Branding your company
Brand it and they will come, you need to let people know you are open for business. You need to start branding your business and develop the material to help you. Some of the things you may need created: website, stationery, logo, tagline, cards, mission statement, postcards, brochures, newsletters, letters, project sheets, resumes, bios and much more depending on your plan of attack. All this needs to follow and coincide with your brand and message. As I have mentioned in a previous post a logo doesn’t constitute a brand. But it is one part of the big picture.
Not only are logos, tagline, mission statements and print material important, you should also grasp who is your target market, your customer. What makes you different from your competitors and how you want to be seen by your clients. (example: lowest prices, best service)
Now try to be as diverse in your marketing and PR in as many different media outlets as you can so that your potential clients will find you. This includes press releases (web, TV, newspaper), getting involved in community events (festivals, charitable events and shows) that will help spread your name. You have an expertise find out where you can be a guest speaker at events where your clients may be reached. Find partners of resource, let them know who you are and how you can be a benefit to each other with referrals. Utilize your website with calendars, email blast, newsletter to keep your customers informed. TRACK your marketing, have a way of knowing if the advertising is working. It’s smart to know what works and what doesn’t.
This is a small list of things you can do as a small business and these practices have been in place by many successful businesses. Branding your company implants into your customer memory the look, the service and the product you are representing… make it a positive one from the start.
