How do you raise brand awareness for your business?
If you're reading this, chances are you're looking for ways to elevate your brand. We all know brand awareness is important in driving growth and building trust with your customers.
But how do you run a successful brand campaign and then measure its impact?
In this article, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about measuring brand awareness and how to supercharge it with powerful campaigns and initiatives that can take your brand to the next level.
Let’s dive in!
What Exactly Is Brand Awareness?
Before we dive into the details, let’s first get the basic out of the way first. What is brand awareness?
Brand awareness is all about how familiar people are with your brand. It goes beyond just recognizing your logo. It’s about customers knowing who you are, what you offer, and what your brand stands for.
In simpler terms, it’s how easily your brand comes to mind when someone thinks about a product or service you offer.
But how is brand awareness different from other things like brand equity or brand loyalty?
- Brand Equity: Brand awareness is about recognition, while brand equity is the value people associate with your brand over time.
- Brand Loyalty: This, on the other hand, is when customers stick with you because they love your brand.
Brand awareness is the first step — without it, there’s no brand equity or loyalty to build on.
Not Just Brand Awareness — Brand Health Is Important Too!
The more you know about your brand awareness, the better you can plan your marketing & make informed decisions about where to focus your marketing efforts.
Brand health is another critical part of this. It represents how positively people perceive your brand, and it’s just as important.
High brand awareness with a bad reputation won't get you far. That’s why measuring both awareness and brand health will give you a complete picture of where your brand stands, allowing you to adjust your business strategy even further.
Key Metrics In Measuring Brand Awareness
Now that you know all about brand awareness and the importance of it, let’s look at the key metrics you can use to measure brand awareness. It is important to know about the metrics first before we dive into the “how” or method of measuring it.
Here are the top 2 key performance indicators (KPI) we at Vase.ai usually looks at:
Impressions
Impressions measure how often your content, ad, or brand is displayed, regardless of whether it was clicked or engaged with.
It's a great way to gauge your brand's exposure.
For example, 10,000 impressions mean your brand was seen 10,000 times. While impressions don’t measure if people remember your brand, they do show how often you're getting in front of your audience.
Engagement
Engagement metrics, like likes, shares, comments, and click-through rates (CTR), give you an idea of how well people are interacting with your content.
High engagement means people aren’t just seeing your content, they’re connecting with it.
If you're running ads on platforms like Google or Meta, keep an eye on metrics like:
- CPM (cost per thousand impressions)
- CPC (cost per click)
- CPV (cost per view). These metrics tell you how effectively your campaign is reaching your audience.
Pro-tip: Be sure to check the frequency of your campaign too. As a rule of thumb, if the frequency is more than 6, then it might be time to tweak your target audience or refresh your creatives to avoid ad fatigue.
So, How Do you Measure Brand Awareness?
There are a few key ways to track how well people know and recognize your brand. Let’s break it down.
Brand recall surveys
These surveys ask people to name brands they remember in your industry, without any hints. If your brand comes to mind quickly, you're doing something right. It's a simple but powerful way to see if your brand is top of mind.
You’ve probably encountered something similar in YouTube ads, where you're asked to recall the brand from the ad you just watched. This is another example of how brand recall is measured in real time.
Google Trends
Google Trends shows how often people are searching for your brand compared to your competitors. It’s a great tool for tracking your online visibility, especially after a campaign or product launch.
We typically recommend checking Google Trends after 1 to 2 months of running a brand campaign.
This allows you to compare search demand over time and see if there’s an increase in demand for your product, services, or brand name.
A noticeable uplift indicates your campaign is driving brand awareness effectively.
Social Media Reach & Mentions
Tracking how often your brand is mentioned on social media shows how much buzz you’re generating.
Tools can help you monitor mentions and track reach, so you know if people are talking about your brand. Some example tools our clients typically used:
- Hootsuite
- Sprout Social
- Mention
Now that we’re talking about tools, let’s look at some free and paid tools that can help you to measure brand awareness.
Top 5 Tools To Measure Brand Awareness
There are both free and paid tools you can use to track your brand’s awareness. Let’s go through each of them.
1. Google Analytics (Free)
This is one of the most commonly used tools for brand marketers—and the best part?
It’s completely free. Unless you’re dealing with a massive volume of traffic, the free plan will be more than enough.
Google Analytics is excellent for tracking where your website traffic is coming from. It’s especially useful for monitoring increases in organic search traffic over time.
If you see a consistent rise, it’s a good sign that your brand campaigns are working!
2. SurveyMonkey or Typeform (Free/Paid)
These platforms let you easily create surveys to measure brand recall and awareness.
They're customizable and allow you to gather feedback directly from your audience, helping you to understand how well your brand is being recognized.
3. Hootsuite (Free/Paid)
This tool lets you monitor social mentions and engagement.
It’s ideal for tracking how often your brand is being discussed on social media platforms, giving you real-time insights into your brand’s reach.
Bonus: The tool doesn’t just measure social media mentions—it also comes with built-in functionalities to help you manage and analyze all your social media platforms, giving you a more comprehensive view of your brand’s presence online.
4. Brandwatch or Sprinklr (Paid)
These advanced tools go beyond tracking mentions to analyze sentiment as well. They help you see if people are talking positively or negatively about your brand, offering a deeper understanding of how your brand is perceived.
5. Vase.ai (Recommended)
Vase.ai is a handy market research tool for brands that want to boost awareness and get real consumer insights.
With access to over 3.6 million Southeast Asian consumers, it helps you measure brand awareness, run health checks, and track campaign performance in real-time.
Whether you're launching a new campaign or need a periodic brand health check, Vase.ai provides tailored solutions to track your brand awareness effectively.
Sign up for a free Vase.ai account and try it out now.
Bonus: Hire A Positioning Agency!
If you're looking for expert guidance, it is not uncommon to hire a branding agency or consulting services too.
Many B2C and even B2B companies choose this route to ensure their brand is positioned & measured correctly.
Instead of spending time and energy on a topic you’re not well-versed in, why not bring in experts who can do it for you?
They not only handle the heavy lifting, but also provide valuable insights and strategies you might not have considered. Plus, they come with the experience of working with other big brands.
Of course, this option is ideal if you have the budget to invest!
Vase.ai Recommends: You can work with a positioning expert like April Dunford's consulting firm, known for helping companies to define and communicate their brand value effectively.
How to Supercharge Brand Awareness
Now that you know all about measuring brand awareness, let’s look into some practical strategies that you can employ to boost your brand awareness.
Content Marketing
Consistently creating high-quality content is one of the most effective ways to raise brand awareness. (and putting your brand out there!)
Whether through blog posts, videos, or social media updates, the key is to provide valuable and relevant content that resonates with your audience. The more helpful and engaging your content is, the more people will come to know and trust your brand.
SEO Optimizations
SEO goes hand-in-hand with content marketing. By optimizing for relevant keywords and improving site speed, you can increase your visibility in search engines.
The higher your ranking, the more likely people are to discover your brand organically.
Remember, SEO writing is all about delivering value to your audience who is looking for answers, not flooding the web with “SEO-optimized” articles.
Influencer & Brand Collaborations
Partnering with influencers or like-minded brands can quickly expand your reach.
Influencers already have the trust of their followers, and their endorsement will feel like a personal recommendation, helping your brand connect with new audiences and build credibility.
Conclusion
When it comes to brand awareness, the saying “what gets measured gets managed” couldn’t be more true.
By tracking the right metrics, you gain valuable insights into how well your brand resonates with your audience.
At Vase.ai, we always recommend businesses like yours to start small.
Start by measuring your brand awareness with tools like Google Analytics, surveys, and social media tracking.
From there, implement actionable strategies like content marketing, SEO, and influencer collaborations to take your brand to the next level.
Ready To Power Up Your Brand Awareness?
Sign up for a free Vase.ai account and launch your first branding campaign that is backed by consumer research! What’s more?
You’ll get your insights in days—no more waiting around for weeks!
Got questions? Book a strategy call with one of our expert researchers, and we’ll walk you through how Vase.ai can help you hit your goals.
