Blog Archives

Brand: why perception is everything when growing your business.

Often, when networking with other business owners, the core brand message I deliver is that ‘perception is everything’. It’s such a succinct message that it features on The Brand Experts business card (the tagline) because it’s a simple belief and a simple message that encapsulates and embodies a fundamental part of ‘brand’ and The Brand Experts offering: it links our brand purpose, the brand vision and the brand promise. If you agree with that belief and it resonates with you, then great –  we’re aligned and we can continue the conversation; if not, then maybe we’re not aligned? Not just yet anyway… Read on.

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Brand: 10 questions you need to ask about your customers

Brand has been around for a while but it can still be a confusing subject for many businesses and business owners. For example, many people still believe branding simply involves the creation of a simple logo, a tagline and a website. While a new logo and website may form part of the visual brand deliverables of a B2B branding process, they aren’t the total sum of the brand process. When it comes to creating a new brand or refreshing an existing brand, there are a range of factors that need to be taken into consideration other than just the logo design and an impressive-looking website.

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3 reasons why your brand needs video.

Effective videos are compelling, in-depth and emotional and with the right strategy behind it they are the perfect addition for your brand blueprint for business growth. Harnessing the power of video can therefore work wonders for increased brand awareness.

I recently met a talented documentary videographer with a distinct stylistic point of difference on my networking travels, which prompted me to write this blog about the power of brand videos in your brand storytelling strategy. We’ve all heard the saying ‘a picture tells a 1000 words’ right? If that’s the case, then what does a video add to your brand? Quite a lot as it turns out…

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Brand: two questions you need to ask before you rebrand.

Two of the most powerful questions to ask when rebranding are also two of the simplest. Unfortunately for many businesses, the simplest questions also tend to be the hardest. As always, with brand, it involves digging deep, getting into your head (and your customers’ heads) and shaping your brand’s perception.

The first million-dollar brand question is this:

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7 reasons to narrow your market focus for business growth.

Can you really shrink to greatness? How can you grow your business by narrowing your focus? As I’ve mentioned in a previous blog, a lot of brands today focus their resources and energies on the ‘brand’ itself, but the shift has already started – tomorrow ‘brand’ will be focused on building ‘community’ with an emphasis increasingly on interactions between advocates, customers and individual.

Somewhat counter intuitively, the way to build a community of like-minded people with the same values and beliefs (i.e. a brand) is not to go out and cast your net as wide as possible to anyone and everyone who will listen. Instead, get selective about your customer. Very selective…

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Brand: deliver on your promise. It’s a matter of trust.

‘Certainty in an uncertain world’: that’s the emotional and functional benefit an effective brand offers to your customers – and by reflection your business. Consumers want to know they’re standing on solid ground with your offering – not only in terms of buying value but that your delivering something they can rely on – something they can trust. Time after time.

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Brand: it’s your business approach.

Many businesses believe brand is a one-time process and a one-time investment – usually involving a series of meetings, workshops or discussions over a period of time (along with the price tag) with a specialist in marketing who talks in abstractions about experiences, emotions and mission & vision statements where nothing is ever concrete or certain. This is perhaps ironic given that brand and brand strategy provides your customers with certainty in an uncertain world.

There’s also the business that believes brand is…

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Brand: it’s your call to action.

Building a brand is the most effective way of elevating your business beyond ‘commodity status’ – that’s to say – ensuring your business does not compete on price alone with your competitors. In this unfortunate scenario there’s never, ever a winner, not even the consumer, who in extreme cases ends up with either (at best) a long-term depressed local economy with little choice or variety, or at worst insolvency of large parts of the local economy and a heavy social cost as a result. Brand therefore becomes the ‘smart choice‘ for any business with the intention of growing or securing a position in the market, because it…

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Brand: What’s the ‘right’ message to send for your business?

My last blog focused on the benefits of investing in effective graphic design to leave a ‘good’ first impression for your brand (it sets the tone for the rest of the business relationship). If ‘perception is everything’ in brand and in business, then it’s in your businesses best interests to… build a positive and effective identity, find your voice and…

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Brand: ‘Good’ design leaves a good impression.

First impressions count in business. But what message or impression are you currently sending to the market about your respective business through your communication tools, marketing campaigns, messages and channels? And is it the ‘right’ message for your business?

Second impressions count too of course, but they tend to be more expensive, require more time, more resources, and much more effort to redeem the initial missed opportunity.

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