With the rise of Amazon and other e-commerce giants, new brands are popping up nonstop, stealing a bit of the market share of their industry from the top brands. These top brands hate that because they have almost certainly spent thousands on consumer market research, branding meetings, company resources, and so much money (repeating for effect) on getting their brand name, logo, and colors just right.
I’m sorry to tell these big guys that it may have all been for nothing—but I’m excited to tell new businesses that there are many different ways to get a solid brand and foundation laid within a reasonable budget and a small amount of time. Here’s how:
- Work with a specialist on your brand story. Hold one to three meetings to come up with ideas for the brand. Then let the specialist(s) do their magic.
- Actively participate in revisions of the brand story and seek internal buy-in from your employees and board members.
- Get a designer to create a Brand Manual that outlines the basics of the brand: logo, typography, stationary parameters, colors, and messaging. This will be your bible and guide ongoing branding activities.
Easy as 1-2-3! It really can be this simple, especially when time to market is tight. There are of course things you must get right after this to acquire customers—and this is where real time will be spent.
Check back soon for another article about establishing a sales funnel, choosing digital marketing channels, and balancing organic and paid ads.