The Importance of Branding in the IT Industry

Cast your eye across the branding in the IT industry and you’ll notice many commonalities. Services, prices, tone of voice, stock imagery, even the colours they use for their branding.

We had a discovery meeting with a prospect to talk about their branding and message for their new IT business. They told us that “every IT company looks the same” and that “we want to look completely different from our competitors, standing out from the crowd!”.

I love hearing “…they all look the same” and “we want to be different” because it means we can push the boundaries in a saturated industry. Naturally our next question is “tell us what sets you apart from your competitors?” – Unfortunately in this case, the predictable answers follow:

We’re quicker than every one else
We’re cheaper than everyone else
We have a better reputation than everyone else

We followed up these answers with another question “why should your customers buy from you and not your competitors”, and the reply is simply “everything we’ve just told you…”.

This dialogue is important as this is not the first time this type of conversation has happened. In fact, this is very common. Over 90% of the IT companies I have sat down with say they are cheaper, faster, better than their competitors. When a large majority are saying the same thing, who can you believe?

Whilst being quicker, cheaper and better than everyone else are fantastic USP’s, why is it that the content you typically see on IT company websites is usually:

‘Cloud-computing solutions for B2B businesses’ 

This messaging married up with a blue logo and some stock images equals ‘Another IT Company’. It’s simply unimaginative and self focused. So, here are my top tips to navigating your way out of this simple trap:

1. Put all of your competitor logos out on a piece of paper (or digitally… save the planet)
2. Put all of your competitor messages down on another piece of paper
3. Put both your logo and core message on those pieces of paper

Does your brand:

1. Stand out
2. Blend in
3. Other

Standing out doesn’t always mean you have to be a vibrant colour, and your message doesn’t have to be something like ‘Sh*t hot IT – basically the best EVER’ because whilst this may stand out, it might give off the wrong subliminal message about your brand.

A brand that will stand out is when the Logo is legible and your message is clear. Instead of ‘Cloud-computing solutions for B2B businesses’ try ‘Keeping your business online.’

Remember, when your clients call you up, they don’t say ‘I’m looking for a B2B Cloud Computing Solution’ they’ll say ‘I’m fed up with my current company, I just want all of my computers to stay online’. Now couple clear messages with a clear logo and you’re on your way to creating branding in the IT industry that stands out for the right reasons.

Need Some Help with Your Branding in the IT Industry?

At Damteq we provide expert branding solutions for businesses looking to stand out from the crowd a make a strong but effective impact. View our latest case studies to discover how we’ve transformed businesses with new branding that encompasses everything they do.

Get in touch to give your business the right branding, with the right message that complements your product and/or service you’ll heighten your position as an expert in your industry. Keep up to date with our latest insights on our LinkedIn.

If you’re looking for more guidance, we’re doing free video call strategy workshops. We can help accelerate your business providing you with actionable and practical advice whilst sharing our industry-leading knowledge.