Branding IS Who We Are
It’s enough to say that a person’s perception is that person’s reality. What a person believes is what that person knows. Most folks don’t think about a difference between the two. Why should they? That’s philosophy. Life works out just fine without having to stop to think about such things, doesn’t it?
What did I just say?
In my own way, I said that customers decide who we are by what they perceive. They are the folks who define a brand. So the best plan is to make sure their perception matches what we want our brand to be, because in their eyes our brand is who we are.
6 Steps to a Branded Business Blog
Whether you’re adding to a website, launching a start-up, or building a home business, a blog can give your brand credibility and depth in record time. Here are the 6 Steps to building a branded business blog.
- Pick a URL, a name, and a tagline that plainly say what you do. The best development words I know are “Call it what is.” Avoid a name only means something to you or worse one that confuses folks who might want to come to see you.
- Presebt a clear, focused message that goes deep and be sure that customers are part of that message. Blog technology is easy enough. Tailor the message to showcase your expertise and how your expertise serves the people of your industry. Give readers the perception you want them to have.
- Launch your blog with a foundation of posts that define your brand. Choose your topics across the areas you want to be known for. Include plenty about the people who work in the industry. Write and polish them until they sing and communicate effortlessly. Read them aloud to be sure.
- Make sure that your design or template matches your content. Avoid edgy or frivolous if your topic is money and jobs. On the other hand, dump subdued and serious, if you’re talking gaming.
- Use a writing voice that matches the conversation used by the folks in the industry you want to reach. Writing voice works the same as design.
- Offer a compelling difference. Know that your industry doesn’t need you, unless you have something that no one else has. Something that everyone wants. What is the BIG IDEA of your brand? Let that guide every decision about your blog.
- Plus one: Hold up every future decision to your name and your tagline. If decision doesn’t support your readers understanding your tagline more fully, reconsider. Think of Billy Joel as customer. He loves you just the way you are.
Business Blogs can help build a brand in record time because search engines love a well-written blog, with relevant content. Readers do too. So as your blog builds your brand, your brand builds your business, and readers are drawn into your business to help both your blog and your business grow even faster. A great brand is its own promotion because customers seek it out on their own.
When was the last time that asked customers how they see your brand?
–ME “Liz” Strauss
Related articles
6+1: Writing Voice the Sound of Your Brand
Knowing How People Think ââ¬â As a Business Tool
The Brand YOU and Customer Think series on the SUCCESSFUL SERIES PAGE
