Basic Tips to Establish Yourself as a Brand

Becoming a brand has lot of advantages. A strong brand doesn’t only give financial advantages but you also get loyal customers who connect themselves with your brand. Companies with established brands can introduce new products easily and effectively under their same family brand. Branding gives you a significant advantage over your competitors when customers start associating advantages with your brand. Don’t think that branding could be done for only big companies with an unlimited ad budget. You can also establish your small business as a brand. In this article I will be discussing some tips which you can implement to create an effective branding strategy for your own business.

• Relevant Tagline: Your brand should have a relevant tagline with its name which represents what your business stands for. The tagline would give an idea to your customers about your services. For example, the tagline for Apple is “Think Different.” Taglines help your customers to connect with your brand. Make your tagline small and short.
• Educate Customers: Everybody likes to get new information. Educate your customers with unique and useful information. The more you will educate your customers, the more you will be able to sell. Providing great content for free would help you to establish your brand as the most reliable brand among your target audience.
• Create a Website: Register a domain with your brand name. You can register a domain name for less than $10 for year. Create a professional and beautiful website which contains all the important information about your brand.
• Use Web2.0: Web2.0 is one of the most powerful ways to create your identity online. Create accounts on various Web2.0 sites with your brand name like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube etc. Start interacting with your target audience in such websites and develop relationships with them by telling them more about your brand.
• Take Your Brand Everywhere: Take your brand with you wherever you go. Wear t-shirts with your logo while meeting clients in professional meetings.
• Promotional Products: Create useful promotional products relevant to your brand. For example, if you are a travel agent, you can create backpacks imprinted with your logo. Distribute such promotional products among your customers so that they remember your brand whenever they use these items.
• Trade Shows and Conferences: Participate in trade shows and conferences related to your business. Speak up about your brand anywhere you get a chance.
• Sponsorships and Charity: Sponsor local events or do charity for good causes. These events usually get covered by the media and gives you lots of free publicity which will put your brand in the good books of your audience.

About the author:
Gagandeep Singh is working as Internet Marketing Executive for Fortepromo, which provide high quality promotional products to help companies in promoting their brand.

Mike Brown over at Brainzooming wrote a short article earlier this year on an alternative to defining your business brand called Have You Tried a ‘Not’ Definition?

Start by asking, “What doesn’t our brand stand for or represent?” By beginning with a “not” definition, you may subsequently be able to more readily express a succinct, targeted definition.

Because I still have branding on the brain and I struggle with nailing down the details, I thought this was a great way to flip branding over on its head.

Hope it helps you get clearer about what you don’t do too!!

Can you tell I have branding on the brain??!!

You would too, if you were me!! I’ve been wanting to brand my coaching business since the beginning, but “never had the time” (translation: haven’t taken the time).

I thought I was on to something with The Brainstormist. While it’s brilliant (if I should say so myself), I found it too limiting — like ALL I do is brainstorming.

At the beginning of this summer, Jaime Lee Mann came to my rescue yet again.

[For those of you who don't know this, if it hadn't been for Jaime Lee, my 30-second intro guidebook would still be a draft copy!]

For the past 2 months, we’ve been emailing each other back and forth. She’s come up with some AWESOME branding ideas but they just weren’t right for me. It’s the kind of situation where I don’t know what I want, but I’ll know when I see it…

With each email, I’d feel we were getting closer to something big, the more restless I’d feel. You know, branding is a BIG DEAL. It seems so final…

And being the ever doubtful person, I much prefer playing it safe by NOT making a decision. At least then I won’t have to worry about making the wrong decision (I have my issues, I know… I’m a work in progress…).

I’ve heard other VAs complain about indecisive, erratic clients like me. And I could just imagine Jaime Lee’s eyes rolling each time she’d see an email from me with yet another “Hey Jaime! Here’s a list of more words I’ve come up with!”

She tried to make something work around Cognitive Dissonance Remover (thanks to Joel Canfield for that brilliant line!) but it’s not something everyone would ‘get.’

For a while, I was gung-ho about the words Human Potential, but I’d be confused with the whole movement of that title…

Finally, I decided my new favorite word was Holistic since that’s my approach to starting, running and marketing a VA business.

Being the consummate professional, Jaime Lee never hinted exasperation. She would simply move on to the next idea.

But this time, she got it spot on…

After spilling much blood, sweat and tears, you are all the first to know about my new brand — the name at least.

[Drum roll, please]

Mental Blocksmith

Yup, these 2 words (a play on mental block + locksmith, in case you didn’t get it) perfectly encapsulate how I help VA clients unlock their potential to achieve success.

Now we’re working on the tagline, logo and design aspect. Which means there are more fear-inducing decisions to be made…

But it’s high time to kick my business in gear. I’ve been on neutral for too long — or as Joel put it, I’m stepping on the gas pedal with the emergency brake on!

There are more goodies on the way as well. Goodies as in a bunch of free stuff coming your way. But please be patient. I only have a limited amount of time to work on all these projects.

But I’ll keep you suspense and save that news for another blog post!

While reading Celebrity Branding You yesterday, I came across a sentence that caught my attention:

In the case of [our] company, we added the word “agency” because people associate agents with celebrities, and we represent out clients in this fashion.

What are your thoughts? How can you change the way you brand yourself to show how you represent your clients?

I’m a major sucker for reality shows like CBC-TV’s Dragons’ Den, a show where entrepreneurs pitch a panel of five potential investors, for a stake in their company. I guess I like to live vicariously through the Dragons’ who get to tell awesome entrepreneurs how great their idea is, and tear into the ones that just don’t get it (I’m more like Arlene, though, not a hard-ass like Kevin).

Plus, I love hearing each business’ pitch. Most of of them are absolutely horrendous (you’ll often hear me say “What in the heck were these guys thinking?“).

For example, a presentation this week, where the company, Bandthology, Inc., was asking for one-hundred-fifty-thousand dollars for a twenty percent share.

The problem was their business and offer was all over the map. Their pitch started something like “We’re a company specializing in music games and live entertainment for corporate and live events.”

OK, let’s just stop right here… (are you ready for it?) How can you say you SPECIALIZE in something, then sprinkle the word ‘and‘ all over your pitch??? If you SPECIALIZE in something, that means you’re really good at ONE thing…

Moving on…

As the presentation went downhill on, the Dragons’ failed to grasp what they were selling, exactly. They were talking about a music-themed board game, a digital version of the game (in development) for mobile DJ’s and other forms of events, a live show… and I can’t remember the rest…

That’s the point, isn’t it? If, at the end of a presentation, I (the pitchee) still can’t tell what in the heck you’re selling, how can you expect me to take action? Much less hand over hundreds of thousands of dollars of my money to finance your company.

Robert Herjavec summed up what everyone in the room (and watching) was thinking:

I’m completely confused. I hear you talking about a board game, a live show, I hear you talking about intent of a software product, then you’re talking about a DJ. Like, I’m really confused. This is all over the map.

But, Arlene Dickinson said it best:

Why aren’t you focused on doing one of those things extremely well before you go into other markets? Because, really, I think by diversifying so quickly and being underfinanced to do it, you end up doing a lot and doing nothing very well.

Sound familiar???

I’ve said it hundreds of times before: If you want to make your mark in this great big entrepreneurial world, you’ve GOT to stick to ONE thing — the one thing you’re really good at, the one thing no one else does as good as you, the one thing you want to be remembered by.

What’s your thing?

Have you come up with your Only Statement yet? With a little help (OK, a LOT of help) from A.C. Riley, this is what we came up with for mine:

Cristina Favreau is the only coach daring business owners to make their marketing personal. See what makes you tick.

What do you think? What challenges are you having in creating yours?

I have to admit… I’ve been in a marketing slump lately. It feels like everything I read or hear about marketing a service-based business has been said and hashed over. I’m bored with it. So, I took a break from reading or listening to anything related to marketing.

Then this cold that has been hanging on all winter turned into a nasty sinus infection over the weekend. Being pregnant, I can’t take drugs, so I vegged on my couch with a book called Celebrate Marketing: Secrets of Success. I was pretty close-minded about it, thinking “Here we go again, more of the same-old-same-old about target markets, networking and following up.”

Then “it” happened. I’m sure “it” happens to you too. While listening or reading about something relating to your industry, you’re suddenly struck with such an amazing and simple concept, you think “Geez, I wish I thought of that first!” or “Man, I wish I heard of this sooner!”

Every once in a while I come across a gem… a truly ingenious yet simple marketing strategy that stirs me to the core, that I simply MUST share. That’s what happened as I read through the first chapter, Dare to Be Different: Super Positioning, written by Fred Berns.

I perked up (well, as much as someone with cement for brains can) as he talked about the power of “only” and packaging your business differently:

How you promote yourself is less important than that you promote yourself differently. You will never make a lasting impression if you use the same marketing methods as your competitors.

Nothing new there, but I knew he was on to something when he finally got to the point, sharing how to stand above the crowd — Harness the power of “only.”

The word “only” packs a mighty 1-2 punch:

1. It distinguishes you from everyone else in your field. It puts you in a class all your own, defining what specifically makes you different.
2. It subtly points out areas where your competition is deficient, and how you fill the gap.

Isn’t that a brilliantly simple yet awesomely powerful strategy? Once you come up with your only statement (25 words or less), use it in all your marketing, including your 30-second intro.

BEWARE! Don’t sell yourself short, don’t be modest and don’t use the word “only” to your detriment. The word “only” describes what you alone, solely and exclusively do (I am the only accountant in the US servicing professional tight-rope walkers), not what you just, simply or merely do (I’m only a chartered accountant). Remember, it’s not bragging if you can prove it.

If you’re having trouble coming up with your only statement, think about what makes you special, distinct, different (can you hear me say StrengthsFinder 2.0?) Make a list of your skills, qualifications, contributions, capabilities, talents, accomplishments, success stories, awards, etc., using superlatives where appropriate (most, highest, first, finest, etc.).

Not yet convinced of the benefits of creating an only statement? Consider these points:

• It’s the one thing people will remember you by and it’s how they will describe you to others.
• It increases your expert status.
• It helps you maintain your fees, even during tough economic times.
• It sets you apart from your competition, increasing your credibility and visibility.
• It’s a marketing strategy that costs you nothing.

In my excitement over this, I started working on an only statement for a client as well as for myself. I should have something by the end of this week or early next, so I’ll be sure to share it with you.

In the meantime, what’s your only statement?

I recently sent a fun email to family and close friends, asking them to describe me in one word. The answers I got were intriguing, to say the least.

The most surprising responses were from my parents. My Mom’s answer (loyal) surprised me because she demonstrated, yet again, that she knows me too well. As for my step-dad (he used the word special), well that word just doesn’t sit right with me.

Close friends used words like impressive, competitive, competent, strong, searching and enthusiastic. It’s interesting, because, as nice as these words are, none of them resonated with me.

Then, there’s my ever-thoughtful husband. The word he chose to describe me was… get this… pregers. UGH! I could strangle him sometimes!! (I was half-expecting someone to say something along the lines of fertile, just not from him!)

Finally, the person who knows me better than I know myself most times, my best friend Eve hit the nail on the head when she replied intense. That word never even popped in my head, yet she’s absolutely dead on. (Which is why I love these exercises!)

I can’t help but wonder: Am I revealing that part of my personality in my marketing or am I restraining myself to remain innocuous? (Does that even make sense?) Should I include it in my strategy? Am I thinking too hard about this?

While I wouldn’t send this type of question to clients and business contacts, it’s fun to imagine what they would reply. Would the words be a fair representation of my personality? It’s hard to say, but it certainly would be fascinating to find out how I’m perceived by others.

If you surveyed clients and business contacts, what words would they use to describe you? What word(s) do you wish they would say? Would the responses from family and close friends resemble the responses of your business contacts? Are these words in close relation to your brand?

More tough questions are: Is who you really are getting across to your audience? Are you hiding parts of yourself? Does your audience feel like you’re hiding something (intentionally or purposefully)?

Things that make you (or maybe just me) go hmmmmm.

I’d love to get your insights on this topic.

It takes 20 year to build a reputation and 20 minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently. — Warren Buffett

How often have you been stumped when asked, “What do you do?” Do you start rattling off the services you offer from A-Z, a complete list of those you’ve serviced, your industry credentials, and your education?

Chances are you’ve lost them when you started listing your services. In my case, I lose my audience even before that, when I say “I’m a Small Business Coach.” Just because they are standing there nodding, doesn’t mean they’re interested, understand or even need what you offer.

So, how do you create a 30-second pitch? Well, there are many ways, but I’ll share with you a few of my favorites:

• Start with a question that addresses your target. Start with “You know how [your target market] [name their greatest challenge] and [what they lose, or the pain that results from this challenge]?” [You want your audience to say "Heck yeah! That's me!" or someone they know]. “Well, I help those people [name the greatest benefit of what you have to offer.]” Here’s mine: “You know how entrepreneurs hate selling or aren’t sure what marketing techniques work, and they don’t get enough clients? My name is Cristina Favreau, and I help those people come up with immediate strategies without the hard sell so they get clients in less than 1 month.“

• Specify who you help and what they’ll gain/lose/improve/etc. A variation of the above. The formula remains somewhat the same. “I help [your target market] [overcome this challenge or gain something they want] so they [name the benefits they get].” Here’s mine: “My name is Cristina Favreau. I help professionals in the service industry simplify their marketing and self-promotion so they gain visibility, credibility, and get clients.“
• Share a resource. This is best used when introducing yourself to a group who already has a general idea of what you do. My favorite resources to share are websites or online tools. Sometimes I’ll tell the group about an upcoming online networking event. Basically, you are showing how resourceful you are, which highlights the benefits of working with you.

The secret lies in preparation. Before going to your next networking event, think about how you’ll highlight the problem/pain/challenge you solve and what they’ll gain or how they’ll specifically benefit from your services. Then write it down, practice it out loud and get feedback from someone else. Once you’ve perfected it, use it all the time. It’s part of your branding technique.

There are many other “formulas” out there, so why don’t you share with us yours.