There are times I wonder if I’ve been climbing uphill, against the wind.

Back in 2010, I had the audacity to start a website and call it “Big Brand System.” My aim is to help small (not big) business owners — from online entrepreneurs to offline brick-and-mortar operations — build recognizable brands that help their businesses grow.

I did it because I know the importance of brand equity. I’ve seen it firsthand.

But teaching “big brand” ideas to small businesses meant I had to educate those business owners and convince them that they too deserved to reap all the benefits brand equity would bring them.

Tens of thousands of people are now convinced. 🙂

Do you have a “big brand” yet? Does your brand have real monetary value? And if not, what can you do about it?

Why should a small business owner care about “brand equity?”

Brand equity refers to the value your brand name and appearance hold in the marketplace.

High-equity, value-rich brands have an easier time on their business journeys:

• They can charge more for their products or services because there’s a perception that they are more valuable than their competitors’ products and services
• Brands with high equity are easily remembered and awareness about them is high, meaning that theirs is the first one to come to mind when a prospect wants to purchase
• Recognized brands seem established and trustworthy, which makes people more willing to invest in them

Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? When you create a brand that’s recognized as a market leader in your space, you can enjoy all these benefits, too.

That’s what we’re aiming for here.

If you’re not there yet, I’m here to help. I’ve helped businesses of all sizes build brand equity since 1987. And I have developed resources on this site to help you do the same.

Brand equity building blocks

Brand equity arises when you make a few key decisions upfront, you implement those decisions masterfully, and you stick to your decisions over time — resisting the urge to radically change your brand identity every few years.

Here are the essentials of a high-value brand:

1. A recognizable visual appearance

High-value brands have a visual style that “says” something. It makes an impact and offers and easy-to-remember image. For more on creating a recognizable visual appearance, check out these posts:

Designing Your Brand: The Power of a Simple Logo

7 Foolproof Design Upgrades You Can Do Today

Become a Logo Design Connoisseur With These Five Tips

2. A memorable verbal brand message

Brand equity happens when your brand message is clear, easy to remember, and engaging. It starts with your business name and moves on to how you talk about your business:

Branding 101: 7 Business Name Traps to Avoid

How to Choose a Business Name You’ll Love Today, Tomorrow, and 5 Years from Now

Digging Deep to Unearth Marketing Gold

3. Marketing that communicates with a consistent brand voice over time

Once you’ve created a polished visual brand and an engaging verbal brand message, it’s time to work on building recognition. This is where persistence pays off — and resisting the urge to “change things up a little” is rewarded:

6 Ways to Strut Your Brand Personality with Breathtaking Consistency

The Marketing Secret That’s Hiding in Plain Sight

5 Reasons Your Brand Plan Isn’t Working

Brand equity: a long-term goal you achieve with small steps over time

A high-value brand might seem unattainable for a small business owner. But all those big brands are doing exactly what I’ve outlined here.

The best news of all? There’s no great mystery to this, and you don’t need millions to make it happen.

Questions about brand equity? Let’s talk about them in the comments.