes of your customers.
Consider it as a guiding framework—a strategic and centralised source of truth for your brand. It merges key details like brand guidelines, collaboration features, and digital asset management into one system. Often called a brand portal, it ensures everyone knows how the brand should look, feel, and even talk.
Armed with solid tools and services, a brand platform helps you polish your deliverables and create a cohesive brand identity in the eyes of your customers.
Why is it important to build a brand platform?
A brand platform is particularly valuable for multi-brand enterprises. When you’re juggling different brand identities, marketing teams, and regional markets, having one central solution to manage all brand elements can save enormous hassle. Here’s a closer look at its advantages:
Achieve brand clarity
A brand platform crystallises your brand’s core idea. Take Coca-Cola as an example: they’ve long been associated with “happiness,” weaving it into their slogans (like Open Happiness) and interactive experiences. A brand platform does the same for you—pinpointing that singular message you want to project.
Ensure brand proposition
Marketers often wrestle with conflicting narratives, be they positioning statements, advertising angles, or PR tactics. A brand platform reigns in these scattered bits under one unified story, simplifying communication and making sure your brand evolves smoothly without losing its core.
Accelerate brand salience
“Salience” describes how quickly people recall your brand when a buying moment arises. If someone’s mind leaps straight to Nike when they need sports gear, that’s strong brand salience. A strategic platform can keep you top of mind in a similar way—turning your brand into the immediate “best choice” for customers.
Cultivate positive brand association
A brand platform typically embodies a philosophical stance—an ideal your company advocates. Guinness’s Made of Black celebrates originality; Coca-Cola’s Real Magic Happens When People Come Together highlights shared experiences. Platforms like these foster a positive emotional tie to the brand, creating impressions of quality and trustworthiness.
Increase brand loyalty
Consistency speaks volumes. When customers believe in your vision—and see it reflected in every single message—they’re more inclined to stick around. With a solid brand platform, your business feels more relatable, sparking an “us” feeling that secures loyalty over time.
A brand platform is particularly valuable for multi-brand enterprises. When you’re juggling different brand identities, marketing teams, and regional markets, having one central solution to manage all brand elements can save enormous hassle. Here’s a closer look at its advantages:
Achieve brand clarity
A brand platform crystallises your brand’s core idea. Take Coca-Cola as an example: they’ve long been associated with “happiness,” weaving it into their slogans (like Open Happiness) and interactive experiences. A brand platform does the same for you—pinpointing that singular message you want to project.
Ensure brand proposition
Marketers often wrestle with conflicting narratives, be they positioning statements, advertising angles, or PR tactics. A brand platform reigns in these scattered bits under one unified story, simplifying communication and making sure your brand evolves smoothly without losing its core.
Accelerate brand salience
“Salience” describes how quickly people recall your brand when a buying moment arises. If someone’s mind leaps straight to Nike when they need sports gear, that’s strong brand salience. A strategic platform can keep you top of mind in a similar way—turning your brand into the immediate “best choice” for customers.
Cultivate positive brand association
A brand platform typically embodies a philosophical stance—an ideal your company advocates. Guinness’s Made of Black celebrates originality; Coca-Cola’s Real Magic Happens When People Come Together highlights shared experiences. Platforms like these foster a positive emotional tie to the brand, creating impressions of quality and trustworthiness.
Increase brand loyalty
Consistency speaks volumes. When customers believe in your vision—and see it reflected in every single message—they’re more inclined to stick around. With a solid brand platform, your business feels more relatable, sparking an “us” feeling that secures loyalty over time.
How to build a brand platform?
Before you jump in, you’ll want to confirm what your brand platform needs to include. Some companies can launch one in a few weeks; others need a few months. Here’s how to tackle it step by step:
1. Research the market
Dive into the competitive environment. Identify your direct rivals, check out what’s hot in your sector, and define your target audience. Create a sketch of your ideal customers, then figure out how to nudge them into picking your brand. Tools like SWOT analysis help you organise strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, so you can carve a unique space in the market.
2. Define your brand elements
What does your brand value? Why does it exist? How do you want customers to perceive you? Reflect on your values, purpose, personality, and unique selling points. That might involve picking brand colours, typography, and the style of images you’ll use.
3. Create a compelling brand story
Share why your brand came into being and what obstacles you’ve overcome. This narrative sets the stage for every other brand element, ensuring everything lines up neatly with your mission and the people you want to serve.
4. Create your brand messaging
Armed with a clear story, shape your brand voice. Decide how you’ll convey product benefits, brand values, and brand tone. Whether you’re aiming for a warm, personal vibe or a sharper, more formal approach, stay consistent across all your channels.
5. Spread the word
A brand platform might start with a tagline or slogan, but you’ll want to introduce it in a way that people notice over time, not in one giant show. Drip-feed it into ads, social media updates, or event appearances. Remember: a brand platform is bigger than a single campaign. It must express a timeless truth about your brand, guiding all you do.
6. Make a brand platform work
Once you’ve uncovered your brand’s fundamental truth—the big concept that resonates with your audience—anchor your engagement and communication around it. Patrick Newberry and Kevin Farnham’s brand engagement framework suggests linking customer goals with business goals through this central concept. Keep everyone in your organisation clued in, so the brand platform remains a living, evolving tool rather than a dusty PDF.
Before you jump in, you’ll want to confirm what your brand platform needs to include. Some companies can launch one in a few weeks; others need a few months. Here’s how to tackle it step by step:
1. Research the market
Dive into the competitive environment. Identify your direct rivals, check out what’s hot in your sector, and define your target audience. Create a sketch of your ideal customers, then figure out how to nudge them into picking your brand. Tools like SWOT analysis help you organise strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, so you can carve a unique space in the market.
2. Define your brand elements
What does your brand value? Why does it exist? How do you want customers to perceive you? Reflect on your values, purpose, personality, and unique selling points. That might involve picking brand colours, typography, and the style of images you’ll use.
3. Create a compelling brand story
Share why your brand came into being and what obstacles you’ve overcome. This narrative sets the stage for every other brand element, ensuring everything lines up neatly with your mission and the people you want to serve.
4. Create your brand messaging
Armed with a clear story, shape your brand voice. Decide how you’ll convey product benefits, brand values, and brand tone. Whether you’re aiming for a warm, personal vibe or a sharper, more formal approach, stay consistent across all your channels.
5. Spread the word
A brand platform might start with a tagline or slogan, but you’ll want to introduce it in a way that people notice over time, not in one giant show. Drip-feed it into ads, social media updates, or event appearances. Remember: a brand platform is bigger than a single campaign. It must express a timeless truth about your brand, guiding all you do.
6. Make a brand platform work
Once you’ve uncovered your brand’s fundamental truth—the big concept that resonates with your audience—anchor your engagement and communication around it. Patrick Newberry and Kevin Farnham’s brand engagement framework suggests linking customer goals with business goals through this central concept. Keep everyone in your organisation clued in, so the brand platform remains a living, evolving tool rather than a dusty PDF.
What are the key features of an effective brand platform?
Choosing the right platform to organise and share your brand’s assets can be daunting. As you weigh up different solutions, watch for:
1. Brand asset management
A good system organises and categorises brand resources, from logos to campaign visuals. You should be able to label and tag files, making them easy to track down later.
2. Accessibility of brand resources
A cloud-based setup ensures your global or distributed teams can log in wherever they are, possibly with multi-language interfaces.
3. User access control and permissions
Not everyone needs full editing powers. Pick a platform with custom roles, so staff and external partners only see (and do) what they need.
4. One centralised solution for multiple brands
If your company manages a portfolio of brands, you’ll want a single platform that can present each brand’s assets with its own style—no cookie-cutter approach needed.
5. Security measures and data compliance
Ensure strong security features such as single sign-on, compliance checks, and robust data protection. You want your brand materials safe, yet still accessible to the right people.
Choosing the right platform to organise and share your brand’s assets can be daunting. As you weigh up different solutions, watch for:
1. Brand asset management
A good system organises and categorises brand resources, from logos to campaign visuals. You should be able to label and tag files, making them easy to track down later.
2. Accessibility of brand resources
A cloud-based setup ensures your global or distributed teams can log in wherever they are, possibly with multi-language interfaces.
3. User access control and permissions
Not everyone needs full editing powers. Pick a platform with custom roles, so staff and external partners only see (and do) what they need.
4. One centralised solution for multiple brands
If your company manages a portfolio of brands, you’ll want a single platform that can present each brand’s assets with its own style—no cookie-cutter approach needed.
5. Security measures and data compliance
Ensure strong security features such as single sign-on, compliance checks, and robust data protection. You want your brand materials safe, yet still accessible to the right people.
Brand platform examples
There are plenty of ways to set up and customise your brand platform. Here we have mentioned three examples to show how to manage your brand.
Mozilla
Mozilla’s brand platform emphasises collaboration and open communication. It’s anchored around the brand’s manifesto, reflecting its mission for an open, inclusive internet.
Walmart
Walmart’s brand portal starts with broad brand principles—like saving money for families—and also breaks down strategies for success, covering design philosophies and everyday brand operations.
Slack
Slack’s brand platform puts collaboration and a “work better together” ethos front and centre. It reveals the brand’s focus on streamlined workflows, vibrant visuals, and a warm yet efficient tone.
There are plenty of ways to set up and customise your brand platform. Here we have mentioned three examples to show how to manage your brand.
Mozilla
Mozilla’s brand platform emphasises collaboration and open communication. It’s anchored around the brand’s manifesto, reflecting its mission for an open, inclusive internet.
Walmart
Walmart’s brand portal starts with broad brand principles—like saving money for families—and also breaks down strategies for success, covering design philosophies and everyday brand operations.
Slack
Slack’s brand platform puts collaboration and a “work better together” ethos front and centre. It reveals the brand’s focus on streamlined workflows, vibrant visuals, and a warm yet efficient tone.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the pillars of brand platform?
There are five pillars of a brand platform, and understanding each one helps build a clear identity and see a path to future marketplace success. These pillars are:
Purpose
Positioning
Personality
Perception
Promotion
What is a brand positioning platform?
It’s an internal document or approach that pinpoints your brand’s unique place in the market. This helps shape all external messaging—from social posts to videos and press releases.
What is the difference between brand platform and brand guide?
While a brand platform is a broader, longer-term statement of beliefs and promises, a brand guide zeroes in on the specifics of design, tone, and usage. Essentially, the guide is the “how,” and the platform is the “why.”
Final Thoughts
Building a brand platform is about forging a stable foundation—a tool that ensures your promises to customers ring true at every interaction. By putting customers at the centre and aligning internal teams around a shared vision, you’ll create a brand identity that resonates throughout the market. It’s an investment of time and resources, but one that pays for itself by unifying your approach, clarifying your message, and helping people see exactly who you are.
The best part? Once established, a strong brand platform sets your company up to stand out confidently, day after day.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the pillars of brand platform?
There are five pillars of a brand platform, and understanding each one helps build a clear identity and see a path to future marketplace success. These pillars are:
Purpose
Positioning
Personality
Perception
Promotion
What is a brand positioning platform?
It’s an internal document or approach that pinpoints your brand’s unique place in the market. This helps shape all external messaging—from social posts to videos and press releases.
What is the difference between brand platform and brand guide?
While a brand platform is a broader, longer-term statement of beliefs and promises, a brand guide zeroes in on the specifics of design, tone, and usage. Essentially, the guide is the “how,” and the platform is the “why.”
Final Thoughts
Building a brand platform is about forging a stable foundation—a tool that ensures your promises to customers ring true at every interaction. By putting customers at the centre and aligning internal teams around a shared vision, you’ll create a brand identity that resonates throughout the market. It’s an investment of time and resources, but one that pays for itself by unifying your approach, clarifying your message, and helping people see exactly who you are.
The best part? Once established, a strong brand platform sets your company up to stand out confidently, day after day.
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Click to copy
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