Grow Your Small Business-Brand Identity

 

If you’re reading this, you’re a  high performing, high achieving, well educated, and successful professional and/or local business owner.

 

You’ve sacrificed a lot to get to where you are.

 

You’ve always done fine in your business, yet you have a growing awareness that THERE MUST BE MORE TO THE CONSTANT HUSTLE AND GRIND, the long hours, the endless stress, and the lack of time for you to just enjoy your life without always worrying where your next new client or case or customer will come from.

If so, keep reading, because I wrote this for you.

 

Welcome to my four-part series, The Art of Using Digital Media to Grow Your Small Business.  My specialty:  teaching you how to communicate powerfully in  email-videos-and social media posts, so that you grow your business with ease.

The methods I teach work for local business owners and professionals (who usually are local businesses, after all) alike.   Especially if you are the FACE of your business, you need to be up to speed on what I’m going to be sharing here.

Over the next several days I’m going to discuss the critical elements you need to grow your business online.  

So, let’s begin with your Brand Identity.

You’re probably noticed that the old school ways of getting leads aren’t working like they used to.  Especially with the shutdowns due to the virus.  

 

But even before phones weren’t ringing  as frequently as they used to. Newsletters just seem to get sent into the abyss.  Christmas cards come fewer and fewer.  Who even knows if your emails are opened or if anyone even reads what’s written on your website.  Online platforms you used to advertise on are constantly changing. Face-to-face networking events are time and energy consuming and happening less and less.

 

THE WORLD IS CHANGING — FAST —  AND IF YOU DON’T KEEP UP, YOU WORRY YOU MIGHT GET LEFT BEHIND.

 

But how do you cut through the sea of online possibilities and determine which course(s) of action — which platform, which technology — is best for you?

 

Maybe you’re thinking, what more is there to getting business online than posting a few how-to videos on YouTube or a bunch of silly memes on Facebook? How hard can social media marketing be? Do I  need a podcast?  Do I really need to commit to the video buzz?

 

And, when you summon up the courage to take a stab at it, you’re disappointed.  No one seems to notice or engage with your content.  What the heck, you think.  What a bloody waste of time. 

 

Or maybe, you don’t post because you’re terrified of what people will think if they see it:  “What if I end up turning off my existing clientele?”

 

No one wants to be canceled or attract haters, least of all those who are your existing patrons. 

 

Last time you tried using social media communication to move the needle it didn’t budge, so you wonder… why even bother?

 

HERE’S THE DEAL: YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO IT ALL TO SEE TREMENDOUS RESULTS FROM CREATING CONTENT THAT YOU DEPLOY STRATEGICALLY AND INTENTIONALLY USING MODERN TECHNOLOGY AND ONLINE PLATFORMS.

 

It’s no secret:  carefully curated content you distribute online has the potential to elevate your brand authority well beyond what can be done with an annual Christmas Card or a quarterly newsletter.

 

By now, your sneaking suspicion is turning into an ever growing awareness that there are secrets to powerful marketing that the online marketers don’t tell you and that you didn’t know to ask.

 

YUP, YOU’RE RIGHT. YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW AND THESE SO-CALLED “SECRETS” ARE PRECISELY WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW IF YOU WANT YOUR BUSINESS TO THRIVE. AND THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT I’M GOING TO BE TEACHING YOU IN THIS SERIES.

 

Part 1: Brand Identity

Building a Strong Foundation for Your Online Presence Starts With You!

First things first: True magnetism begins with heightened awareness of self and then “other,” meaning your clients-customers, the people you serve. We’re going to start by doing a little self-analysis of (who else?) YOU, and then who you want to serve so you get crystal clear on who you’re speaking to in your copy and videos.

 

This process will help you pinpoint your brand identity.

 

You can’t skip over this step – it’s foundational to becoming a powerful communicator. You must nail it in order to create persuasive, influential, magnetic content. Without this clarity before you begin creating content, you may attract more followers, but not necessarily the ones who are interested in hiring you or who you want to work with.

 

Think of it this way: YOUR MESSAGE WON’T RESONATE IF YOU’RE SELLING LAWN MOWERS TO ALASKAN ESKIMOS DURING WINTER.

 

This component also involves crafting a powerful vision for your life and your business. Here’s where you get to DREAM exactly what you want to create. Because you can’t reach your goals if you don’t know what they are.

 

And, here’s my favorite part of all this.  The energy and intention you infuse your content with is going to attract precisely the type of business you want to create.  

 

Get super intentional about what you want to create for yourself. Ask yourself, what is your vision for your life-business-health etcetera? What kind of clients ideally are you wanting to serve and attract?

Ask yourself these key questions the next time you sit down to create content for your business.  

Once you set this intention, you’ll begin to magnetize the right clients that are the right fit for your lifestyle and business.

 

The next step is developing a strong brand message by laser focusing on your mission-vision-values and then infusing them visually and verbally throughout your online presence.

 

Having a clear brand identity is like having a roadmap to a destination. Get this right and you’ll be able to create content on the fly – without overthinking it – and with total confidence that it’s appropriate for you, your audience and your business goals.

 

THIS IS HOW YOU RISE ABOVE THE NOISE, BREAK THROUGH, AND BECOME MEMORABLE TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE AT THE RIGHT TIME.

 

So as you can see, giving some thought to these ideas is what you need to do to create a well-thought out roadmap to building your dream business AND  the ultimate guide to creating compelling content that’s aligned with your mission, your vision, your values.

Apply this to your content creation over time and you’ll attract followers who find you irresistible to watch, to learn from, and who want to work with you.

 

Stay tuned for Part II of my series all about Strategic Messaging.

 

Follow me on Instagram @iamjennifergardner for more digital marketing tips.   DM me and let me know what you think.  I clap back!