Branding To-Do’s & Tidbits

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For those outside the marketing realm, let me help define “branding”. Branding is a signature ‘look and feel’ that leverages all of the resources our industry has to offer to make sure that you will be noticed and recognized by consumers and like industry companies.

  •  Branding is an essential component to any business therefore it’s something you should consistently think about and ensure it evolves on an ongoing basis.  Taking time to think about and employ opportunities to promote your brand is both fundamental and key to its success.
  • Your brand and marketing materials should precisely detail & sell your product and/or service.  If they’re not, they’re wrong.  You know the old adage of “if it isn’t broke don’t fix it”…well if it is, it’s time to re-think and re-brand.
  • C’mon, get focused!  Your view of your product/service can sometimes be narrow and if it’s your “baby”, it can be hard to be a tough critic. So if you can’t afford to pay for a professional focus group, here is a suggestion.  Get together a group of professional friends from various industries and present your products/service. Offering hors d’oeuvres and beverages is a nice form of compensation. What’s most important though is getting their feedback in writing and implementing their suggestions (if they are good ideas…) into your brand/marketing strategies and promotions.
  • Know your street credibility ~ Your brand image as well as its reputation is vital.  It’s super important you know what your client base is saying about you…and even your competition.  Being armed with this information will allow you to evolve your branding & marketing strategies to thwart the effects of the good or bad press.
  • Promote your brand across all landscapes. This should include at a minimum:
    ∞ direct marketing via mailers;
    ∞ email campaigns and promotions;
    ∞ online & in-store promotions; and last but surely not least…
    ∞ social media, etc.

 

The Power of Like

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In high school we all wanted to be liked…to be accepted by a group of people as part of their “in-crowd”. You remember…the cool kids who seemed to rule the hallways while others salivated at the double-dutch opportunity to laugh at one of their jokes or be thrown just a nod of acknowledgement.  As adults in the business world (most of us anyway unless you are a 20 year-old Zuckerberg wiz kid), we aren’t all that different.  We enjoy rubbing elbows with the “movers & shakers” in an effort to acquire business connections that will hopefully profit us in relationship and in contribution to our wallets.

It’s in these efforts that we come to understand and implement strategies to be liked, which easily translates into the business marketing forum to obtain business relationships…profitable ones hopefully.  In the world of Social Media, especially on Facebook, we come to understand on a more global level, the Power of Like.  If you are not on Facebook-well golly gee willacurs you should be.  Why?

#1- it’s free.  In a world where next to nothing is this is 100% gratis!
#2 – much like blogging and having a business website; it gives you UNLIMITED, GLOBAL access to people and other businesses.  Many people/businesses are now searching Facebook for products/services in lieu of traditional worldwide web searches.
#3 – many businesses on Facebook are already “Liked” (or unfortunately Disliked) and have reviews/comments on their pages which makes their business report card accessible in a glance.
#4 – again, it’s free.  No marketing budget needed.

Do you really need more persuasion?  If so, here’s an elementary concept taught outside high school hallways in the game of real business life…

In the world of Social Media…Like=Relationships & Revenues
And thanks to Mark Z-that’s the Power of Like