How to Build Your Small Business Brand

ORB knows the challenges that small businesses are faced with when attempting to standout and be found in a crowded local marketplace. The first step in how to build your small business brand is to know who you are and what you offer. Creating a strong brand is what sets your small business apart from the competition and makes it memorable. Branding your business attracts new customers and inspires loyalty and recognition amongst existing ones.

Below, we will explore how you can build your small business brand by following these quick guidelines:

• Create a Strong Brand Identity
• Identify a Marketing Budget
• Push Brand Awareness

Brand Identity

A strong, recognizable brand takes time and effort! So, start building your small business brand by brainstorming a memorable name with a clear message. You should also think about the colors, fonts, and logo that you want to use so that you can build a look that will be recognizable for years to come. Once you have decided on the finalized brand, you need to start creating unique content that closely follows your mission. From here, the next most important brand building tactic is CONSISTENCY. It’s extremely important for all your online and offline content match in style, font, tone, etc.

Marketing Budget

Today’s small businesses usually have a tighter budget to spend on marketing. Per Gartner’s annual CMO spend survey, a typical marketing budget in 2021 for small businesses was only about 6.4% of total revenue. Despite these reduced budgets, marketing efforts are still expected to produce results. Luckily, a significant rebound is expected in 2022 according the recent survey.

With the help of endless and easy online tools, it is possible for any small businesses to build their brand and market themselves effectively and efficiently nowadays. The right amount of marketing budget depends on the size and overall goals of your business. You might also want to consider how much time and energy you are willing to spend on marketing as well as what kind of ROI (return on investment) you expect from your efforts.

Brand Awareness

As a small business, you want to make sure that your brand is as visible as possible. Brand awareness is the process of making your company or service known to potential customers. Start your brand awareness journey by analyzing the market and get a good understanding of what your competitors are doing. Your research should include looking at their websites, social media pages, and any other marketing channels they use.

This will give you an idea of what your customers are interested in, which will help you determine how to reach them. For example, if you find that many of your competitors are advertising on social media then it might be worth investing some time into creating similar social media page(s) for your small business. It also helps you keep track of what your competitors are doing and how they are positioning themselves in the marketplace so that you can stay ahead of them.

Digital Online Marketing:

• Google My Business Reviews
• Social Media (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter etc…)
• Email marketing
• Blogging
• SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Physical Offline Marketing:

• Local Community Events
• Strategic Partnerships
• Word of Mouth/Referral Programs
• Business Cards
• Team Apparel
• Flyers/Doorhangers

Conclusion

Marketing is not a one-size-fits-all approach. It’s important that you tailor your marketing strategy to the needs of your business and customers. The overall goal for building your small business brand is to achieve a balance of marketing activities (online, offline, etc.) to increase brand visibility and awareness. Online marketing involves the use of digital platforms such as social media, content marketing, email marketing, and search engine optimization. Offline and direct marketing campaigns are typically placed within the physical location or through printed materials or referrals. Using these simple marketing guidelines, your small business can get its brand out there in a simple and cost-effective way.

Looking For More Help?

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