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| Marketing |
 Branding
- Identification, Clarification & ActionBy Illiki Rai - Publisher of Rising Women Magazine Building a ‘Brand Image’ for your business is becoming a very loose term, and is often incorrectly associated with ‘marketing’, another loose term. Most relate it simply to the presentation of their signage and stationary. However, ‘Brand’ imaging goes far beyond this material exchange. ‘Brand’ development is about creating an image, and an identity that the public relates to as ultimately what your business is all about - through and through! This includes not only the consistency of your hard copy image, such as logo usage or ‘tag line’ messages, it also strongly includes the association of the feelings your total business atmosphere instills in the minds of your customers and prospects. Your 'Brand' has to radiate all that your business stands for. This includes the consistency and administration of all your internal and external systems: the quality of your product and service, the detail within your customer relations, the interior and exterior image of your premises, your and your staffs presentation. A well-position ‘Brand’ builds the confidence in your clients and prospects that they are guaranteed the same feeling each and every time they do business with you. Developing your ‘Brand’ image begins first by identifying what values you, the business founder, have incorporated into the original vision of your ideal business. Businesses are not launched by just having a certain product or service. They are created by people who have a passion for delivering a lifestyle. We don’t sell just clothing, we sell particular brands, particular styles, particular price ranges. Why? Because we are catering to a particular lifestyle. And we definitely don’t sell sportswear (or sell it well), for instance, if we do not passionately value all that that lifestyle pertains to. Many may argue that training or education is all that you need to successfully manage a business. But have you ever wondered why huge corporations fail or merge once the founder passes it on to family members or associates? Once you have pin-pointed your values, compare how those values are expressed through all your internal and external business interactions. A fair judgement is always available through your existing clients, suppliers and staff. In fact, you will most likely find yourself surprised at their perception of who you are and what your business is all about! These ‘critiques’, I guarantee you, will always relate to a feeling - “I buy my candles here because I know that I am getting quality...” In reality, those same candles come from the same wholesaler that supplies the same neighbouring department store your client drives past to get to your store. It is your business ambiance that is triggering their buying emotions. They are not buying the candles, they are buying the feeling of relaxation, security and comfort you have ‘branded’ within your business. Once you have determined which values are being projected, you should define the ones you want to strengthen within your image. This image relies on how you and your staff operate, and the only way it can be communicated is if all who are involved within your business ‘walk that talk’. One very effective way to insure that your company is holding true to the ‘Brand’ you are developing, is by creating a ‘Systems Operations Manual’. Your ‘Systems Operations Manual’ is the blueprint of your values and is, in essence, the ‘rules’ to your ‘Brand’. In order for you to be able to create an superior ‘Brand’, your ‘system’, from the way the phone is answered to how purchased merchandise is packaged before it goes out your doors, has to be consistent. Every detail, beyond your tangible ‘corporate identity’ such as your business cards, brochures and signage, must be visually perceived and emotionally felt by your clients each and every time they do business with you. Your clients are frequenting your business because they are confident that your values are meeting their values. They gain confidence in you and your values by the ‘systems’ you consistently perform while they are present in your establishment. Their confidence is re-visited by the message, look, and feel of your presence outside your business. Creating and positioning your ‘Brand’ is about identifying, clarifying, and putting into action all the elements that reflect the value you want to project. A good resource to read: “The E-Myth Revisited” by Micheal E. Gerber available at Self Connection Books. As well as being the publisher & owner of Rising Women, I am also a graphic designer with 13 years background in marketing & desktop/design. I am currently ‘open for business’ for brochure design. I may be contacted at 228.7874 or at publisher@risingwomen.com |