Your logo may be done, but your brand promotion is just beginning. Here are tips for maximizing your brand effectiveness.

You finally approved the new company logo and now you can sit back and get back to running your business. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but your work is just beginning. Your logo may be done, but your brand promotion is just beginning. Since your brand is not what you think or even say about your company, product or service…it’s what your customers and prospects think and say about YOU that matters.

Getting the Most Out of Your New Logo
To get the most out of your new logo you need to carefully consider how the logo is positioned and used in all areas of communication. And the good news is that every opportunity is a billboard for your company’s messaging.

What’s Your Key Messaging?
It’s also a time to work on your messaging. How you deliver information to your clients and prospects says a lot about you.

Are you clear and concise? Do you take time to review, proofread and rewrite your content so it makes sense to your key audience? Can you answer this question, “Why did you introduce a new logo?”
Imagine you are being quoted on CNN about why you updated your company’s logo. Do you want to talk about old logos and new colors and better positioning? No, you want to talk about what your new logo is really about: Listening to the marketplace, changing for the future, a better reflection of your company’s values. That’s what your new logo should really be about.

Your logo should reflect your company’s mission and values, so talk about that when you are asked about your logo. Let the designers talk about color, typeface and corporate identity. You want to talk about substance that resonates with your clients and describes where you want to be as a company.

When Do You Switch Over?
You can change a company logo gradually by phasing in new materials over a period of time. Or you can do it radically: Everything new and in place on the target date. Either way, you’ve got a lengthy list of materials to consider.

Many companies will send out a formal announcement that includes a brief statement of the values and mission of your company. Keep it simple and straight-forward, nothing highfalutin. I recommend that this be done as a mailing along with a press release, an online eBlast and a posting on your home page and in your blog.

What Has to Change?
To get the most out of your new logo and really build a new branding system you should take advantage of every opportunity to consistently and distinctively use your logo. Below is a checklist that can help as you gather samples and pore over business records.

Changing Your Logo: Checklist
Announcement
Eblast
Printed announcement
Trade advertisement
Stationery
Business cards
Envelopes
Fax sheet
Letterhead
Mailing labels
Memo pads
News release form
Postal meter
White papers
Reports

Online/Social
Email Signature
Web masthead
Web favicon (The mini logo in your website URL)
Twitter handle
Facebook page
LinkedIn page

Listings and Certificates
Business directories
Certificates of incorporation
Credit certificates
Directory listings
Licenses
Permits
Stock certificates
Ticker symbols

Business Forms
Corporate checks
Invoices
Payroll checks
Purchase orders
Statements
Employee Communications
Benefits books
ID badges
Medical plans
Pension plans
Recruiting materials
Service awards

Advertising & Promotions
Advertisements
Apparel
Binders
Literature
Novelty items
Packaging
Presentation formats
Yellow Pages

Signage
Buildings
Directional
Doorways
Exhibit booths

A version of this story appears on SmallBizTrends.com