This presentation shows entrepreneurs and small business owners how to create a simple, targeted, and powerful brand that builds customer engagement and drives sales. This presentation was given at the Decatur Morgan County Entrepreneurial Center in Decatur, AL at the Motivate! Conference on November 9, 2012

1. Branding
101
What
is
your
business
iden0ty?

2. What We’ll Cover Today
1.
What
is
Branding?
2.
Understand
your
place
in
the
market
3.
How
to
develop
clear
brand
messages
4.
How
to
stand
out
in
your
market(s)
5.
How
to
create
a
360˚
brand
experience

3. What We’ll Cover Today
1.
What
is
Branding?
2.
Understand
your
place
in
the
market
3.
How
to
develop
clear
brand
messages
4.
How
to
stand
out
in
your
market(s)
5.
How
to
create
a
360˚
brand
experience

4. What do you think
when you see….

7. How would you
define branding?

9. Is this a brand or Pavlov’s bell?

10. Effective brand advertising campaigns
capture the essence of the brand

11. Branding is the 360˚ experience of a
company through its services, its products,
its marketing, and its customer community

12. What We’ll Cover Today
1.
What
is
Branding?
2.
Understand
your
place
in
the
market
3.
How
to
develop
clear
brand
messages
4.
Modifying
your
message
by
market(s)
5.
How
to
create
a
360˚
brand
experience

13. Do a SWOT Analysis:
List your company’s Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats

14. STRENGTHS
(Internal)
WEAKNESSES
O7en
become
marke0ng
messages
OPPORTUNITIES
THREATS

15. STRENGTHS
WEAKNESSES
(Internal)
(Internal)
O7en
become
Service
&
delivery
marke0ng
messages
threats
to
your
brand
OPPORTUNITIES
THREATS

16. STRENGTHS
WEAKNESSES
(Internal)
(Internal)
O7en
become
Service
&
delivery
marke0ng
messages
threats
to
your
brand
OPPORTUNITIES
(External)
THREATS
Poten0al
growth
areas
for
your
brand

17. STRENGTHS
WEAKNESSES
(Internal)
(Internal)
O7en
become
Service
&
delivery
marke0ng
messages
threats
to
your
brand
OPPORTUNITIES
THREATS
(External)
(External)
Poten0al
growth
areas
Industry
condi0ons
that
for
your
brand
could
hurt
your
brand

18. Spy on your competitors:
What do they say about themselves?
How are you different?

19. How can you monitor
competitors?
 Listen to buzz and rumors in your industry
 Watch your competitors’ websites, social
media, advertising or sales people
 Communicate with prospects – who else is
bidding on the job? If you didn’t get the job –
who did and why?
 Pay attention to association participation
and industry related LinkedIn groups

20. Create a Google account and
sign up to receive Google Alerts

21. What We’ll Cover Today
1.
What
is
Branding?
2.
Understand
your
place
in
the
market
3.
How
to
develop
clear
brand
messages
4.
Modifying
your
message
by
market(s)
5.
How
to
create
a
360˚
brand
experience

22. Use your analysis to craft your
message. Get beyond your services
list to what makes you different.

23. Focus on talking about WHY
you are a better choice
 We can help you grow your business
 We can help you streamline operations
 We can help you expand your capabilities
 We can help you make better products
 We have the best customer service
 We have the most experience
 We have the lowest price (be careful with this)
 We are local

24. Put these messages in your elevator pitch –
your standard answer when someone asks
“Tell me about your company?”

25. Seeing this in practice:
How Red Sage’s brand messaging
and positioning has adapted
over time…
2012
2006
2009
Modern
Strategic
Web
Company
Full
Service
Agency
Communica0ons
Company
…while our core brand
personality and strengths
haven’t changed

26. What We’ll Cover Today
1.
What
is
Branding?
2.
Understand
your
place
in
the
market
3.
How
to
develop
clear
brand
messages
4.
Modifying
your
message
by
market(s)
5.
How
to
create
a
360˚
brand
experience

27. Identify & prioritize your
target markets
They can look very different and need different marketing
approaches and messages to reach effectively.
Good marketing is not one size fits all.

28. Target market examples
 Existing customers
 Board members/stakeholders
 Homeowners
 Retirees
 Small business
 Government contractors
 Women

29. Then drill down even more
 Small businesses within a 30 mile radius,
at least 3 employees, preferably in the
following types of industries, chamber
members
 Women, age 25 – 50, in the workforce

30. Adjust your message
for each market

31. Red Sage to small business:
 We are an award winning strategic
communications company that has helped
small businesses like yours grow and
succeed through better branding and
marketing in their websites, print, and
social media.

32. Red Sage to big business:
 We are an award winning strategic
communications company that supports
and streamlines the efforts of corporate
marketing teams by providing responsive,
cost effective, and results oriented
branding and marketing solutions for web,
print, and social media.

33. Red Sage to communities:
 We are an award winning strategic
communications company that has helped
communities like yours attract new
industries, new residents, and increased
tourism through better branding and
marketing in web, print, and social media.

34. Your core brand messages need to
stay consistent in all markets

35. What We’ll Cover Today
1.
What
is
Branding?
2.
Understand
your
place
in
the
market
3.
How
to
develop
clear
brand
messages
4.
Modifying
your
message
by
market(s)
5.
How
to
create
a
360˚
brand
experience

36. Control your service delivery – the
buying experience is part of your brand

37. Reassess your brand messaging
at least once a year

38. Build your marketing strategy
AUDIENCE
PRODUCT/SERVICE
MESSAGE
BEST
WAY
TO
REACH
General
Business
Branding,
print
We
can
help
you
be
Networking,
public
design,
web
design,
more
strategic
with
speaking,
sales
reps,
marke0ng
&
social
your
marke0ng
so
referral
program,
media
consul0ng
you
get
results
social
media
Economic
&
Web
design,
retail
We
can
help
your
Industry
Tradeshows,
Community
recruitment
guides,
community
aOract
sponsorships,
Development
presenta0on
the
aOen0on
of
site
referral
program,
e-­‐
Organiza0ons
materials
selectors
and
newsleOers,
blog
retailers
Exis0ng
Customers
All
services
–
with
a
Don’t
forget
we
can
Direct
mail,
referral
focus
on
new
help
you
with
a
wide
programs,
e-­‐
services
range
of
services
newsleOers,
calls
…and the service/ …and the …and the
List each
product you want to message you best ways to
Audience…
provide each want to tell each reach each

39. Make sure your messaging
and visual presentation is
consistent in every area
 Website
 Business Cards
 Brochures and other print
 Advertisements
 Social Media

40. Make sure your brand and
messaging is distributed in
as many places as possible

41. What are your brand message
delivery options?
 Associations and advertising opportunities
 Sponsorships
 Newspapers and local magazine ads
 Trade magazine ads
 Online advertising
 Networking – Chamber, WBCNA,
HASBAT, etc.

42. What are your options?
 Radio  E-newsletters
 TV  Speaking
 Billboard engagements
 Social media  Promotional
 Blogging products
 Direct Mail  Etc. etc.
 Press Releases

43. How do you choose?
 What can you consistently deliver? Is a
monthly e-newsletter realistic?
 What can you afford?
 Biggest rule: Have a presence in as
many places as possible within your
budget: a small ad four times is better than
a big ad once
 Spread out your visibility over time

44. Develop your 12 month plan and budget
Do date/pricing research for print ads, events. Then plug in around those.

45. Your #1 Rule for Branding

46. Materials for Economic
Development

48. Materials for Small Business

51. Don’t forget the personality
aspect of branding

52. Thank you!
Ellen Didier
edidier@redsageonline.com
256-560-0098
facebook.com/redsage twitter.com/ellendidier linkedin.com/in/
ellendidier