A small business can have a big brand.
Most small business owners choose to dedicate their time and expenses to operations and expense management. In the race to increase revenue and growth, what gets forgotten is the need for focussed branding efforts.
In 2022, branding can potentially make or break your business value. Customers are looking at more than just the product you’re selling; they’re seeking an experience. A well-formulated branding strategy can do just that; without making your business feel like it is small.
What is a brand?
A brand is essentially a combination of a business’s distinctive feature and the experience it provides to users.
The features include the business’s logo, graphics, color scheme, tagline, product packaging, business voice, etc.
Apart from these differentiating features, a brand also includes its mission statement, vision, and values. It encompasses within it customer service, relationships, and audience engagement.
Your brand seeks to be the answer to the five following questions:
- What is my business about?
- Why am I different from my competitors?
- How do my customers perceive my business/product?
- What problem does my business solve, and how efficiently?
- What is the experience my business is delivering to my customers?
In a nutshell, a brand is everything your stakeholders associate with your business. It is quite literally the identity of your company.
Why should a small business focus on branding?
If you own/work at a small business, you have probably wondered at least once about what it would be like to have a big brand.
But guess what? Your business does not have to be big to have a recognizable brand.
Small businesses underestimate the power of branding. They choose to focus on marketing services and sales wins but overlook building a brand and the company from the ground up.
So why should your small business put effort into branding?
Increased recognition
When you see an apple on a screen, are you instantly reminded of two things at once?
Which one pops up into your head first; the electronics megacompany or the fruit?
My bet is on the former.
The above example is just a little nugget of how branding can influence your business’s presence in the market and consumers’ minds. For a small business, increasing recognition is essential to follow through a positive trajectory. When you have a substantial brand value either in terms of a catchy logo, a relatable tagline, or a memorable brand hashtag, you improve your chances of creating a long-term impact.
Packaging is just as important as it is the first thing people see when they look at your product. The overall look and feel of any packaging is very important as it can influence your potential customer, which is why it is of the utmost importance to work with a premium packaging supplier like Zenpack.
Your brand can further your revenue by leveraging people’s emotions for making purchases. In a sea of competitors, it is always better for people to see the ‘face’ of your business to help them connect with you on a deeper level.
Clear message delivery
Most of us associate certain products or services immediately with company names because of the clarity in the messages they want to put across and the value those messages add to our lives. Branding helps you make your value service and business message clear and coherent. If customers don’t fully understand what you offer, there are increased chances of them turning to a potential competitor for the same requirements.
Contrary to popular belief, having a good brand foundation can simplify your business communication (external and internal) instead of complicating it. A reliable brand becomes a proponent of the value you aim to provide your stakeholders with.
Dependable asset
Investing in brand development for a small business is often disregarded as a mere expense. And that is the biggest mistake you can make for your business. Branding is an asset, one that will only increase in value in the long run.
It includes intangible aspects of your business such as values, product/service awareness, user loyalty, and trust. These facets hold immense importance in curating your business’s unique brand story.
By investing in a team (copywriters, graphic designers, social media strategists) dedicated to developing your small business’s brand, you will eventually see how big of an asset it can prove to be for your overall business growth. What may seem like a needless dent in the current budget will be a valuable resource to grow that very budget a few years down the road.
10 branding strategies for your small business in 2022
Since the last year, there have been incredible changes in the way branding has been perceived and the importance it continues to hold, especially for small businesses. Considering the drastic effects of the pandemic on profit levels, many small businesses were forced to make use of enhanced branding strategies to survive in a downward economy.
With the need for more specialized products increasing since the past year, branding could be the critical factor in a growing consumer-centric environment moving forward.
- Focus on user needs
The focal points of a small business can sometimes be limited to higher revenue and increased operational capacity. But going into this year and the near future, every small business must focus on identifying and working towards understanding their customers’ needs. There’s been a shift in the kind of products sought after and the ways to provide these services. Creating buyer personas and refining the customer journey is an excellent way to understand the user’s primary intent better.
- Value in return for loyalty
Small businesses often measure consumer success through the number of customers. Because a more significant customer base equals better sales, right? Maybe.
For a small business, it will become imperative to provide high-value service delivery in exchange for strong loyalty. Once a customer is satisfied with your business, they are more likely to stick with you if you pursue them again in the future.
Having a few hundred loyal customers who will look nowhere else for the same kind of service is great, if not better than having a few thousand clients who are not confident in repurchasing from you. A steady customer base will always grow steadily, giving your small business that initial boost.
- Strengthen community beliefs
Big businesses spend millions of dollars creating the ‘perfect’ brand image in the public’s eyes. It might not be feasible for smaller businesses to spend large amounts on public relations and employing campaigns to boost brand image. What is indeed possible is to give back to society in one way or another.
Small businesses that are seen as committed, honest, and display integrity in their practices will find it easier to thrive without having to depend on various tactics. Establish a community program within the business roadmap and set aside small parts of the budget to be spent on community-based initiatives.
- Emphasize on communication
Businesses that have well-developed communication systems in place operate more effectively and efficiently than others. Don’t wait for your business to grow in size to create seamless internal and external communication channels. Proper communication is probably the most robust of all brand strategies as it is the core of message delivery across platforms.
- Compete with authenticity
It is entirely understandable to want to be at the top of your game and beat your competitors. So yes, do comprehensive research on your competitors, analyze their messaging styles and business outcomes, but do it with authenticity. When you are genuine in the ways you adopt to gain prominence in the marketplace, you display a sense of empathy and regard for all the players, which helps create a strong brand value.
- Be social
This is a no-brainer. Social media is no longer the rage; it is the norm. The future is digital, and developing a well-known brand begins with showing people that you are ready to talk on the platforms they are most comfortable on. Understand where your target audience lives, what type of messages they resonate with the most, and give them precisely that.
Explore new mediums and experiment with the ones you have a good hold on; a brand is not a brand if it can’t create an impact online.
- Collaborate consistently
Partnering with others is a great way to build strong relationships and trust. Always look for other brands to collaborate and work with with who your customers are familiar. It works well for small businesses as this is a way of building trust through brands that your potential customers already trust. Make sure that you look for businesses that have competitive audiences, not products.
- Provide specialized products
The unique selling point (USP) of any business is its product. The same goes for a strong brand. Invest most of your time and money into creating a product that is specialized in its use cases. Your product is at the center of your brand and will continue to be irrespective of the strategy.
- Pay attention
Details are everything when it comes to creating a brand. Look out for what is being discussed, keep an ear out for customer reviews and industry trends. When you pay attention, you are taking a step towards making your customers feel big, even if you are a small-sized business. Be proactive in your efforts to build a brand, engage and interact daily.
- Stay value-driven
We’ve spoken a lot about values; in business messaging, customer service, and delivery. A brand is heavily influenced by what values are the driving force behind the particular business’s ideals. Be consistent in your value system and let them do all the talking for your brand.
Pro tip: a brand is considered valuable only if you put value into it.
Build your business and brand simultaneously
There are no timelines for spending less time on growing your business and more time on brand development. It is best if you can strike a balance between the two and do it simultaneously.
Focus on branding as much as you would on operations and revenue, and begin considering it as a part of your own identity. A strong brand can do wonders for your business goals and can help you score where it really matters; the hearts and minds of your customers.
Author Bio:
Aayushi Sanghavi is a Content Community Writer at G2, India. She has written on topics such as Business, Tech, and SaaS. She is either reading, dancing, or brushing up on her networking skills in her free time
