What is creative brand strategy

Optiplus(name withheld) distributes premium-quality eyewear; branded as well as non-branded. They want to expand into the online retailing of eyeglasses. Their brand is well-known in B2B space; but with end consumers, they do not have any connection. It is not the first time they are trying in retailing. However, the earlier ventures did not click with their audience. They did several brand campaigns along with regular festive brandings, decked with top-notch creative.

Can you guess what went wrong with them?

Brand strategy is not all about having a great logo, catchy slogan, social media posts, banners, ad copies, or similar brand collaterals. Creatives are essential but not at the cost of a solid brand strategy. They have their exact places. Keep reading if you want clarity on brand strategy and creative branding strategy (or, creative strategy).

What is the brand strategy?

In a more barebone sense, brand strategy is aligning your business with the purpose it serves for its end customers, or intends to cater. For devising an appropriate brand strategy, we need to understand the meaning of your business, your business goals. We need to pinpoint and finalise what perception your brand should arouse in the audience.

What is a creative branding strategy?

Creative branding is about successfully telling the story, which constructs the desired brand perception. It is a communication approach as per the brand strategy. Now storytelling can take more than one path; especially in today’s a digital world. The most apparent creative branding components are,

• Brand logo
• Other visual identities
• Ad copy
• Social media interactions
• Jingles
• Interactive media
• Product design 
• Packaging design

The list does not end here, of course.

Can you have brand creatives without having or following a clearly defined brand strategy?
The simple answer is YES and No.