The Crucial Role of Branding in New Product Launches
Every year, thousands of new products enter the market. Many are good, some are excellent, but only a few truly succeed.
So what decides whether a product becomes memorable or fades away? Surprisingly enough, it is not just the functionality, price, or even its novelty. It is how it is branded.
A strong branding approach can turn a product into an icon.
Read on to see what product branding is, why it is crucial for new product launches, and how to build a product branding strategy for lasting success.
What is Product Branding?
Before jumping into strategy, it is essential that we define what product branding is.
Broadly, it is when you build a unique identity for a product. The name, look and feel, messaging should all be thought through. It means creating an identity and a story that helps consumers understand what makes that product special, how it fits into their lives, and why they should care.
Elements of product branding include:
- Visual identity: logo, packaging, colour palette, typography
- Messaging: the value proposition; what the product promises to do, and for whom
- Brand voice & personality: how the product “speaks” to customers (friendly, premium, fun, serious, disruptive, etc.)
- Emotional appeal: tying the brand to feelings such as trust, aspiration, belonging, joy
- Consistency: ensuring that all touchpoints (ads, website, packaging, social media, point of sale) reinforce the same branding principles
Benefits of product branding
When you are launching something new, product branding is foundational. Here is why:
- The more saturated your category, the harder it is for a product to stand apart. Strong product branding helps consumers immediately recognise and distinguish your offering from others. Product branding can help differentiate your products through identity, packaging, messaging, in short, making it visible and memorable.
- When a product is well-branded, it signals professionalism, quality, and reliability. Consumers are more likely to try new products from brands they recognise or whose branding feels consistent and credible. The trust factor accelerates the early adoption phase.
- Strong branding leads to higher recall. Packaging, design, logo, messaging that sticks. That means your product is more likely to be noticed in stores, on online marketplaces, in social feeds. Recognition matters especially when launching.
- With strong branding, customers may perceive higher value, even if the cost difference is small. This can allow for premium pricing, leading to healthier profit margins.
- Having clear ideas and a strategy early means your marketing messages, creatives, and content are more aligned. You don’t reinvent key messaging every campaign; you reuse and reinforce. This consistency lowers costs, speeds up deployment, and helps your brand equity carry over across campaigns.
- Branding a product well pays off over time. When customers associate the product with a positive identity, they return, recommend it, or buy follow-ups. Over time, the product becomes part of the brand's identity (and vice versa).
- If you plan multiple new products, having a solid brand for your initial product makes it easier to extend into related categories. Brand extensions, line expansions, or digital product branding all benefit if the main product’s brand is strong and respected.
Branding Strategy for New Product:
Having seen the benefits of branding a product, how do you execute a strong product branding strategy for a new product launch? Here are strategic steps:
- Market & Audience Research
Understand who your customer is: demographics, psychographics, needs, pains, aspirations.
- Define Positioning & Unique Value Proposition (UVP)
What makes your product different or better? Why should someone choose your product over another?
- Generate Branding Product Ideas
Brainstorm names, taglines, packaging concepts, and visual styles. Ideate how the product might look, feel, and behave at all touchpoints. What imagery, tone, or story will best resonate?
- Design Visual Identity
Choose your logo, colour scheme, typography, packaging design, and product design elements. Ensure the visual identity reflects the UVP and the emotional appeal you want (trust, aspiration, fun, etc.).
- Define Brand Voice & Messaging Framework
What tone does your product use? Friendly, authoritative, playful, and luxurious? Set up key messages (elevator pitch, benefit statements, mission/vision) that will appear in various places (site copy, packaging, social media, ads).
- Plan All Touchpoints
Branding lives in packaging, marketing collateral, unboxing experience, customer support, website, and digital presence. In the case of digital product branding, there are additional touchpoints: UI/UX, app store pages or product pages, onboarding, instructional content, and digital ads.
- Create Pre-Launch Activities
To build anticipation, you can use teasers, social proof (beta users, influencers), countdowns, early access, and story-led marketing that conveys the brand’s promise.
- Consistent Branding and Messaging During Launch
When you launch, all visuals, messaging, and user experience need to align. From the packaging and website to PR, social media, and ads.
- Feedback, Iterate, Maintain Brand Integrity
Observe user feedback, sentiment, and reviews. Adjust where needed, but maintain the core brand promise.
Product Branding Examples That Nail It
Let us look at a few examples of product branding ideas and launches:
Bigger Agency’s The North Face, All-Mountain Mission / VR Paragliding Activation
For The North Face, when launching their new AMP (All-Mountain Purpose) product line, Bigger Agency created an immersive experiential branding activation. They installed interactive touchscreens in several European stores, allowing customers to explore the product’s versatility (suiting different mountain sports). Alongside that, they set up a VR paragliding installation. Visitors could virtually glide through the Alps, tying the product launch not just to showing gear, but to the emotions of adventure, freedom, and awe.
Apple iPhone:
From product naming (“i”) to the sleek minimal packaging, the design, the launch events, the consistency across device, website, retail stores, Apple shows how product branding builds premium perception, recognition, and customer loyalty.
Nike Air Jordan:
Although part of Nike’s broader brand, the Air Jordan line has its own identity: performance, exclusivity, fashion, culture. Branding product strategy here included partnerships (Michael Jordan), design, storytelling, all reinforcing the “cool factor.”
IKEA:
Their products are instantly recognisable by name, design style (flat-pack, Scandinavian), the storytelling in their catalogues, and their focus on affordability, design and sustainability. This shows what consistency in branding, product visuals and messaging can do.
Conclusion
Launching a new product is a bold move. But without a strong product branding strategy, even excellent products risk being overlooked. Knowing what product branding is, planning carefully, and executing with purpose can make the difference between a product that fades and a product that becomes beloved, trusted, profitable, and iconic.