Feb 11
18
How Do You Go About Branding Yourself?
With any type of internet marketing staying focused is critically important.
As always the purpose of this blog post is to inform you of marketing tips and marketing techniques that I am learning on my online marketing journey.
What's The Purpose of Branding?
In a word - identification. Whether it's livestock, a car, an article of clothing, or a pair of shoes, the brand is a means of identifying the owner or creator.
You see brands like the everyday. Instant recognition because of constant exposure to the marketplace.
Why Is Brand So Important?
There are a number of reasons why creating a brand is so important. Here are a few.
- Recognition
- Stature
- Perceived quality
Recognition
A brand is often thought of in a visual sense. A logo for instance. A good example of this is MacDonald's Golden Arches. You can be driving down the freeway in the middle of the night, and you'll see those yellow arches beaming from miles away.
The Nike swoosh, the Pepsi "globe", or any number of other iconic brands. Instant recognition.
Stature
Brand also gives a perception of stature. For example two cars may appear similar until you see that one has a Chevy "bowtie" and the other has the Mercedes emblem. Instantly your perception changes simply based upon that brand or logo. And how about those $100 jeans that I like to call "fancy pockets".
I don't know how many times I've been at the store and my wife wants to get the "store brand" green beans to save a few pennies. No way man, I want the Del Monte brand, we know that's better.
Quality
Along with stature comes quality. The better brands are almost always perceived as having a higher level of quality. We just assume that a pair of Levi jeans are going to last longer than the off brand.
So part of your quest in creating a brand around you is getting yourself recognized, increasing your stature, and having you associated with quality content and products.
No matter what, you want to brand yourself as a leader in your niche.
- People want leaders
- People follow leaders
- People join leaders.
But remember, every leader was once a follower. Every leader was once brand new, and every leader at one point in time wasn't considered a brand. Everyone can create their own brand with the right skills and training.
The Process of Branding
Luckily you're not a cow or a bull. If so, I'd be chasing you down, roping you, and stabbing a hot branding iron on your hind quarters. Branding yourself doesn't have to be a painful process, but it does take time and skill.
In a previous post, Dominating Your Niche By Creating Valuable Content, I addressed what I believe is the key component in branding yourself. Bringing value to your niche in the form of valuable content. Even more important than just providing content is showing how the information provided can be turned into action steps.
Here's the process broken down.
- You provide content
- People consume the content
- People want more content
- People seek you out
For me a perfect example of how this plays out is sushi. If you like sushi there's only one place to go - a Japanese restaurant. Nothing else tastes the same, so if you want it that's where you have to go to get it. It's a niche market and a select group of people flock to that niche.
So to recap, it's about providing content that only you can provide. Becoming a voice in your marketplace or niche that stands out and can be heard above the din surrounding you.
If people get value from you in the beginning they will want more, and soon they will become addicted to your brand.
So Where Do We Put The Brand?
Throughout this branding process you have to put your content in front of people. This can take the form of a blog post, an article, a video, a forum post, a comment on another blog, or any number of places. The point of the content is to deliver value AND make a connection.
Now we're at the crux of the matter. The underlying point of developing a brand in the first place. To make money. Just laying it out there because that's the fact. If you're a marketer trying to create a brand, the reason you're doing so is to market your products and make money. It they have value, you will be profitable. If not, you'll fall by the wayside.
Back to the connection. The connection comes in the form of you building your most valuable asset - your list. Again in a previous article, Dominating Your Niche by Creating Valuable Content, I showed a diagram of all roads leading back to your landing page. If people consume your content, enjoy it, and reach your landing page, they'll opt in for more.
Sadly, just like with our regular diets, we're becoming a society that's being fed junk food. If you're like me you're on dozens of lists. Is there value there? In most cases no. Just a constant source of aggravation in most cases. Don't fall into that trap. Don't use the trust that people place in you as an opportunity to constantly pitch them on your latest and greatest.
Wrap It Up, I'll Take It
So let's summarize.
- You create and deliver valuable content to a niche you've chosen
- People consume your content and opt-in for more
- Because of the value you've brought to your niche you are branded as a leader
- People join you in your endeavors and you continue to provide value by your leadership
So what niche have you chosen? What value are you bringing to the marketplace? I'd love to hear.
If you enjoy this, but can't wait for the next article. Join me as I move from newbie to leader in our training center.
