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Published On: Tue, Apr 18th, 2017

6 Secrets to Building a Successful Brand

Building a brand in the highly competitive corporate arena requires so much. Ideally, it goes beyond casual communication with clients across the social media platforms. Building a successful brand must start from the inside of the company. To achieve this, you need to answer critical questions;

  • What is the vision of the company?
  • What makes your brand unique?
  • What difference would you like to make in the corporate arena?

Unless you have precise answers to these questions, your brand might end up just like one of those numerous companies in the market; clueless and out of focus. Answering these questions accurately gives clarity on the way forward. It will guide the leaders and the employees in establishing workable strategies of promoting their brand and relating to customers. It is only after this that a brand can go beyond its borders to establish itself, spreading its messages across the globe. By working from the inside, there will be cohesion between the company’s indoor activities and its messages. This forms the basis of brand establishment. With such a firm foundation, a company can go ahead and build a self-sustaining client community using the strategies below.

innovation sign

photo/ Michael Jarmoluk via pixabay.com

  1. Customers First

In the era we are living in, companies no longer build brands; customers do. You need to recognize that clients fund your lifestyle. How you take this will make or break your brand-building endeavours. Whatever you say and how you put it should be in line with this thought. Each marketing tactic should be designed to reflect this line of thought. Encourage consumers to participate in your ventures. Soon enough, you will have them as an extension of your marketing department.

2. Create a Customer Story

When building a brand, you need to learn and understand your customers. These are the people you will be communicating with, hoping to build your brand alongside their aspirations. You can only achieve that when you learn more about your customers. Find out who they are and write a story about them. It should be as realistic as possible. Draft something about them and keep this to guide you in implementing company policies. You should be willing to change this statement as time goes by. With time, you will be able to identify who your true customers are and change the statement in line with that. It won’t be surprising to realise that the people you thought were your main target audience aren’t really your customers.

3. Celebrate your Clients

Several companies are self-centred and that is why they fail. They spend countless resources and time trying to show the good work they do. Instead, you should acknowledge the support of customers even as you appreciate the positive impact you have had in their lives. Let the customers know you are proud of them. Unless you do this, you might not be able to create company messages that clients are willing to share and ready to identify with.

4. Reward Client Efforts

When a brand has objectives, takes it out to customers, and achieves exactly that, it should go back to its consumer base and reward it for staying engaged. Each marketing tactic should be perceived as an upgrade to engagement with customers. Every time that is achieved, a reward should come through. It is an easier way of taking customer relationships to higher levels. With time, you will have a self-sustaining client community that is capable of taking care of itself without ‘enticement’.

5. Focus on Credibility

Why would your customers listen to you? Why should they buy from you? Why would they abandon their brands for yours? Is it in your uniqueness or sense of styling? Does your method of delivery have something to do with that? Regardless of what you are selling, you need to convince your customers that there is something you are out to offer, different from what they are used to. Similar to interview training, you need to single out what sets you apart from the rest. At the forefront should be your credibility. Your brand establishment will follow smoothly.

6. Consistency is Key

The last thing you would want to do during the first stages of brand establishment is interrupting your customers’ fantasy of who you really are. For the first few days, you need to use the same tone of communication, similar packaging, same website, and even the blog. The same trend should be exhibited, even in the design of business cards. If a customer gets to your website and finds something different from the card you gave them at the show, they will be confused. For most people, they wouldn’t even bother verifying and coming back.

With consistency comes trust. To be able to maintain a steady stream of customers, they must trust you. Not everyone will like your brand so don’t bulk to the pressure of changing, trying to please everyone. Loyalty to particular brands is key and it only comes through consistency.

Red Flag Alerts

Having things go your way is a great feeling. It is a sign of progress. At the initial stages however, the flow might not be smooth. To be on the safer side, you must be able to notice the slightest signs that you are not branding yourself appropriately. You do not want to go down simply because you did not watch out for the red flags. So what should you have in mind?

  • When you are promoting your brand online through social networks and you are not gaining a significant following, chances are high that your messages are general. You are playing safe. Stop attracting everyone and start concentrating on your target audience.
  • You have a huge social media following but a small mailing list. This indicates that you are unable to drive traffic back to your website simply because your methods are not convincing enough for customers to surrender their addressees.
  • Low conversion rates despite a long mailing list and multiple subscriptions

Conclusion

By defining your brand story and working closely with customers to establish a self-sustaining community, you will have an easier time establishing your brand. Companies can use various social networks to achieve this goal. Anything less than this slows down the impact customers can have in building your brand, regardless of your efforts.

Author: Charlie Brown

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