Did you know it only takes 10 seconds for your potential customer to form an opinion about your brand?1  Wait...hold up...10 Seconds? Did that just freak you out?

Before we get too far, I want to give you a big high five 🖐 for clicking through to this post. This tells me that you care a lot about your small business and you want to be doing this "branding" thing right. I know it can be overwhelming thinking about what you might be doing WRONG, but I'm not here to shame you...promise. I want to encourage you to read with gentleness to yourself. If you can pick one touch point you can improve on for now, start there. It takes time, and I'm here for you.

01. Is your message clear?

Too many branding ideas can make your message watered down, confusing and unprofessional to your customer. The amount of effort and brainpower it takes for a potential customer to determine the benefits of your product or services shouldn't take more than a few short seconds. If it takes longer, they'll likely move to the next brand or worse, your competitor. Define your core brand messaging with the words and visuals to use as your primary message.

02. Are you consistent?

Did you know that presenting a brand consistently across all your communication sources can increase revenue by up to 23%? As a small business owner, you might be too busy to dedicate your time to consistent brand awareness. You might have various employees touching different marketing pieces without any brand standards to follow. Or maybe you have a week where you feel like you're doing an ok job of putting out valuable brand equity pieces, but then you disappear and your audience forgets about you for a few months during your busy season. Trust me I've been there! 

03. Does your brand have a strategy?

Your brand is more than just a pretty logo. Every touchpoint you make with your audience is a chance to tell your unique brand story.  When your brand messaging and visuals match up with a strategy that makes sense for your target audience you will have a much greater chance of converting them into a customer. Strategy development helps you learn about your target client, digs deep into the heart of your brand, creates intention around your visuals and message and so much more.

Creating a brand strategy can help you create content in a more meaningful way which will feel less overwhelming.

04. Does your brand actually reflect your offerings?

Over time, businesses evolve and change. A growing business tweaks its offerings, tests new things, and is always working to provide customers with exactly what they want. Maybe your business has shifted its offerings enough that your current branding doesn't make sense anymore. You may even want to rename your business or strategically rebrand to align better with your offerings.

05. Are you excited to show off your brand?

There could be many reasons why you might not feel excited to show off your brand. Your brand should be something you are truly proud of, but here are a few reasons that might make you feel like you aren't confident about sharing your brand with others:

You have outdated visuals and messaging. Times change and so does your brand. If it feels stagnant and old, or not with the times, it may be time for a refresh. Outdated brands give your audience the message that the products/services you offer aren't innovative. A logo that was created in the early 2000s without any refreshing likely has an outdated appearance. A website with the same messaging used for several years may not be keeping up with industry or market trends.

You've DIY'd your brand to death. Many entrepreneurs do a ton of "Do It Yourself" branding, purchasing a template here or there on the fly when it's needed for something. Maybe you paid your niece who likes photoshop to create a logo and it's worked fine up until this point. You might feel like you don't have anything that looks as professional as you would like.

You hit the ground running just to get something "out there."  Entrepreneurs and small business owners are some of the busiest people. With that, sometimes you don't have time to come up with a strategy and you have to throw your branding or marketing together to make it work within a timeframe or for your opening, launch, special event, social media campaign, website, etc. Chances are, you can look back and feel a little icky about a marketing piece or an email you sent. It's okay, we've all been there.

If you answer no to some questions above, it's OK. You are still an amazing small business owner who is amazing at your zone of genius. You might consider investing in a PROFESSIONAL BRAND DESIGNER who can strategically guide you through a branding process to help you clarify the muddy waters, start resonating with your audience and convert them from lookers into customers.

CONTACT ME AND I'll SEND YOU A LINK TO SCHEDULE A FREE COMPLIMENTARY DISCOVERY CALL. LET'S CHAT ABOUT SOME WAYS WE CAN CREATE A BRAND THAT MAKES YOUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES SHINE!