In today’s frenzy to gain business, keep costs low and make owners happy, have you lost who you are?
These days, everyone is heavily concerned with driving ROI and maximizing the bottom line. We’re all looking for more cost-effective ways to spend our dollars. But in doing so, have you lost your brand? Do you still know who you are? Does your audience?
Organizations that want to thrive in today’s marketplace must have greater concern for upholding the higher values that support their brand’s promise and preserving a distinctive relationship with their markets. They must accept responsibility for ensuring that their brand stands for value, service, quality and the other attributes that matter most—over the long term—to the people they serve.
The question is: How should you move forward while staying true to your identity?
Answer: Introduce innovation to stay ahead of the game.
You have tight budgets, so you need to act smart. Have you been putting off your marketing plan or reduced it so much that it’s lost impact? If so, think about utilizing low-cost social media marketing. It has become huge in speaking the voice of a brand, and it can help sell your product while building brand value.
Essentially, it’s all about the brand, and communicating through multiple channels is key. Surround your target audience with online, offline and social media, as well as public relations and word of mouth. If you focus too much on any one area, you may hinder your efforts.
Your goal should be to drive action, not just push readable content. More than simply creating and parking, brands must engage their targets, promote interest, feature great offers and share them across all channels.
And don’t rely solely on social media either. You can form a large fan base on Facebook, but you may be left without pertinent data to collect for your own lists. Build your lists and reinforce what works for you. The aim is to drive action over short periods of time and then integrate it into a fuller program.
It is important to manage and grow a list of go-to people that will help fill need periods and become advocates for your business as well. Without control of such a list, and without the ability to integrate your email outreach into your social media, you will lose a big asset in terms of expanding the effectiveness of your efforts.
Above all, a brand implies a promise. This promise is to remain dedicated to the level of quality people have come to expect. Brand loyalty boosts sales, and maintaining a strong and consistent expression of your company’s brand is critical to fostering credibility, authenticity and loyalty.
This is why the great brands are those whose organizations act as stewards of the brand relationship. This means communicating the vision and what the organization stands for, even at times when you need to promote value or run specials to fill occupancy. Think about how you do that now… At these times, do you stay true to who you are?
If the brand message is not easily conveyed and readily understood, chances are the brand or its strategy is flawed. It may be time to reevaluate your brand stewardship:
- What does your brand promise?
- Does it appeal to your primary audience?
- How does your current identity undervalue or undermine your brand?
- What are you doing well or need to work on in terms of branding?
- How do you position the brand so that it’s more effective?
Finally, a brand must have the depth to adapt and grow with the changing times. The world is unpredictable, and change is constant. To move forward and get ahead, it is essential that you know exactly who you are, that you communicate a consistent image of your brand and that you engage your customers to keep them coming back.
Learn more about partnering with Dana to become a steward for your brand. Contact lkaniper@danacommunications.com.
