Businesses that have consistent branding across all channels see their revenues increase by 23%.
When businesses have a strong brand identity they’re better at engaging customers who then invest in their products. Perhaps you’re a small business and you’re not sure how to develop your brand.
Sound familiar? If so, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s how to develop a strong small business brand identity.
What Is a Brand Identity?
Before brainstorming branding solutions for small businesses, it’s important to understand what we mean by a brand.
The term “brand identity” is how businesses want to be perceived by others. Once decided, you’ll use this on your marketing materials, logos, website design, and it will affect how you present your product or service.
To help, ask yourself:
• What are three words that best represent us?
• What is our mission statement?
• How are we unique from others in our industry?
Give in-depth answers as it’s one of the proven small business branding strategies so you understand who you are. Try and be as detailed as possible. When you know what differentiates you, then consider your target market and think about your brand’s visual design.
How to Create a Strong Brand
Now you understand the importance of small business branding, it’s important to discuss the essential steps. Only then can you start marketing your products whether it’s custom vinyl decals or handmade jewelry.
For example:
Find Your Target Market
When building your business brand, decide who you’re trying to reach so you can tailor your mission and message to address their pain points. Get as specific as possible so you’ll see better results.
For instance, don’t cater to just ‘college kids’ because the demographic is too large. Instead, target college students who are studying in Africa during the summer so can effectively convey your brand message.
During this stage, you should also create a buyer persona as it helps define your target customer’s characteristics. This includes their age, income, and why they want a product like yours.
You can also give current customers a survey to learn how they view your product or brand because you may be surprised. Then you can use their answer to further develop your brand identity.
Research Your Competition
One of the most important branding tips is to see what your competitors are doing. Find the giants in your industry and see how they’ve build a strong brand. You should consider their message, the quality of their products, and how they’ve marketed themselves.
Your goal is to not only distinguish yourself from competitors but to encourage customers to invest in your company over theirs.
Design an Effective Logo
During the brand building process, you must consider your logo. The logo will appear on your marketing materials, uniform and business cards as it’s the visual recognition of your brand.
It’s wise to outsource this to a graphic designer as they’ll know how to optimize your logo’s size, use effective typography, and use the best colors.
Create a Unique Brand Voice
Decide how you want to appear to your customers. Do you want to sound professional or friendly? Conversational or technical?
If you’re stuck, re-visit your target audience. You must use a brand voice that resonates with your buying persona so you have a better chance of connecting with them.
Your brand voice is crucial when you’re posting blog articles or social media posts and once you maintain a consistent voice then it strengthens your brand identity. As a result, your followers or subscribers will expect a certain personality when they engage with your content.
Highlight Your Brand In Every Aspect of Your Business
Remember that brand building is an ongoing process.
As soon as a prospect walks into your store, they should notice your brand image instantly. You must also make sure your brand identity is consistent on your website through your voice and visual elements like the logo.
Build and Maintain an Online Community
Once you have a strong brand presence, you can cultivate an online community. You can hire industry-related influencers to generate interest around your product and boost your online presence.
To build a community, post content regularly, always reply to positive and negative comments, and find unique ways to engage with your audience.
For instance, you can host a Q&A session on Instagram or hold a giveaway so followers have a chance to win a product while raising awareness of your brand.
Analyze and Refine Your Brand
After building your brand, you must analyze results and make adjustments if necessary. Use Google Analytics as it shows you how many website visitors you’ve had and how effective an advertising campaign is.
If customers aren’t engaging with your brand then look at your buying persona and see if you’re using the right voice. You may not get instant results when you start out but don’t get disheartened and try and emulate your competitors. It may be because you aren’t pushing your personality enough so focus on that instead.
That's How to Build an Effective Small Business Brand
Now you know how to build a fantastic small business brand.
Decide on your target audience, what makes you unique, and choose a brand voice that resonates with your buying persona. Remember to highlight your unique selling point and be consistent with your brand identity. Good luck on building your small business brand!
Did you find this article on small business branding to be helpful? If so, check out our posts on everything from SEO to Social Media to help build your small business brand bigger and better than ever!