Branding is vital part of giving your business an identity. How can your business have true success if no one can recognize your products or services? Branding gives your business a presence as well as a face. When you are establishing your brand, there are three key components that will assist you in your efforts:
- Professional Logos and Photos
- Social Media Management
- Unique Company Website
Professional Logos and Photos– Having professional logos are important because this image or icon will represent your company. When people see your logo, ideally, it should remind them of your business and all the products and services that your company offers. You don’t want it to look anything less than its best. Copying and pasting words and images into the paintbrush application on your PC won’t cut it. It needs to have clean lines, consistent colors, and smooth gradients.
The same is true when taking photos of your team for your website. The members of your business are professionals and the ole’ point and click photo taken on a smartphone won’t properly demonstrate that. If you are unable to do these things personally, I recommend seeking professionals who can help. When your organization contributes to local charities, causes, or nonprofit organizations, they often seek to publicly thank you by displaying your logo or photo on their website, magazine, and/or brochure. Do you want to have the one logo or photo that stands out for being low quality? I’m willing to bet that your answer is “NO”.
Social Media Management– Social Media is an incredible channel of communication that sees exponential growth. It has a tremendous following and if executed properly, it can do wonders for your business. I spoke with a business owner last month about investing in Social Media Management and his initial knee-jerk response was “My business is doing well and we don’t have a Facebook page. I’ve been having the same customers come in my doors for years”. This was a very true statement, however I explained to him that he should aim to grow his business, not remain stagnant.
With strategic Social Media Management, a peak time to reach your target audience can be determined. During this peak time, you interact with your target audience and you show them what your business is, the people behind it, and most importantly what your company values are. This is one of the primary objectives of Branding. Social Media will take your company from being just another business, to being a business with a personality and face. Not just any face, but a face they now feel like they know, a face they feel they can place, and most importantly, a face they have grown to trust.
Unique Company Website– People see websites all the time. They read a lot of general or generic information. Make sure your site is both visually and verbally appealing. Everything doesn’t have to be formal in order to remain professional and informative. When you get your website built, continue to update it with new information. If consumers see the same old things over and over again, then they will ignore it and eventually stray away from it. Keep your consumers interested and excited about your business.
We live in the age of technology. When people want to know something, they often ‘Google it’. When people Google your business, what do they see? You have to make sure that your website is properly optimized and branded. This is the first impression most people will have of your company. Make sure it answers most if not all of their questions, in addition, make it visually appealing and interactive. People love nice graphics, stimulating videos, and interactive media. Make it interactive because your website should demonstrate and brand your company better than any other tool.
