Trying to build your brand is one of the most important steps you will take when you are trying to establish an online business. A brand is a symbol that your customers associate with quality and trust. It involves several elements – a logo, personal slogan or tagline, specific imagery, a trademark symbol or all of these elements combined. Establishing a brand is extremely important because it will help you attract your customers and, if you offer quality, it will also help you retain your customers for the long term earning you lifelong prospects, customers and long-term business success.
When you brand your online business it eliminates any uncertainty people may have about doing business with you. A brand means that people can expect quality from a business that is established. It makes no difference if you are a corporation or you are simply building a small website or blog, branding still makes a difference.
How to Build Your Brand
Business Image: The first step you should take when you build your brand is to come up with a plan for the type of image you want to project for your online business. Work with a graphic designer to come up with a logo and website design that creates a lasting impression on your visitors or just come up with one yourself that you feel encapsulates YOU. People tend to remember visual images so this is a definite plus if you can come up with something unique that sets you apart from other similar online businesses.
Character: Come up with a brand that has character and personality and reflects stability so that your customers know that they can trust you. Make your brand fun to help people feel comfortable when they visit your website. For example, the bluebird logo on Twitter immediately creates an association with a reputable brand. It is fun, it has personality, and it conveys trust.
Consistency: Another factor to consider when you build your brand is consistency. In addition to making your brand memorable, you have to come up with a consistent design that projects a uniform image. For example, if you have created a specific design for your website with your logo and a combination of colors, you should maintain this consistency throughout your website. If you have a blog make sure the design is consistent with your website.
Voice: The tone of voice that you use for all of the content you post online including your website, should reflect the character and personality that you have established for your brand design. If your brand reflects informality then make sure the tone of voice represents this image.
USP: If your business has competition online it is extremely important to determine your Unique Selling Proposition (USP). What is it that makes your business stand out from all of the rest and how will you communicate this with your brand image? A USP is extremely important online since online consumers are bombarded with a sea of retailers and advertisements. Your USP will be the one factor that helps people set you apart from the competition and quickly conclude that you are associated with quality.
Get the Word Out
Once you have carefully planned your strategy for setting up your brand image you must maintain consistency when it comes time to spread the word online.
It’s a great idea when building your brand to come up with an ‘Elavator Pitch’. This is a great model taught to me by the amazing Darren Rowse from ProBlogger.com. I go into more detail on this in another blog post but the idea is to create a 2-3 line phrase that sums up your business. This is different to a tagline. Let me sum up the difference. My tagline is “Creating your dream lifestyle with Passion, Power and Purpose” but my elavator pitch that I can reel off to anyone who asks is “I help people to empower themselves to fulfil their online potential, create sustainable and successful businesses and teach them how to market themselves to 7 figures online”. Short, sharp, snappy and it encapsulates in 2 lines exactly who I am and what I do – try out a few!
If you have a particular tagline or elavator pitch you’d like to share – go right ahead and comment here – maybe you’ll get some feedback and I have no problem with your shameless self promotion!
