When first starting out in a new business, whether you are the primary entrepreneur, part of a team, or have worked your way up the ladder of success, it is important to spread the name of your brand to the world. Expanding the reach of your business and brand will not only boost your overall success by a hefty percentage, it helps provide your community and the community your brand touches with a necessary product or service.
While diversifying your potential clientele can be an incredibly challenging and time-consuming endeavor, there are several ways to ease the process. If you are interested in broadening your brand’s horizons in the market and enhancing the prosperity of both your business and yourself, read on to discover a variety of methods to improve your brand’s circulation.
Advertise!
The first step after you know what your personal brand is, is to control and spread that brand as far and wide as you desire. Advertisement is the way you control and spread, it’s how you connect to the rest of the world. Without advertising, there is little to no way for the rest of the world (i.e. potential clients) to discover your name and the services you provide, that is your personal brand. Now in the old days you would hang your shingle, thereby announcing that you were open for business. Clearly you see that the only people that attracts are the ones who happen to see the shingle. Well fast-forward to today and the first step is a domain name and a website. This embodies the need to separate advertising your brand into online advertising and offline advertising techniques and strategies. A website is the fundamental building block of modern of online advertising. Even if cost is no option, value certainly is, and online advertising holds an insurmountable advantage over offline options because of what may seem like too many reasons to list – speed, flexibility, access, ROI, etc.
Advertisement is the number one way to promote your brand name. Without advertising, there is little to no way for potential clients to discover your name and the services you provide. If you have a limited budget you can weigh advertising service options such as mail, email, and simple flyers. If your budget is more substantial, invest in something more noticeable, such as a bus ad or billboard. As soon as, and maybe even before, your business is on its feet, finance means of advertisement to begin building your customer base.
Take a look at the table below, it provides some comparative advertising strategies between online advertising and offline. As you look at this, think of which option wins when it comes to building your personal brand.
| Online | Offline |
|---|---|
| Domain name | Business card |
| Website | Shingle |
| Blog | Newspaper column |
| About.me | Classified Ads |
| Facebook, Google+ | Word of mouth |
| Network Meeting | |
| Youtube | Television |
| Google 3 Pack | Billboard |
| Trade shows | |
| Google my business | Telephone |
| Google, bing, Yahoo | 411 |
| flyers | |
| podcast | elevator speech |
Do you remember the classic philosophical question about a tree falling in the woods? Well you can think of that to understand the role advertising plays with your personal brand. What is your personal brand? What makes it special? These as well as tons of other questions that you’ve figured out, answered, and now proudly represent all lack one crucial thing…advertisement. Advertisement is the number one way to promote your brand name. Whereas before your brand reach with a shingle starts what today is called hyper-local, your website reach is instantly global. So where do you start?
Nothing Pays More than Perseverance
Running a business is hard, and running a successful business is even harder. Countless times the people around you will tell you that you will fail, and that’s okay. However, it is important for you to weed out those who do not believe in your success and surround yourself with those who do. Your websites will crash, your warehouse will go down, and your staff may struggle in areas where you need them to excel. Those things are all normal parts of getting a business off the ground. The most important part of running a business and promoting your brand is to not let setbacks throw off your plan, and to push though the issues that can (and will) arise.
Character is Key
Be sure when promoting your brand that it stands for something genuine, and preferably something good. The owner of the business defines the character of the business, and no one wants to engage with a brand controlled by a tyrannical leader. Regularly donate to legitimate charities, advocate for those in need, and promote your brand in a way that states your viewpoint on actual, real issues that relate to today’s world. A brand associated with good deeds and genuine human kindness will resonate with every social group, and be remembered by most everyone that comes across it.
Failure is Inevitable
While trying to get your brand name out, the many facets of running a business can become overwhelming and messy. There will be times that your business declines, due to insufficient funds, insufficient advertising, or similar situations. Remember, the road to success is paved with failure, and you and your brand are bound to fail at least a few times before finally achieving success.
“Surviving a failure allows you more self-confidence. Failing is a great learning tool, but it must be kept to an absolute minimum,” says General Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt. In other words, allow yourself to fail, but learn from your mistakes to ensure you don’t make the same mistake twice.
Oftentimes, the business is running fine but lacks clients. This can be caused by an odd or off-putting brand name. For example, Google was originally called “BackRub.” Of course, the name “Google” is plenty peculiar, but “BackRub” is just plain strange. Be sure your brand’s name is not the cause of your stagnant business.
Sell Yourself and Your Business
Do not be afraid, or ashamed, to sell yourself and your business! The best business owners are comfortable explaining their business, what it stands for, and why each person individually would benefit from the services provided. Make yourself available to your customers, and ready to answer any and all concerns they may have. At the same time, it is imperative that you know when not to discuss your business. Assurant’s CEO explains that “You learn the most when your mouth is closed and your ears are open.”
You Cannot Sell Something You Do Not Care About
Be passionate about what you are doing. Without passion, your business is certain to spiral into a pit of despair. Passion is absolutely necessary in business, especially when trying to get your name circulating in the industry. General Motors CEO Mary Barra explains, “If you are doing something you are passionate about, you are just naturally going to succeed, and a lot of other things will happen that you don’t need to worry about.” This is a testament to the importance of genuinely caring about the work you do. Be proud of what you do and you are already on your way to a successful business.
When promoting your brand, there are many different aspects to remember to make your promotions most effective. Fortunately, the methods listed here, whether employed simultaneously or complementary, go a long way toward helping your brand thrive. Keep in mind that there is no one foolproof way to expand your business and heighten your success; the only way your brand has a chance is through the hard work you and your team put into it. Remember to always push through the challenges your business will face, and continue to pursue and advertise the business you are so passionate about.