Even if you have the best products and services that will revolutionise the lives of your customers, this is meaningless if you cannot get the attention of your target market. Many startups and entrepreneurs successfully bring their vision to life only to find that nobody seems to be interested in what they are doing. Often, this does not represent a problem with your products but is instead a failure to properly brand your business.
Branding your business involves much more than simply registering a business name with the Australian government. Your brand identity goes beyond merely the label and logo of your company and ideally extends into intangible areas. Even for small businesses, the benefits of having a powerful brand are many.
Let’s look at some of the best practices for building the brand of your business.
Setting The Tone
Your brand is fundamentally the reputation that your company has in the public eye. Everything that is associated with what your company is and does falls within the category of your brand. If you are known for your exploitative labour practices and for treating your employees poorly, that becomes part of your brand. If you are known for sourcing your products from fair-trade suppliers, that becomes part of your brand.
As you start a business, make a conscious effort to set out how you want to be perceived by the public. This will be incredibly important for the ultimate success of your business. While it is always possible to change the narrative of your brand as time goes on, this is more difficult than making the right moves at the beginning.
Specifically, look at the basics. This includes everything from your company logo to your tagline to what images you want your brand to be associated with. Keep things simple and make sure that you test out a few designs before settling on the best one.
Above all, do not be vague or simply use designs that are similar to other businesses in your industry. It is important to be recognisable that is, bearing enough similarity to your competitors to be understood as part of the same industry but, at the same time, it is important to be distinct. Differentiation is critical for capturing your target market.
Digital Marketing
These days, digital marketing is essential for managing the narrative of your brand. Social media platforms and powerful SEO techniques make it easier than ever to explore options for boosting the profile of your brand.
Social media, for example, now offers you unparalleled access to your target market. By engaging with your audience, answering questions and offering commentary, you will be able to establish your reputation the way that you want it to be. While there are notable examples of social media techniques backfiring on companies when it comes to brand messaging, if you strive to make interactions with your customers positive each time then you can leverage these tools to benefit your business rather than drag it down.
Always More To Learn
One of the best parts of business is that there is always something new to learn. Branding is a knowledge-intensive concept and takes a long time to master. Whether you are doing it alone as a manager of a small business or if you have an entire team of dedicated personnel working on the task, there is never time to master every aspect of the process.
Continue to learn more about the process of building a brand. The more effort you put into the task at the outset, the sooner you will be able to boost your recognisability as a new player in your industry.
