When people hear a successful brand name, it conjures up a single word, image or concept. Xerox is photocopying, so much so that the name has become a synonym for the verb "to copy." Starbucks is coffee. Campbell's is soup. FedEx is overnight packages, and so on.

No matter what size your company is or who your clients are, you want your offerings to be just as memorable -- to be the first thing that comes to mind when customers are in the market for what you've got. Whether you're selling yourself or soccer balls, you need a reputation. Branding can help make that happen.

In fact, every client interaction, every sale, every bit of publicity you get creates and refines your reputation, your brand. You can't really choose not to have a brand, so why not take charge of the process?

Market leaders with killer brands didn't get that way by failing to deliver what the brand promised. Brands are built on trust: the customer's conviction that purchasing your brand will give her exactly what she expects.

And she's not just interested in product performance. The purchasing experience, dealings with customer service, and even phone calls to the company receptionist must meet her expectations of the way a brand like yours should operate. You build -- or destroy -- your brand with every customer transaction.

Here, smaller companies have an advantage. You have more control over the customer's experience, more opportunities to nurture relationships, more chances to make buying your brand a good thing.

When you look at branding this way, it becomes obvious that building the brand is every employee's job -- not just the owner's or the sales staff's or the ad agency's. A great brand will grow your bottom line, but you create it by building relationships, goodwill and trust. So make sure every employee knows the meaning of the brand and communicates it through his actions.