How much money have you spent on marketing in the last six months? And how much of your own time have you invested too? Are you happy with your results? It can be hard to measure and with a new or small business, growth can be slow.
There is a mistake, however, that many micro or small businesses like yours make when it comes to marketing. They miss the first step – creating a brand.
You’re not to blame. Social media gives us promises of quick leads or instant sales and you’re a businessperson; not a marketeer. Well, read on and this guide will walk you through what a good brand is, how to get one and the impact it will have on your business.
But first…
What is a brand exactly?
When you think of a brand, what comes to mind? The red and white of a Coca-Cola can? The Apple logo? Maybe you think of a platform you use and the friendly way they communicate on social media?
Whatever comes to mind, I’m willing to bet that that brand belongs to a big business and you’re of the opinion that your company is too small for its brand to matter. This simply could not be further from the truth.
In reality, as a small company without millions to spend on marketing, you must get your brand right. It’s your most important tool to business growth. Without it, you’re pushing out a whole load of confusing messages and posts that are passing your target audience by.
The concept of branding has been around for centuries, but in the age of digital marketing and social media, brands are more important than ever. A brand is more than just a logo; it’s an entire identity that encompasses who you are as a business and includes your values, your mission, your tone of voice and your message.
It’s the sum total of all experiences that customers have with your company throughout their lifetime, and includes your interactions with employees or suppliers, advertising messages, website content, and even the physical store in which your customers shop. Every touchpoint should be crafted carefully in order to ensure that customers form positive associations with your business and its products or services.
Because it’s all-encompassing, it can be tricky to assess. And as a small business owner, you’ve spread yourself across a lot of channels and platforms, right?
The elements of a good brand
The visual identity
I’ll assume your business is already in operation so it’s likely you have a website and a logo. You may not have set colours that you use in your communications, known as a colour palette, or set fonts. That’s ok. It’s worth seeking out a graphic designer to see if they can give you some advice here on how to get that fixed.
These elements make up your visual identity and are the elements that foster brand recognition amongst your target audience, so they’re important to spend some time on.
The messaging
The next more important element to your branding is your messaging. This is essentially the sentence or paragraph you use to sell your product or service to your target audience. So many businesses – even really big ones – get this wrong by being too literal.
As an example, a pen manufacturer could say “we make pens.” And as a target customer, you could hear that and then still go to WHSmith.
However, with some messaging magic, the pen manufacturer could say “We create the next generation of authors and artists.” And suddenly this is a brand worth learning more about. Just think of the parents who want great things for their children!
To get the messaging right, you first need to spend a little time figuring out who your most valuable target audience is and learning a bit more about them. Armed with that information, you’re able to retrofit your product or service around their problems and instantly you’re interesting!
This is an exercise that big businesses pay tens of thousands of pounds for but you don’t have to do that. Why? Well, we can help you for a fraction of that cost.
Once completed, you’ll know:
- What makes your target audience sad (and how you can help them) and happy (and willing to pay more)
- Where to find this audience so you can be more targeted with your marketing efforts
- How to describe your product or service in a way that gets their attention and drives them to open their wallets.
The values and tone of voice
The remaining elements of a brand are important and for a small business like yours, they should be developed carefully over time. If you’re to put your time and investment to the best possible use, I believe the order should go:
1 Create business
2 Create brand 1.0 (visual identity and messaging)
3 Start using it in your marketing
4 Generate sales and grow
5 Plan for expansion
6 Create brand 2.0 (evolve the elements of 1.0 and agree values and tone of voice)
7 Keep growing
So how do you ensure Step 3 above goes well?
Now that you have your messaging, a clear idea of the problems and topics your audience cares about, and a clear visual identity, you can start creating content that contain those three things. Note, ONLY those three things. You’ll also know which channels to use to find your target audience (and which to stop using).
The result? A clear plan of attack and a reduced level of activity which should result in a greater impact.
I hope this helps you see a real change in your marketing efforts. Please do get in touch if you need further help.
