These days, your personal brand may be the single most valuable career asset you will ever possess. Granted, your future employers and associates will still like to check your biography and go through other traditional research steps. But, the present-day labor market is very fast-paced and volatile. If you don’t build a credible personal brand and establish some sort of market clout, you are running a danger of ending up overlooked.
But, what steps should you take to actually build that strong personal brand and get people knocking at your doors instead of constantly running after others?
Well, the business world has by this point pretty much nailed the process of branding down to a point. All you need to do is to adjust these strategies for personal purposes. Let us take a look at how to do that.
Master the social media game
Social media has become or go-to-platform for promotion, exchanging opinions, and building up your status as an influencer. So, it seems appropriate to start your branding efforts here. And even though LinkedIn should make the backbone of your strategy, you should make a presence on other platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook as well. Furthermore, you should research the types of content, posting frequency, and the addressing tone you should use to get the optimal following. And if you invest a couple of bucks into social media marketing you will start building a very strong following in no time.
Make your personal website easy to navigate
Social media platforms will make a useful outlet where you will publish your content and reach out to new people. But, all these profiles should lead back to your website where you will get an opportunity to display your portfolio, present your credentials, and back up your online brand. However, in order to meet these goals, your website needs to feature a responsive design, be easily accessible from mobile devices, and offer multiple contact forms and channels to visitors. The website should also put a very strong emphasis on your personal qualities, soft skills, fields of expertise, and lifestyle you prefer.
Choose a catchy domain name
Your personal brand will live and die on your personal qualities. But, as we will see in the following sections, you should make your website attractive to accidental visitors and engage them afterward. The first step in this process comes in creating an appealing website name and domain that will spark curiosity and invite people to click. Fortunately, the options for choosing a catchy personal website domain are more than abundant so you will have plenty of room to play with an extension like .me and create something truly unique. The content of your website will do the rest of the engagement’s heavy lifting.
Create and publish unique content
We really can’t stress enough the importance of this strategy. First, creating content will keep your social media profiles fueled and fresh. Second, blog posts, infographics, and similar types of content do a great job of inviting people who are not yet interested in establishing a professional relationship with you but show a general interest in your field of work. Third, valuable content sets the foundations for building an incredibly effective backlink strategy that will lead countless new visitors to your website. Finally, creating content allows you to express creativity and demonstrate your professional expertise.
Keep the brand consistent
This is yet another thing we can pick up from major brands like Apple. If you are buying an Apple device you will see Apple’s brand qualities sprinkled throughout every step of the customer’s journey – the visual identity, brand qualities, and brand mission statement remain consistent from your first visit to the website up until the user experience you get while using the devices. Your branding strategy should use similar guidelines and keep the visitors’ experience consistent no matter which outlet they use. Managing expectations and showcasing qualities you can deliver make a critical part of this process.
Network, network, network…
Last but not least, we would like to remind you that the business world is built on personal relationships so all the strategies we have mentioned above can only benefit you if you put more effort into networking. The options for expanding your list of professional acquaintances are practically endless but some of the most effective strategies include the likes of joining a chat group, attending seminars and workshops, posting on sites like Twitter and Reddit, guest-blogging, and inviting influencers to post on your website. The peer recommendation always carried a certain weight and, in that regard, personal branding is not any different.
Well, there you have it – the six ways to emulate corporate branding strategies and build your personal brand from scratch. The present-day business world is very competitive and fast-paced so people who are not able to demonstrate their value from the get-go often lag behind their peers even despite their talent and unique skills. Doing a conscious effort to build your personal brand can do a lot of groundwork in making future employers and associates familiar with your qualities even before they get in touch with you. The tips we gave you should definitely push you in the right direction.
59% of shoppers like to buy products from brands they trust. But earning that trust is not something that many brands know how to do.
A brand is much more than just a logo and a name, it’s the overall visual, written, and value-based image that must be curated over an extended period and across all modes of communication with the target audience.
The good news is that for smaller companies, developing a brand image might actually be easier than for large corporations. This is because SMBs can take a more focused approach when developing the brand, using little specific details that drive home what the company stands for and what makes it different.
Let’s explore a few of the most effective ways to build a strong and unique brand identity below.
Create Seasonal Product and Gift Collections
The first item on this list might seem a bit surprising, but it’s actually a powerful strategy that can help create separation from all of the competitors in your niche.
Having a consistent selection of products is essential, but you should also consider developing seasonal product collections such as holiday gift boxes. These can be curated collections of products that are perfect as a gift or as a seasonal treat for yourself, and the only limit to what you include or how you package it is the way you want to highlight what your brand is about.
You can create beautiful packaging that reflects your unique style, messages highlighting your voice, and products that deliver clear value to your customers.
At the same time, these gift boxes are an excellent product to showcase on your marketing campaigns. By running social media ads with beautifully packaged gift boxes, you can grab the attention of people who might otherwise not click on your regular products.
Put Your Customers First
A brand’s strength is only as great as its customer base. Therefore, when creating a unique brand identity, it makes sense to start the process by taking a customer centric approach and figuring out precisely who you want to cater to, and how.
Customer centricity implies putting your customers above all else, focusing on providing them with the best possible experience, and trusting that success will follow. This means not just delivering good-quality products but also ensuring that the values your business puts forward are aligned with what your ideal customers care about.
What’s more, it means addressing any issues they might have quickly and doing everything you can to ensure that every customer walks away happy.
Find a Core Differentiating Idea
The term unique brand contains a pivotal clue about how to develop it. Uniqueness is a trait that’s only possible in relation to something else, so the right way you make your brand stand out will largely depend on the type of competition you will be working against.
To develop a memorable and engaging brand that will be more appealing than others, you must first perform a thorough analysis of the landscape in your market, figuring out what your competitors are doing, how they’re positioning themselves, and how you can fill a currently unmet demand.
Sometimes, that will mean addressing a common issue that all other brands fail to solve. Perhaps no one is catering to the segment of an audience? Or maybe there’s an ethical issue that more and more customers find important?
Whatever it might be, finding what could make your brand different can become the driving force behind everything you do, including the branding, the voice, and the type of marketing campaigns you run.
Provide Amazing Customer Support
If there’s one area where it’s absolutely crucial to stand out from the competition, it’s customer support. Even a few bad experiences can derail your brand’s reputation, so it’s vital to promptly address every issue and offer helpful solutions that turn frustrated customers into loyal fans.
And the good news is that even small brands now have numerous tools for creating an omnichannel customer support system that quickly addresses all issues.
For one thing, you should implement a live chat function on your website, where people can quickly get answers to questions without having to fill out forms. When a live support rep isn’t available, you can use a chatbot instead, directing customers to helpful resources that enable them to solve the issue independently.
You should also have someone monitor your social media messages, where many customers will go to learn more about your brand and figure out whether they want to work with you.
Finally, consider creating a knowledge base that can act as an all-encompassing resource. This will prevent your support agents from having to explain each issue individually, as they will be able to provide a helpful link that explains the problem’s solution clearly and with visuals.
Bottom Line
Developing a strong brand identity is one of the best ways to carve out a space in the market, no matter how competitive it might be. Using the strategies listed above, you can create more exciting products, cater to the right audience, and find ways to stand out from the rest.
You, just like your customers and employees, are human. Despite the significant rise of automation in businesses, every aspect of a business comes into contact with a human at some point. Without humans, there would be no business. These things may seem obvious, but it is surprising how little humanity most companies have in their dealings with customers. How common is it to see companies run out-of-touch ads that a group of executives decided humans would like? These ads are just one example of how many companies assume what humans like as if they aren’t humans themselves. Customers are not looking for an overly focus grouped brand, they want genuine human interaction. It is not difficult to humanize your brand, here are 5 easy ways.
Think Like a Human
Times have changed. The days of email blasts and untargeted, traditional advertising are gone. If you think like a corporate machine, then you will have a hard time connecting to everyday people. Think about the conversations you have in your day to day life, the connections you have with other people. Those personal relationships should be the model for business relationships. Treat your customers like friends and talk to them like you would a new acquaintance.
Show Off Your Staff
Showing the real people that make your company run helps build trust with customers. Physically seeing that there is a team of fellow humans behind the business will help bring out the humanity in your company. Post pictures of actual employees, not just stock photos. You do not need to show off anyone who doesn’t want the spotlight, it will work better if you show off employees who want to be ambassadors. Show off the personalities of your employees, show customers that regular people like them work for your company. By reminding customers that normal humans work for you it brings a human element to the whole company.
Don’t be afraid to show off the personalities of your employees either. If you are going to show off employees, let them show their true colors. Rather than heavily editing what your employees say, let them use their own words. Customers will be able to tell when your employees are being genuine, so let them be.
Personalized Marketing
Marketing often comes off as cold and impersonal. We have all received the template marketing emails from companies, and they leave a negative impression, if they were noticed at all. It does not take much effort to make customers feel more appreciated on an individual level, even if it means adding just a few lines of code and small changes in wording. By adding a customer’s name on a marketing email or using “you” rather than “I”, you are making the customer experience more personal and human. Acknowledging your customer as an individual person makes your company feel more human, sounding more like the two of you are talking as friends instead of as a business asking for money.
Admit Failures
Something that unites all humans is failure. Due to this shared human error, companies make mistakes and fail just like average people do in their personal lives. Admitting when you fail is an act of bravery, maturity, and humanity. Maybe something went wrong and it will impact customers, rather than hiding the mistake, take ownership of it. Tell your customers what went wrong, what will happen now, and why it won’t happen again. Don’t air every bit of dirty laundry, but share the lessons learned from failure. A post on Medium shows that people engage when the content is honest, so be truthful with your customers even when things go wrong.
Share User Generated Content
Sharing user generated content helps to humanize your brand in two ways:
- It is flattering to the user to have their content featured by a business, and it reinforces the relationship between business and customer. User generated content is free advertising. Showing happy customers with your products to other potential customers is great marketing; it also shows customers you care about their positive experiences with your product.
- It is important to humanize your brand. No one wants to deal with a cold impersonal corporate entity. People want to work with other people. If you bring some humanity to your business, customers are more likely to engage. Show off your employees, and let them speak for the company in a genuine way. Do not be afraid to admit failure when it is pertinent to your customers. Proudly post user generated content and talk to your customers like you would any other humans – you are bound to see positive results.
Whether you’re a new start-up or an established business, brand awareness is always key. How can you make sales if people don’t know about you or the new things you’re doing? The Content Marketing Marketing Institution in fact found that 89 percent of B2B marketers labelled brand awareness and visibility as the most important goal, over sales and lead generation. But in this day and age, with so many communication platforms, advanced technologies and modern ways of thinking, what are the most effective methods of getting your brand out there? Let’s take a look at some of the main strategies that could be effective for your company.
1. Social Media
It’s no secret that Social Media is a widely used tool that has a powerful effect on people’s opinions. No matter the platform of choice — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Youtube to name just a few — there is a potential to reach millions, even billions, of people around the world. Through a profile and regular activity that attracts your target market, a company not only has the ability to get their brand seen by the many people on Social Media, but you actually can communicate a strong and relatable brand personality. The great part about Social Media is that it is easily customizable. You can target audiences by age, gender, geographical location and even interests, to ensure that your brand is being seen by those most likely to identify with your values and require your services.
2. Content Marketing
Another modern day technique for brand visibility is content marketing. With the onslaught of technology and the world wide web, audiences are faced with an overload of content, which is updated and shared every hour. People visit various websites, scroll through social feeds and Google search on a daily basis, so if your brand has content out there for them to stumble across, it’s all the more likely that audiences will become more aware. Try using bloggers and creating native articles to post on various publications that you know your target market are reading; or you could shoot interesting videos to upload and share on Social Media. You could even try writing an e-book on a topic of interest; just try and be creative and be proactive about spreading the content online.
3. Traditional Methods
Let’s not forget about those tried and tested traditional methods that have been working for marketers for a long time. Guerrilla marketing, for example, can be highly effective for companies trying to get their name out there. Uber, which is a billion dollar company has been known to take advantage of guerrilla tactics. You could also try getting a toll free number for your business because by adding a clear contact detail to the brand, you will be visible on 411 directories and online directories, which are seen by many people everyday. Plus, toll free numbers make it easier for customers to get in contact with you and therefore allows you to provide better customer service — an added bonus that can make a huge difference.
Increasing the visibility of your brand can be a process that is often time consuming and requires effort. Whether it’s using modern techniques or traditional approaches, marketers should be aware of effective strategies and be sure to make brand awareness a priority; if done properly, it can broaden your customer base, solidify your market position and increase returns.
Should your subsidiary businesses, products, and services carry the respective name of your mother brand, or live out their own lives in the global market in order to appeal to a certain range of demographics, otherwise unattainable with your primary brand personality? The answer will depend on your long-term goals and aspirations.
Brand architecture represents an invaluable piece in the puzzle of global market positioning and brand recognition, allowing you to develop new companies, products, and services and tailor them in terms of values, visual identity, personality, and voice in order to reach your audience. Rather than running the risk of inadequate and subpar customer feedback due to the overwhelming and familiar emotional response evoked by your mother brand, you can neatly organize your brand architecture to help clients, customers, and in-house teams better gauge and respond to your subsidiary brands.
In layman’s terms, brand architecture allows you to appeal to a wider audience by creating seemingly unrelated brands that are a part of a unified whole, or corporate brands that portray a unified story to larger demographic.
Given the aforementioned benefits, let us take a look at the crucial steps you should take to create your optimal brand architecture.
Define your industries
A brand, much like a growing person, starts off in a specific niche, and broadens its horizons to encompass numerous areas in life, taking interest, learning and mastering different traits. The place your brand starts in its genesis should not be the place it ends up, but rather it should pave the road to bigger and better things.
Thus, it becomes of essence to clearly define the new niches and future industries you wish to introduce your brand to, and create a demographic model that will yield the creation and fine-tuning of a new entity – your house of brands. Your house of brands is a group where every one of your new brands resides under the wings of your head corporation. In there lies the data, numerous marketing plans and strategies and dedicated teams that manage and grow your new businesses.
Choose your architecture type
Brand architecture entails the use and optimization of three major architecture types, each with its own purpose and built in accordance with your aspirations.
The first type is corporate architecture. Corporate architecture entails the creation of unique companies, services or products that are supposed to live independently, yet are fully controlled and always come with a corporate identity prefix. This is a good solution for companies who want their new audiences to automatically associate their values with the corporate brand, avoiding the need for additional marketing efforts and complicated management delegation.
Secondly, there are sub-brands and endorsements. Succinctly, endorsed brands stand on their own in the local or global market, yet the corporate brand played a substantial, if not a key role, in their creation.
Endorsed brands can enjoy the benefits of the corporate brand’s support and protection, while being able to execute their own marketing strategies and create their brand in accordance with the corporate entity. This is an excellent solution for companies that want to create individual values, stories, messages, and visual identities for their new ventures.
Be wary though, endorsed brands need to deliver results in terms of brand recognition and value, and your corporate brand must actively participate in its establishment and ensure its strong footing before it can enjoy the fruits of its success.
Lastly, there is the option of creating individual product brands. This solution entails complete freedom of your individual brands, allowing them to live out their lives independently without any visible relationship with the corporate entity. This solution boasts numerous benefits but it can also present the corporate brand with hardship if not set up and managed properly. These unique brands need to be created with prudency and strategy, employing a strong marketing team for each, creating a professional management structure, developing a unique visual identity with graphic design and establishing an emotional relationship with the customers with a dedicate PR department.
Build on emotion
Your brand architecture should be built gradually and it should be rationally positioned to evoke an emotional response. You need to utilize the customer’s inherent trait of emotionality to your advantage and build brands, products and services that will create a bond with your target audience. Remember, people consume content, buy products, and promote brands to their friends because they feel the brand to be an inseparable part of their reality, not necessarily because they need it.
Emotions trump functionality, and that is why your subsidiary brands need to be built on their strengths, advantages and benefits. Carefully start developing your new brands and list their functional traits from which you will derive their unique benefits that will spike an emotional reaction. These benefits need to be tailored perfectly to resonate with the specific target demographic and you will succeed in accomplishing this creative task by employing dedicated management teams to create and take the new brand out to sea.
Employ hierarchy
Finally, hierarchy plays a pivotal role in the maintenance, productivity, and future success of your carefully built brand architecture. In a vast corporate conglomerate, it becomes staggeringly easy to lose a sense of direction and let your architecture fall to pieces under poor guidance and a lack of hierarchical communication and delegation.
For this reason, you must build and maintain a strong hierarchical foundation with clearly defined guidelines and regulations that will ensure productivity, financial prosperity, and long-term success with the best possible ROI.
The importance of establishing thriving brand architecture with careful planning and strategizing is unparalleled. Strong brand architecture will see your corporation to new heights, allowing your business to pursue new goals, create numerous revenue streams and effectively branch out into various global markets. Follow these crucial steps and you will easily pave the road to long-term success and prosperity!
According to a report by Forrester, online sales are predicted to grow at an annual rate of 9.32 percent over the next five years. Those numbers are good news for e-commerce retailers looking to step-up their sales. But a thriving, healthy marketplace also means more competition for e-commerce store owners trying to attract their share of eager customers.
Stand-out from the crowd with unique e-commerce strategies to help differentiate your brand. From a killer unique selling proposition to inventing your own holiday to show your customer appreciation, these e-commerce strategies are sure to boost sales.
Develop a Niche Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
E-commerce store owners probably already know about Unique Selling Propositions (USP) to differentiate their brand. For example, Mast Brothers Chocolate creates quality, handmade chocolate bars with tools like a stone grinder. But it takes more than a clever USP in today’s marketplace. You also need a genius niche.
An e-commerce gadget retailer can focus on selling products directly to the tiny house movement to maximize space while delivering on quality with multi-faceted tools. The combination of a hyper-focused niche and USP makes your brand more compelling and easier to be seen and heard in a competitive marketplace.
Create Multi-channel Offerings
Today’s customers want consistent brand experiences whether they’re shopping directly through a retailer’s website, in a brick and mortar store, through social media or with marketplaces like Amazon. The research also shows the trend has no signs of slowing down. Nielsen reports that consumers are using digital touch points throughout the buying process from research to reading through reviews and price comparison.
Give your customers a consistent experience no matter where they’re shopping for, and look to big retailers mastering the technique for inspiration. For example, Cabela’s adeptly integrates across various channels to offer a consistent brand and selling experience to its customers. This means use can check the availability of a specific item, like a fishing lure, in a nearby location, purchase that item offline and walk into the store to pick it up the same day.
Collaborate with Influencers
Big brands are already partnering with influencers from YouTube stars to Twitter users with millions of followers. Some, like Gary Vaynerchuk, are influencers in an industry like marketing. Others are everyday people turned social media celebrities. And the ROI is impressive. According to to a poll by Tomoson, businesses earn $6.50 for every $1 spent on influencer marketing.
Research who has influence in your niche whether you sell kids clothing or business focused apps. Reach out to form a collaboration to promote your business in exchange for free products, a part of your marketing spend or other perks like VIP access to your business events.
Develop Highly Personal Campaigns
Consumers are accustomed to being marketed to on a highly personal level, and businesses can leverage this trend to increase sales. Consider how Amazon automatically shows you products you might be interested in based on past purchases and searches. Follow-up with your own customers with personalized emails offering tips for products they’ve purchased, or announce discounts on items they’re likely to buy based on their purchasing history.
Invent a Viral Appreciation Day
Showing your customers you care with a generic discount can get lost in the white noise of email. But creating a viral appreciation day in the form of a holiday could result in a big payday. The “Amazon of China” invented a holiday they called “Singles’ Day” and raked in $14 billion in 24-hours.
Brainstorm appreciate days and your own holidays that align with your product. China’s “Singles’ Day” could have also worked well for an e-commerce retailer selling clothes for fashionable and ambitious women. Send out an email campaign or work with an influencer to build up a buzz around your big day before unleashing it on the world.
Social media is one of the hottest trends right now and is especially popular to use as an overall website marketing strategy. Those who are interested in how to plan a social media marketing strategy have already realized the many advantages it has to offer if executed properly. Planning how to run the marketing strategy is essential for it to be as successful as possible.
Identify your Goals
For people who are researching how to plan a social media marketing strategy, having a clearly defined set of goals right out of the gates is essential. A successful social media marketing strategy has a specific goal, although others may be attained as side benefits. There are a variety of different goals that can be achieved by utilizing social media properly including:
- Increasing the company’s bottom line by increasing sales
- Gaining valuable information about customers
- Gaining inbound links to improve the company’s online ranking, which will in turn help to increase sales
- Getting customer testimonials and sharing these reviews with potential customers
- Monitoring the reputation of the brand
- Building authority
- Educating customers about the product and brand
- Finding new audiences
- Forming a direct relationship between the customer and the company
Design the Strategy
Once the goals have been clearly laid out, it’s time for those learning how to plan social media marketing strategy to design the strategy itself. This strategy should be based heavily on research into strategies that have been used in the past. The best social media agencies learn from other people’s failures and avoid them in their own campaigns by researching what has worked and what hasn’t worked.
Here are a few ways you can measure what you are doing:
Measure Success
Social media companies need to clearly determine a way to measure their own campaign’s success or failure. Without this measurement, there will be no way of determining how effective the marketing strategy was. This measurement should be a direct reflection of the chosen goal of those deciding how to plan social media marketing strategy. For example, if the goal is awareness, things such as shares, likes and new subscribers are good ways to measure growth and engagement. There are a variety of tools and tracking programs that can help determine social media searchers for a specific company or marketing plan.
Overall Trends
As an additional measure of success and of social media trends involving the company, overall trends should also be examined as an answer for how to plan social media marketing strategy ideas. Look for mentions of keywords in the industry, the company name, key employees’ names (such as the CEO), brand names and product services and compare them to mentions of competitors. Depending on which social media outlet is being used, there are also many different tools that social media companies use to help track these overall trends quickly and accurately.
Communication Policies
Communication policies are an integral part of how to plan social media marketing strategy. Make a plan as to what the answer is to customer questions and complaints before they happen. Clarify the role that different team members will take and reiterate the goal behind the communication policies. Make a reasonable timeline for different success measurements and when the associated tasks will be completed. It is important for even the best social media companies to have a written plan identifying which different networks will be used and how the goals will be accomplished.
Growth and Promotion
Once those interested in how to plan social media marketing strategy have implemented their ideas, make sure that the momentum is kept going. There needs to be consistent promotion of social media platforms company-wide, including adding the networks to letterheads, signature lines, business cards and promotional literature. Make use of plugins and icons on the company’s website to thoroughly link to the company’s different media outlets. Promotions such as Facebook ads and contests are affordable and easy ways to draw more attention to the company. Try live webinars, question and answers, guest blogging and expert interviews to keep growing and promoting.
Deciding how to plan social media marketing strategy involves a variety of facets, as outlined above. Promotional policies, goals and communication policies must be clearly laid out before any campaign begins. Make sure to keep measuring to see how successful the strategies were. These evaluation processes can help to develop different strategies over time that may be more successful with the company’s target audience.
Many entrepreneurs get so wrapped up in the practical (physical and financial) aspects of starting a business that they don’t stop to consider what branding can do for them, much less how to go about building a successful brand. But when you stop to consider that even widely recognizable brands like Coke, McDonald’s, Nike, Ford, and hundreds of others started out in exactly the same place you’re at today, you’ll see that it is possible to take a small local company or online operation to a higher level through branding efforts. It’s not enough to simply float along on the goodwill of a few patrons and hope that others find you; you’ve got to be proactive about expanding your own brand. And while plenty of social media sites can help to spread your message at light-speed, Google+ offers some fantastic benefits to help you build your brand.
#1 Identify Goals
Create a mission statement. Okay, so this is not actually an aspect of Google+; it’s something you must do on your own before you begin your foray into online branding. And if you have not already created a mission statement to specify the overarching goals and ideals of your enterprise, now is the time. By opting to create a brand rather than simply slogging along as a generic vendor, you’ve taken a step towards transforming your operation into a highly visible business entity, one that will be more likely to enjoy success and longevity. And you need a mission statement that you and your fans can refer back to in order to keep your original vision alive. This is really the first step to brand creation (after opening your business, of course).
#2 Build a Profile
Create and update your profile. You might not think that the profile feature is terribly important, but considering it can provide consumers new to your brand with a snapshot of what makes you…well…YOU, it is imperative that you put some thought into creating a well-rounded profile that offers pertinent information about your company and links out to your website, blog, or other social accounts.
#3 Engage your Audience
Start threads, use sparks. Engaging with your visitors is one of the best ways to encourage them to have a relationship with your company, which is essentially the essence of branding. You want to approach potential customers on a personal level so that they come to see you as a trusted friend rather than a soulless corporation. By starting interesting conversation and then carrying on communications, you can work to build bonds and create a community that centers on your business. And the sparks feature can help you to use current events and other news to stimulate discussions. This is a fantastic strategy for drawing people in and helping them to become invested in your company.
#4 Build your Brand
Create brand ambassadors. Although internet marketing is an excellent and often affordable tool for businesses seeking to expand a brand, having trusted sources recommending you to friends and family is even better. By providing excellent customer service and really making the effort to connect with people in your network, you can create an army of brand ambassadors that give you access to their inner circle. And this is one area in which Google+ has other social media outlets beat thanks to their easy-to-use “circles” feature.
#5 Cross Promote
Cross promote. It is said that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. If you want to build your brand with Google+ you need every link to be solid. So be careful about who you let into your own circles if you want to remain attractive to prospective patrons.
About the author:
Sarah Danielson is a contributing writer for 522 Digital, a digital marketing agency that helps companies reach their target audience.
You’re itching to boost your Facebook likes, aren’t you? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Here, we’ll dive into 8 strategic ways to increase your Facebook presence. You’ll learn to navigate Facebook’s algorithm, craft engaging content, and even master Facebook Ads. You’ll become a pro at encouraging participation and timing your posts right. Get ready to connect, appeal, and offer incentives like never before. Let’s start this journey to Facebook liberation together, shall we?
1. Understanding Facebook’s Algorithm
Often, you’ll need to grasp how Facebook’s algorithm works to consistently increase your page’s likes. The algorithm changes frequently, and understanding these shifts is vital for a strategic, engaging presence on the platform.
Facebook’s algorithm prioritizes content in personalized feeds based on user interests, behavior, and engagement metrics. The more your content resonates with users, the higher it’s prioritized. This content prioritization is why it’s crucial to create posts that engage your audience, sparking reactions, comments, and shares.
Algorithm transparency, however, isn’t Facebook’s strong suit. The company has been notoriously tight-lipped about the exact mechanisms of the algorithm. Yet, staying informed about announced changes and observing your page’s performance can help you decode it.
Remember, the algorithm is a tool, not a barrier. Its goal is to present users with content they’ll love. So, make them love yours. Know your audience, craft content that speaks to them, and watch your engagement metrics improve.
2. Crafting Engaging Content
Your content’s ability to engage users significantly affects your Facebook page’s success, so it’s vital you understand how to craft compelling posts. This is where content personalization, storytelling techniques, and viral content creation come into play.
- Content Personalization: Personalize your posts to make them more relatable to your audience. Use data to understand your followers’ interests and create content that resonates with them.
- Storytelling Techniques: People love stories. They’re engaging, relatable, and memorable. Use storytelling in your posts to connect with your audience on an emotional level, making your content more likely to be shared.
- Viral Content Creation: Viral content is content that gets shared exponentially on social media. Monitor trending topics and create content that taps into these trends.
Another effective strategy is encouraging user generated content. This not only engages your audience but also provides you with free content. Lastly, consider incorporating interactive live videos into your strategy. They’re a great way to engage users in real time and foster a sense of community. Remember, crafting engaging content isn’t about selling; it’s about connecting.
3. Utilizing Facebook Ads
In order to boost your Facebook page’s visibility and attract more likes, you’ll need to leverage the power of Facebook Ads. This isn’t as daunting as it sounds; with the right ad targeting strategies, you can reach out to your ideal audience, engaging them effectively, and escalating your likes.
Start by focusing on audience segmentation. Break down your target market into specific groups based on their interests, behaviors, or demographics. This fine-tuning helps you create a more personalized and relevant ad experience, thereby increasing the likelihood of getting likes.
Creative ad development comes next. It’s crucial for your ad to stand out amidst the clutter. Use compelling visuals, engaging copy, and a clear call-to-action to lure your segmented audience into engaging with your content.
Ad budget optimization is another key strategy. Ensure that your budget is allocated effectively to reach the most responsive segments. Remember, it’s not about spending more, it’s about spending smart.
Lastly, don’t forget the conversion tracking implementation. This tool helps you track the number of likes resulting from your ads, providing valuable insights for future campaigns. With careful planning and strategic execution, Facebook Ads can be your ticket to a thriving Facebook presence.
4. Encouraging User Participation
Boosting your page’s likes also depends on your audience’s active participation. Engaging your followers isn’t just about posting content; it’s about creating opportunities for them to interact and feel a part of your community. This requires strategic planning and implementation.
- User contests: These are effective ways to boost user participation and increase likes. Make sure the contests are easy to participate in and offer appealing rewards. Everyone loves a good competition, and the chance of winning something valuable will encourage users to engage.
- Interactive polls: Polls not only encourage participation but also provide valuable insights into your audience’s preferences. They’re easy to create and can stimulate interesting discussions.
- Live Q&A sessions: This gives your audience the opportunity to interact with you directly. It’s a perfect platform to address their questions, concerns, and feedback in real time.
5. Timing Your Posts Right
Getting the timing right for your Facebook posts can significantly increase your likes and engagement. It’s not just about what you post, but when you post. Optimal posting hours can be a game-changer, catapulting your content into the forefront of your audience’s feeds.
Consider your audience’s timezone when planning your posts. If you’re targeting a global audience, you’ll want to understand the times they’re most active online. There’s no point in posting when your audience is asleep, right? Use scheduling tools to automate this process, they’re lifesavers.
Don’t underestimate the frequency impact. Over-posting can deter your audience, while under-posting can cause them to forget about you. Striking a balance is key.
Lastly, be mindful of peak engagement times. These are the golden hours when your audience is most active. Posting during these windows can drastically increase your visibility.
6. Maximizing Visual Appeal
Building on the importance of timing, you should also focus on enhancing the visual appeal of your posts to garner more likes. Your strategy should include image optimization, color psychology, font selection, layout design, and video aesthetics.
Liberate your creativity and let’s break it down:
- Image Optimization: Choose high-quality images that are relevant to your post. Use tools for cropping, brightness adjustment, and adding filters to make your images more compelling.
- Color Psychology: Colors trigger emotions. Use this to your advantage by selecting colors that evoke the feelings you want your audience to experience.
- Font Selection and Layout Design: Choose fonts that are easy to read and pleasing to the eyes. Arrange your text and images in a layout that guides the viewer’s eyes through your post.
- Don’t forget about **Video Aesthetics**. Videos that are well-produced and visually pleasing can significantly increase engagement.
7. Connecting With Other Pages
In addition to creating visually appealing posts, connecting with other Facebook pages can significantly increase your visibility and, in turn, bring more likes to your page. This strategy, known as page collaborations, is an excellent method of reaching a wider audience by leveraging the followers of other pages.
A cross-promotion strategy can be highly effective here. You can collaborate with pages that have a similar audience to yours, offering to share their content in exchange for them sharing yours. This way, you’re not only expanding your reach but also providing your followers with more relevant content.
Another key aspect is audience targeting. You’ve got to connect with pages whose audience aligns with yours. This is where niche networking comes into play. By connecting with pages in your niche, you’re more likely to attract followers that are genuinely interested in your content.
Lastly, don’t underestimate the power of mutual engagement benefits. Engaging with other pages – liking, commenting, sharing their posts – can encourage them to do the same for you. This active engagement not only boosts your visibility but also establishes a sense of community, which can lead to even more likes on your page.
8. Offering Incentives for Likes
While you’re busy connecting with other pages and expanding your reach, don’t forget that offering incentives can also be a powerful tool to attract more likes to your Facebook page. It’s a strategic move that can drive user engagement and increase your page’s popularity.
Here are three incentive strategies that can liberate you from low engagement rates:
- Like gated giveaways: This involves offering a gift or a discount that can only be accessed after a user likes your page. It’s a win-win since users get something valuable, and you get the likes you’re chasing.
- Loyalty rewards: Reward your loyal followers with exclusive deals or content. This not only encourages them to stick around, but also promotes more likes as they share your page with their friends.
- Referral incentives: Encourage your followers to bring in more likes by offering rewards for every referral like they generate.
Also, consider running social media contests or providing exclusive content access to engage users further. People love a good competition, and exclusive content can be a strong motivator. These tactics can help you amass likes and build a stronger, more engaged Facebook community.
Conclusion
So, you’ve got the tools to boost your Facebook likes. Understand Facebook’s algorithm, create engaging content and use Facebook ads wisely. Boost interaction, time your posts well, and maximize your visuals. Don’t forget to connect with other pages and offer incentives for likes. It’s a strategic game, but now you’re equipped to play it. Don’t wait, start implementing these strategies today and watch your Facebook page grow.
Are you just a website or are you a brand that captivates and connects with your customers?
Discover the eight key differences that set a brand apart from a mere website.
From the visual identity and design that leaves a lasting impression, to the emotional connection that keeps customers coming back for more, this article will unveil the secrets of creating a brand that influences and builds unwavering customer loyalty.
Don’t settle for being just another website; become a brand that stands out from the crowd.
Visual Identity and Design
You should consider using vibrant colors and bold typography to enhance your visual identity and design. Typography and color play a crucial role in creating a visually appealing and memorable brand image. When designing your website or any other visual elements, it’s essential to choose fonts and colors that align with your brand personality. By selecting the right combination, you can effectively communicate your brand’s values and evoke specific emotions in your audience.
Typography and color also contribute to the user experience of your website. The right choice of fonts ensures that your content is easy to read and understand. Similarly, the use of colors can guide users’ attention and create a cohesive visual experience. By carefully selecting typography and color, you can enhance the overall user experience and make your website more engaging and enjoyable to navigate.
Logo design is another aspect of visual identity that shouldn’t be overlooked. A well-designed logo can serve as a visual representation of your brand and help establish brand recognition. It should incorporate elements of typography and color that reflect your brand personality and values. A visually appealing and memorable logo can effectively communicate your brand story and leave a lasting impression on your audience.
Incorporating visual storytelling into your design is another powerful way to enhance your brand’s visual identity. By using imagery, colors, and typography to tell a story, you can create a strong emotional connection with your audience. Visual storytelling allows you to communicate your brand’s message and values in a more engaging and impactful way.
Emotional Connection With Customers
When it comes to building an emotional connection with customers, it’s important to understand their needs and desires. To truly engage with your customers and create a lasting bond, you need to go beyond just providing a product or service.
Here are five key strategies to help you build that emotional connection:
- Customer satisfaction: Make sure your customers are not only happy with their purchase, but also with the overall experience they’ve with your brand.
- Emotional branding: Create a brand identity that resonates with your target audience on an emotional level. This will help them connect with your brand on a deeper level.
- Trust building: Build trust by delivering on your promises, being transparent, and always putting the customer first.
- Personalized experiences: Tailor your interactions and offerings to each individual customer. Show them that you understand their unique needs and preferences.
- Customer engagement: Actively engage with your customers through various channels, such as social media, email marketing, and personalized communication. Encourage them to share their feedback and experiences with your brand.
Brand Values and Messaging
To effectively communicate your brand values and messaging, it’s crucial to be consistent and intentional in your marketing efforts. Your brand reputation is at stake, and it’s essential to establish a strong connection with your target audience. Your brand personality should shine through every interaction, leaving a lasting impression on your customers. The key lies in understanding your brand positioning and leveraging it to differentiate yourself from the competition.
Your brand reputation is the perception that people have of your business. It’s built over time through consistent messaging and actions. By aligning your brand values with your marketing efforts, you can enhance your reputation and build trust with your target audience.
Speaking of your target audience, it’s vital to understand their needs, desires, and preferences. Tailor your messaging to resonate with them on an emotional level. Show them that you understand their pain points and offer a solution that aligns with their values.
Your brand personality is what sets you apart from others in your industry. It’s the unique voice and tone that you use to communicate with your audience. Be intentional in your messaging by infusing your brand personality throughout all your marketing channels.
By effectively communicating your brand values and messaging, you can position yourself as a leader in your industry. Show your audience why they should choose you over your competitors. Highlight your unique selling points and demonstrate how your brand provides a solution to their problems.
Differentiation is key in a saturated market. Identify what makes your brand special and emphasize it in your messaging. Showcase why you’re the best choice for your target audience. By consistently communicating your brand values, you can differentiate yourself and leave a lasting impression on your customers.
Consistency and Coherence
Maintaining consistency and coherence in your messaging is essential for creating a strong and unified brand image. When it comes to building a successful brand, it’s not just about having a fancy logo or an eye-catching website. It’s about creating a brand experience that leaves a lasting impression on your customers.
Here are five key factors to consider when it comes to maintaining consistency and coherence in your brand messaging:
- Brand recognition: Consistent messaging helps customers easily identify and recognize your brand, making it more memorable and increasing brand loyalty.
- Customer perception: Your messaging should align with your target audience’s values and aspirations, creating a positive perception of your brand.
- Brand reputation: Consistency in your messaging builds trust and credibility, enhancing your brand’s reputation in the market.
- Brand experience: Your messaging should align with the overall experience customers have with your brand, creating a seamless and cohesive journey.
- Brand voice: A consistent brand voice across all communication channels creates a sense of familiarity and helps establish a unique identity for your brand.
Influence and Customer Loyalty
You can strengthen customer loyalty by leveraging your influence over their purchasing decisions. As a business owner, it’s crucial to understand the power you hold in shaping your customers’ perception of your brand. By providing exceptional customer satisfaction, you can build a strong brand reputation that will resonate with your target audience.
Creating a positive customer experience is key to fostering brand loyalty. Customers who feel valued and satisfied are more likely to remain loyal to your brand, even in the face of competition. By consistently delivering on your promises and exceeding customer expectations, you can create a lasting bond that goes beyond just a transaction.
Brand awareness plays a significant role in influencing customer loyalty. When customers are aware of your brand and what it represents, they’re more likely to choose your products or services over others. By implementing effective marketing strategies and maintaining a strong online presence, you can increase brand awareness and attract a loyal customer base.
Conclusion
Congratulations! You’ve now unlocked the secret to creating a brand that goes beyond just a website.
By harnessing the power of visual identity, emotional connection, brand values, consistency, and influence, you can create a brand that captivates customers and builds unwavering loyalty.
Your brand will be like a majestic, soaring eagle, effortlessly gliding above the competition, leaving a lasting impression on all who encounter it.
So go forth and create a brand that will make waves in the digital realm!