Brand management in today’s business world takes on a whole new meaning when you consider the 24/7 cycle of news and information. While Face book, Linked In and Twitter accounts are great tools, you cannot rely on them alone to bring business to your door. You need to form a strategy that will position your business to be first on the minds of your target audience. Whether you are a large company with locations all over the world or a smaller business that caters to a local crowd, you will need to position yourself correctly so that the audience you seek can easily find you.
While we cannot ignore that social media plays a growing role in brand management today a lot more goes into it than just setting up your Twitter and Face Book accounts. You need to invest the time researching which tools will work best for your business. The tools you need will depend on your approach and that of your team. You’ll need to set goals and depending on what you are trying to achieve i.e. data, statistics, analytics that will determine where your focus should be. In order to do that you must know your goals and your purpose. As you build your strategy you will need to make adjustments to your features. Some things to consider when you are carving out your niche; how are you standing out from the competition? How are you reaching out to your audience? What makes them want you? The principle goal regardless of your service or product should be to create a dramatic difference with what you offer compared to that of your competition.
In our last blog post we talked to you about SEO (search engine optimization) and why you need it. SEO will enhance your brand marketing. Strong SEO can provide a multi-dimensional experience. Add to that the exposure of your SMM (social media marketing) to get your target audience talking about you. Today with so many different ways to channel your brand you want to be careful not to dilute the message. You need to keep a unified front with those outlets, knowing your niche and keeping your message simple.
Having a message that is clear and concise allows your audience will become part of your brand marketing. They will generate word of mouth advertising. In the world of marketing and advertising it’s sometimes best to let others speak for you. You will see this in action with comments and sharing of your blog posts, in re-tweets on Twitter and even better recommendation for a job well done. When people share your posts or their experiences with your business they are doing your work for you. This gives you the mind share with your audience and when they think of you first they will tell others.
The times they are a changing. The hard sell is becoming extinct. Consumers have more control today than ever. They can choose to filter what they see and hear. They can actually ask questions of companies and get answers, publicly through tweets, blog post comments, and Face Book conversations. Content marketing although very time consuming is the wave of the future. Communicating and engaging with your current and potential clients builds that relationship that today’s consumer is looking for. Every conversation with a potential client does not need a sales pitch. In fact listening to their wants and needs as well as their ideas will mean more in the long run.
In today’s economy many small businesses need to make cuts to stay alive. Well thought out strategies are half the battle. The other half…just showing up everyday. It takes a lot of time and effort to give honest, consistent communication to your audience. In the long run it is worth the effort. Questions? Feel free to leave a comment and we do our best to help you take that next step.
Charity rules! Over the last week we have been dedicating lots of time to the Friends of Maiti Nepal’s online strategy. Their mission is to generate awareness and stop the trafficking of young girls in Nepal. Learning about the particulars of this topic makes me feel ill. It is hard for me to imagine the hell these girls go through, all for someone’s else monetary gain. But now that I am done the research, I can’t wait to help the cause.