Imagine having a vision but not being able to realise it. To have the perfect brand image in mind but no idea how to bring it to life. Or maybe you are at a stage where you have the brand but are at a standstill when it comes to making it grow. All equally frustrating problems. That’s where branding tools come in.
Luckily for all us brand marketers out there, some extremely smart people devised branding tools which will erase many of our miseries. However, they can be hard to find. That’s why one of our extremely smart people decided to list them all in one place for you to find. Happy reading, happy tool using, and, most importantly, happy branding.
The Ultimate List of Branding Tools
Analytics Tools
Sprout Social
Social Media Analytics Tool
Sprout Social’s aim is to help its clients understand and reach their audience with ease. As well as that, it’s easier to engage the community and to measure all performance. What’s more, the tool also comes with a complete social media management platform so all interactions with the target audience are effortless.
If you aren’t sure whether Sprout Social is for you, you can always give their free trial a whirl. When you are ready to sign up for the full package, there are different pricing plans available, so it’s ideal for all kinds of budgets. The basic Standard plan is just $99/month. Upgrading to the Professional plan costs $149 a month, and there is even the Advanced plan for $249 each month.
Most brands opt for the Professional plan, which gives them the chance to manage up to 10 social media profiles and create reports for them. You can also carry out analysis for Twitter keywords and hashtag trends as well as use the handy Helpdesk integration.
Sprout Social is certainly a useful all-in-one tool that many brand marketers use for its convenience.
Latana
Brand Tracking Tool
Latana’s brand tracking software provides accurate insights into the most important brand metrics: brand awareness, brand consideration, and brand associations.
Users can track their own brand, and the competitor brands, markets, and target audiences that they want analyzing. The data is presented on an easy-to-use dashboard where changes can be easily tracked and audience segmented.
One of the benefits of using Latana is the preciseness of their data. They use rich audience segmentation and always track real-world changes too, so you’ll always gain a wealth of data to use as foundations for new marketing campaigns and strategies.
You can book an intro that can give you a taster of the tool in action. There are also plenty of free resources worth checking out on the site too, including an eBook and whitepapers. Monthly plans start at €950 per month.
TapInfluencer
Influencer Marketing Analytics Tool
If you have been tempted to dip your toes into the world of influencer marketing, TapInfluencer is a great place to get started. This new branch of marketing is known to engage audiences thanks to authentic content that consumers actually want to see. As many consumers trust the influencers they follow, they view the brands associated with them just as trustworthy.
If you want to find out more about how the TapInfluencer’s marketing platform works, you can take their self-guided product tour. To find out the pricing, you’ll have to contact the team directly.
This is a great tool for any brand just starting out in influencer marketing. TapInfluence can match you with the suitable influencers who can then get to work on promoting your campaign. There’ll be no need to try hard to build relationships with influencers from scratch, which is something that many brands struggle with.
Snaplytics
Social Media Analytics Tool
For brands whose primary social media presence is on Instagram and Snapchat, Snaplytics has everything needed to create engaging stories. Once the stories are out in the public, the tool provides data on their impact and plenty of other insights.
A lot of Snaplytics users enjoy the actionable insights that allow them to improve and alter their social media stories for the better. What’s more, the dashboard is easy to use, and users can also make use of the entire Snalpytics’ library of past content. By viewing these previous stories, you can see what worked well for various audiences.
There’s a free trial available on the website so you can take Snaplytics for a spin to see how it suits you. Depending on the type of account you want with them, the price can be between $100–300 per month and there are discounts available for universities and non-profit organizations.
Google Analytics
Data Analytics Tool
Brought to you by search-behemoth Google, Google Analytics is a free-to-use online tool that gives you a complete overview of your website’s traffic.
In order to get started with this tool, you just need to enter a few lines of extra code into your site. This clever code will then track and record the activities of web users who visit your site. Thanks to this, you’ll gain access to notable attributes of web traffic, such as age and geographical location. You’ll also be shown what users are actually doing on your website, including the pages they click onto and their total time on site.
For those looking for a free trial, Google has set up a demo account that you can use. There’s no charge for setting up an account when you decide you’re ready to use Google Analytics for real. Most brands will find that this provides them with ample insights, but if you want even more, you can sign up to Google Analytics 360, which is the premium platform. Prices start at $150,000 per year.
The standard version of Google Analytics is a great tool for start-ups that are on a limited budget. The data gained from it can boost SEO strategies as well as highlighting ways a site’s design can be improved.
Mention
Tracking Tool
Another popular social-media tracking tool, Mention makes it simple for brands to manage their online presence and various social media profiles. From listening to social media conversations to responding and interacting with an audience, Mention is there every step of the way. This means that brands are never missing out on any valuable information and will be able to move discussions in their preferred direction.
Mention provides brands an easy way to track and monitor competitors on social media. It’s also a useful tool for seeing exactly what consumers think about a brand as well as you’ll gain insights into brand awareness and consideration.
To try Mention out for size, you can enjoy a month of limited features for free. Paid plans start at $25 per month.
Unfollower Stats
Twitter Tracking Tool
Wouldn’t it be great if you could find out who has unfollowed you on Twitter? Well, now you can. You just need to start using Unfollower Stats. You’ll get data on all followers and unfollowers, all of which will be presented in a very easy to digest way.
Tracking who follows and unfollows your brand’s Twitter can be useful as it should show you whether your target audience are actually loyal to you or not. Plus, you should see which of your tweets are causing more people to hit that Unfollow button, so you will know not to repeat them in the future.
To see just how this online tool can help you, you might want to try out their free trial. If you want to continue, you don’t even have to pay any extra as the basic plan is free to use. If you want to track a higher number of followers or access even more features and stats, the Premium and Pro accounts are just $2.99 and $4.99 a month respectively.
Hootsuite
Social Media Management Tool
Hootsuite knows that managing various social media can be very time-consuming, and it’s not something that all brands have time for. This tool helps with that as it assists with scheduling, managing, and reporting across different social media platforms.
When you do decide to sign up to Hootsuite, there is plenty of training available so that you can instantly make the most out of the tool. Many busy clients love the fact they can bulk-upload Tweets and other social media content so that they can manage a week or more of content in just one go.
The free trial available should give you a great taster to see how Hootsuite could help your brand. There are then different monthly plans available that range from £25 to £520. Customizable plans are also available.
Offline Brand Marketing Tools
Vector Magic
Offline Printing Tool
Posters, flyers, and brochures are some of the more traditional forms of offline marketing. To catch the eye of your target audience, you will need some expertly printed materials, which is where Vector Magic can help.
On the website, you’ll be able to upload your images in various file formats and can then edit them to get them exactly how you want. Before you know it, your images will be ready to send to print.
The online tool is very easy to use, and you won’t need any photo or image editing experience to make the most of Vector Magic. It’s also reasonably priced as well, and the online edition that can be used on their website is just $9.95 per month. If you want to use their advanced desktop edition, that can be used as its own application, then it’s a one-time charge of $295.
Business Card Maker
Offline Design Tool
Even though most people think that a lot of business is carried out online these days, business cards are still an essential tool for the majority of entrepreneurs and industry professionals. For a card that stands out from the crowd, you might want to use Business Card Maker to design it.
Another online tool that doesn’t require users to have extensive image editing experience, this site breaks down designing a business card into simple steps. What’s more, creating your bespoke design is completely free. Once you’ve designed a card, you can then take the design to your chosen printing service. Alternatively, you can also get Business Card Maker to print your cards for you-prices start at $9.99.
Crello
Offline Design Tool
Another option for seriously good design is Crello, an online tool that helps with the creation of animations and graphics. It doesn’t matter if you don’t come from a design background-the tool has everything that you could require to make your design ideas a reality.
Lots of marketers love how simple the tool is to use. There are also so many useful templates so you can create some really snazzy Facebook headers or Twitter profile pictures.
Crello is completely free to use, however your designs and animations would be marked with the brand’s label. If you want to remove these watermarks, then you just need to pay $7.99 per month for their Pro plan.
Online Brand Marketing Tools
Rebrandly
Online branding tool
Links are incredibly important when it comes to content. You need to ensure that you are adding plenty of backlinks to your own content on your website and need to bag as many links on external sites as well. Have you lost count of all your online links? If so, then you need Rebrandly.
Rebrandly gives you the chance to track all links that are present online, whether that’s on social media or websites. The tool also gives you the chance to scale your linking efforts and offers the ability to grow and target specific audiences with shortened links.
There’s a free plan that you can take advantage of if you want to test the basic features on Rebrandly. Slightly more advanced plans start from $29 per month.
Balsamiq
Software Tool
There are so many companies that are now looking to create their very own apps and bespoke on-site UI. That’s so they can create the perfect user experience for their audience, and one that doesn’t risk them losing any loyal customers. However, apps, software, and UI are notoriously difficult to create.
That’s not the case if you start using Balsamiq. This online tool endeavors to make UI design a lot more accessible, so that business owners, marketers, and other entrepreneurs who don’t have any design experience can create stylish sites and apps.
You can take a tutorial of the tool online and its monthly plans start off at just $9 per month. When you do sign up for a plan, you will be able to enjoy a 30-day free trial to make sure that this design tool is the right one for you and your brand.
Name Check
Website Domain Checker
What happens if you have a brilliant idea for a company or brand but don’t have a clue what to name it? You can head over to the Name Check site. Simply enter in any ideas that you have into their checker and they will bring up which potential URLs are available. Whether you are starting from scratch or undergoing a complete rebrand, it’s a great way to see which name is the best to take you further.
You can check everything from domain names to social media handles to names for new mobile apps. Lots of brand marketers like to enter in their name, even if they are completely dead set on it, just to make sure that it will be the best reflection of their brand.
One of the main advantages of this tool is that it is completely free to use, making it a cost-effective way to find some detailed results on your potential names.
Hippo Video
Video Branding
Video content has been growing in popularity over the past few years, especially when it comes to online marketing materials. To make sure your videos always hit the spot, it’s worth taking a look at Hippo Video.
The site offers video hosting, tools for creating video email campaigns, resources to help with selling videos, as well as plenty of support along the way. Many marketing managers note that using Hippo Video increases their marketing potential as it really opens them up to creating and utilizing engaging content.
You can sign up to Hippo Video for free to get started with creating unlimited videos. For even more features, including GIF creation, custom video branding, and to be placed with a dedicated account manager, their more advanced plans range between $15–49 per month.
Brosix
Instant Messaging Tool
Many company teams find that instant messenger apps and software allow them to communicate efficiently and effectively, which can really help them with time management. Brosix is one of these instant-messaging resources and promises secure and private chats that are perfect for transferring sensitive files and data.
Brosix offers an all-in-one package that allows you to set up a private team network and have full control over your users. There’s also minimum configuration, so set up is easy and you’ll be able to get on with more important aspects of business in no time at all.
You can sign up to Brosix for free, and you’ll be able to test out the tool for 30 days. After that, you will need to upgrade to one of its plans if you wish to continue. The basic Business plan is $4 per month if paid annually, while their advanced Premium account is $6/month.
Visual Creation Tools
Giphy
GIF Creation Tool
Want to get your message across in as short a time as possible? This is where GIFs will help you. These very short animations can convey a feeling or emotion in just a few seconds, so they are really handy tools to add to tweets or other social media posts. If your target audience is made up of Millennials or Gen Z, then GIFs are a no-brainer.
There are plenty of premade GIFs that you could use, but why not start making your own with Giphy? You just need to upload the video or images that you want turning into a GIF and can then add text to make it unique to you.
It’s completely free to use and is one of the easiest sites for making for GIF-making.
Abode Spark Post
Design Mobile App
Adobe Spark Post is a design app that can be used on mobile. Whether you want graphics for a social media post or web page, you can now do it all on your cell phone or tablet device. Adobe also gives you the chance to create videos in just minutes, too.
Thanks to designing on mobile, you’ll now be able to create on the go no matter where you are. You can also browse through the site’s bank of inspirational posts, so you won’t have to worry about any creative blocks for too long.
The Starter plan for Adobe Spark Post is completely free, but you can upgrade to their Individual ($12.29/month) or Business ($24.50) plans.
JOTURL
Link Branding Tool
Another tool that is invaluable when it comes to building and managing links, JOTURL can help boost inbound marketing results and all resulting conversions. The tool gives you the chance to create branded links and also advises on call-to-actions. Deep linking and remarketing are also made easy using JOTURL as well.
You can try JOTURL for size using the 14-day trial of their premium features. When you are ready to sign up, you can choose from 3 different plans. The most basic, the Growth plan, is just €7/month, while the Pro and Business are €55/month and €135/month respectively.
Design Tools
Favicon Generator
Design Tool
You know the little image that appears next to the URL of some sites up in the address bar? Well, that’s called a Favicon and it can really help you boost the legitimacy of your website. These days, when there are so many sites online competing for consumers’ attention, having a little favicon could really make a big difference to your online marketing-lots of consumers think that sites on which these small images appear are secure and trustworthy.
Making your own favicon with Favicon Generator is incredibly easy. You just need to upload your chosen image or logo to their online tool, and it will do the rest. You’ll then be able to use this tiny image as an app icon as well.
The tool is completely free to use, so there’s no need to worry about the cost of creating these small but handy icons!
Abode Color Wheel
Design Tool
Part of getting a brand just right is creating an effective logo and color scheme. Knowing which colors work well together can really enhance a design and ensure that it’s eye-catching to your target audience.
You can experiment with the color wheel to see which colors and shades complement each other. You’ll also find groups of images that correspond to different color schemes, if you need a little inspiration. As well as all this, you can take a peek at color trends that are currently doing well in various artistic industries.
The site is completely free to use.
Coolors
Design Tool
If you really don’t know where to start with creating a color scheme for your brand, Coolers can do it for you. You just need to upload a few images that inspire you or what you are a good representation of your future brand. The Coolors tool will then turn these ideas into your very own color scheme.
Lots of marketers turn to Coolors when they simply want some color inspiration. Even if you don’t upload any images for the tool to use, you can still browse through its thousands of premade color schemes that are on its Explore page.
The majority of Coolors is free to use, but there are a few freemium features that you will have to pay to use.
Font Pair
Design Tool
As well as a fantastic color scheme, your brand will also need an attractive and suitable font. No Comic Sans, please!
This is where Font Pair comes in. The website is a great resource as it features hundreds of different Google fonts for you to browse. Even better, the site is updated on a weekly basis so there are always new fonts and pairings for you to consider.
You don’t need to pay to use Font Pair-it’s free to access the site and start searching for some really cool typography!
Canva
Design Tool
Another useful design resource for all the non-designers out there, Canva offers plenty of features that make it easy to create some fantastic logos, graphs, and print designs. Whether you want to design a flyer, business card, or new resume, you will be able to thanks to all the various templates.
If you simply want to design something new, then Canva is completely free. However, it might be worth upgrading to their Canva Pro option for just $9.99 a month. This provides you with 1000+ fonts, the ability to resize to any formats, and features to make animations and GIFs. What’s more, you’ll also benefit from priority support.
Brandmark
Design Tool
If you still don’t have a logo for your brand, then you might want to use the tools available on Brandmark. This site is known for its high-quality logos as well as its other features for complete branding strategies.
It’s not just logos, as there are also assets that can assist with designing social media profile images, business cards, animations, and letterhead templates. The design tools are easy to make and once complete, you can instantly export.
Even though there is no free trial available, the one-time Brandmark prices are very reasonable. For just $25, you can create a simple logo in PNG format. For $65, you can also create a brand style guide, Facebook cover, and other icons for profiles and apps. For a more complete service, the Enterprise plan is a one-time cost of $175 and will provide you with all of the tools in the Brandmark designer packet.
Looka
Design Tool
Another option for any brand marketer looking to design a logo is Looka. Using the step-by-step process, you can have your new logo in no time at all. There’s even the chance to overhaul and redesign your website as well on the site.
Marketers love the social media kit that comes with Looka logos. When you finalize your logo design, you can then download the kit so that you can easily implement your new logo on social media profiles, business cards, and letterheads. Spoiled for choice? The site also has a range of big-brand logos if you want to browse through some inspiration.
A one-time purchase on the site is just £15. For multiple files across different channels, it’s £50 while their Enterprise plan comes with everything needed to build a brand for £65.
SlidesCarnival
Design Tool
Once you’ve got your new branding off the ground, it’s time to start pitching to potential clients and investors. That’s where SlidesCarnival can help you out. The site’s templates cover various presentation programs and software, such as Google Slides and PowerPoint.
The templates are very intuitive to customize and come ready to use, so they can help you save a lot of time. After using SlidesCarnival, you’ll have created an engaging presentation that makes your message clearer and impactful.
SlidesCarnival is completely free, whether you’re using it for personal or commercial reasons.
WiseStamp
Design Tool
How are your emails looking? If your signature is bland or too busy, then your recipients might not be taking away the essential information. You want to create an email signature that is easy to read and to-the-point with just your essential contact information. WiseStamp can help with this.
In just 30 seconds, WiseStamp can create a professional signature using its award-winning generator. You’ll even be able to make a team signature that all of your colleagues can customize for themselves.
WiseStamp costs just $6/month, and you can add on $2.25 to take advantage of their design tools for websites and business cards.
Personal Branding Tools
BrandYourself
Personal Branding Tool
It’s always worth reviewing your online reputation as any negativity could have consequences for your professional brand. The tool’s software will Google you to see if there are any bad results. If there are, then BrandYourself will get rid of them for you.
That’s not all. You can also clean up social media and report any unprofessional posts that might be linked to you. You’ll also have the chance to remove all of your sensitive data from the web, including home address and date of birth.
Once you’ve removed all of the negativity from the internet, you can then use BrandYourself’s tools and resources to start building your own personal brand.
It’s free to take the site’s scan, which will provide you with a complete report on your online reputation. Some of their DIY tools are free, but their standard managed service starts at $399.99/month.
Social Media Branding Tools
Red Cactus
Social Media Tool
Red Cactus is a full-service design agency that can help brands and business with all of their creative needs. They’ve worked with some big names, including Danone, Ford, and the University of Johannesburg, so you can have peace of mind knowing that they are experts in their field.
From designing websites and images for social media to hosting services and website maintenance, there is nothing that these guys can’t do. As they are a full-service agency, you can hand everything over to them in complete confidence so you can continue with more important aspects of your brand.
Contact Red Cactus through their site to request a free quote.
Pablo
Social Media Tool
Pablo’s main aim is to help brands increase their social media engagement thanks to their appealing image designs. By leveraging the power of images on social media, you can grab your target audience’s attention and get more retweets, shares, and new followers.
The Pablo database features hundreds of royalty free images that brand managers can use, as well as some thought-provoking quotes and proverbs. The text editing feature on the tool is also very easy. When used alongside the intuitive design resources, it certainly won’t take long to create some attention-grabbing images.
It’s free to use, so why not see exactly what Pablo can offer you?
Email Branding Tools
MailChimp
Email Marketing Tool
MailChimp has to be the king of email marketing tools. It’s very well-known, and that’s largely thanks to its effectiveness for when it comes to building brand awareness. The site’s brilliant templates help non-designers create excellent email campaigns that can really help to spread a brand.
There are also great tools that allow you to measure the effectiveness of your campaigns and all the results that they bring. You’ll see which ones are helping your brand grow, so you can build on these positive campaigns. MailChimp also offers a lot of useful guides and tutorials that cover all things email marketing.
There’s no free trial, but the basics are completely free to use. The other monthly plans range from $9.99–299/month.
Omnisend
Email Marketing Tool
Many marketers end up with very complicated email marketing campaigns on the go, but it really doesn’t have to end up that way. Omnisend’s aim is to simplify this branch of marketing and to ensure that a brand’s campaign is forging strong connections to their customers.
To do this, Omnisend focuses on customer-centric strategies that always put consumers first. To make it simple for users, they can even incorporate other channels to utilize in campaigns, including Facebook and Google. By bringing together these platforms, most Omnisend users find they get successful results from their emailing campaigns each and every time.
To find out more, you can try the free trial. The price of using the full Omnisend service will depend on how many subscribers you have, but monthly subscriptions start at $16/month.
Brand Survey Tools
SurveyMonkey
Survey Tool
Sending out surveys to customers is a great way to get an instant picture of how your brand is currently being perceived. SurveyMonkey makes it easy to create surveys that enable you to get the information you need from customers.
The survey design tool allows you to create bespoke surveys that your customers will actually want to fill out. There’s also the chance to send out surveys in various ways, such as through emails, chats, social media, and other methods. Once the responses start coming in, you can then extract important data and insights for an up-to-date view of your brand’s perception.
There’s no free trial and prices start at £25 per user per month for businesses.
Brand Strategy Tools
Coach.me
Strategy Tool
Not sure where to take your brand or how you can get there? Take a look at Coach.me for some insightful ideas and tips. The site builds a path for your brand, track habits, and even learn new skills.
The free app will allow you to track your own habits to see which might be in the way of you taking your brand to the next step. For just $20 a week, you can have access to one of their professional habit coaches who can help you break free from any disruptive behaviors. To solve any issues within your workplace, you can use their leadership coaching program for $249 per month.
To see whether Coach.me is a good fit for you and your brand, you can get started with their free trial.
Originally published at https://www.latana.com.
