When we think of big brands images such as Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Nike, Apple and McDonald’s instantly spring to mind (notably all from the U.S.). And when it comes to Australian brands the likes of Vegemite, Bonds, Akubra, Speedo and Cadbury are all at the top of our gum tree.

Interestingly though in a recent ranking of Australia’s best brands by the world’s largest brand consultancy, Interbrand, none of our own home-grown list made it on to the 2009 league table. Try Telstra, the four major banks, a handful of retailers and a global leader in barrier protective solutions (eh?).

Which got us thinking, if there’s so much focus on brands and branding, and so many marketers talking about it, then is there a place for branding for SME’s?

Well, if you’ve got a business plan that stretches 100 years or so, and you execute it successfully, then your brand will almost certainly gain a decent ranking on some sort of list. Take Coca-Cola for example. The company has been around since 1886 and is now the most recognised brand in the world. Same goes for McDonald’s, General Electric, Ford etc.

The common denominator here (apart from being successful) is time, and plenty of it in their respective markets, something most SME’s don’t have.

The other path to having a recognised brand is being at the forefront of some sort of revolution (technological, creative or cultural). Think Apple, Microsoft, Nokia, MTV, Google, eBay etc. Most of these behemoths haven’t been around for that long, but have pioneered their field and have risen to the top very quickly.

The common denominator (again, apart from success) is their timing in or creation of a new market, something most SME’s aspire to but haven’t yet achieved.

So without the century plus track record or not yet creating the next big thing, do SME’s really need to worry about branding?

Well yes, all the time.

Brand specialists will tell you branding is more than just a logo (and this is true), and some will even be able to ‘distill’ your brand essence for you so you can get to know it better, albeit all at a price.

Call us old-fashioned but we subscribe to the notion that branding is a by-product of doing what you do well. In other words establishing a brand means getting on with the job, providing a great product and even better customer-centric service.

Yes you need to spend money on a decent logo, and yes you need to put the appropriate systems in place to be able to deliver on the brand promise, but no one knows your business better than you – and this knowledge shouldn’t cost you a cent.