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Are you a small business owner that believes Branding is only for multi-million-dollar businesses? Do you believe BRANDING is important to your small business but, you run out of time at the end of your day?

This article will outline some basic Branding concepts that can make your business memorable, and it will also explain how a Virtual Assistant can help you achieve your Branding goals.

WHAT IS BRANDING?

Branding is the art of aligning what you want people to think about your company with what people actually do think about your company – Jay Baer
Brand is the image people have of your company or product. It’s who people think you are – Ann Handley
A brand is a singular idea or concept that you own inside the mind of a prospect – Al Ries

WHERE DO I START WHEN BRANDING MY SMALL BUSINESS?

Before creating logos, fonts, and slogans, you must first:

1. Identify your target audience

2. Identify your target audience’s burning pains

3. Identify how you can solve your target audience’s burning pains

4. Create the smallest audience you can that has a specific need. It sounds counterintuitive, but shrinking your audience often lets you target them better.

Your Virtual Assistant

A Virtual Assistant or Virtual Business Specialist can help you accomplish the three steps above by:

1. Setting up your marketing funnels (to build your email list).

2. Use the email list for client surveys, to find out where their ‘pain points’ lie.

1. NOTE: Your Virtual Assistant can assure that your emails contain an “opt-in”; to make sure that your list includes the people that have requested to be on your list!

3. Create and post good, solid content that describes HOW you will solve your audience’s ‘pain points’.

You can learn more about how to ask good customer research questions in this blog post from Active Campaign.

YOUR NEXT STEPS IN BRANDING: Positioning, Tone and Personality and Logos

Now that you have a strong understanding of your target audience – CONGRATULATIONS — you are ahead of most of your competitors!

You have now arrived at the point that most people call BRANDING: your positioning, personality, and logo. Three important aspects of your BRANDING are:

The POSITIONING of your business—your “why”
Your TONE and PERSONALITY
Your LOGO, COLORS, and SLOGAN

Simon Sinek, author of Start With Why, argues that “People don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.”

POSITIONING

As you work on your positioning, ask yourself what values you’d like to have associated with your brand. Ask yourself:

What do you stand for?
What are you trying to accomplish in your business?
What makes you different from other people in your industry?
What are your core values?

When you have a sense of your core values, it’s easier to incorporate them into your actual business.

TONE and PERSONALITY

Positioning helps you get a strong sense of your core message. Your tone and personality are how you communicate that message to clients.

The tone you choose depends on your industry and the service you offer. It’s often easier for a small business to use a lighter tone.

LOGO, COLORS, AND SLOGANS

Finally, we are at the “fun and creative” part of BRANDING. The steps that you have taken to this point, will help you create a brand that actually speaks to your target audience. Think back on those steps as you work on your logo, colors, and slogan (aka tagline).

How do your logo, company name, and tagline reflect what your customers need?
How do they differentiate you from your competitors?
How does your brand highlight your personality?

Here is a link to an article from Active Campaign, that shows some examples of amazing small business branding Logos, colors, and slogans.

CONCLUSION:

Branding your small business shows the world how you are different from your competitors. Branding is the true essence of your small business and THE VALUE your business provides for your clients!

If you have not yet branded your small business and would like to collaborate with a professional Virtual Assistant, Lotus Business Resources LLC can help. We offer a complimentary (no-obligation) 30-minute discovery call. Contact us at: 732-707-5307 or via email to: karen@LotusBusinessResources.com or via website: https://www.LotusBusinessResources.com/contact

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Karen Kannegiesser is an online business resource assistant, specializing in Social Media Management, Content, Graphic, Video and Business Presentation creation, Digital Signage Content Management and Project Management for Small Businesses and Non-Profits. Karen has over three decades of C-suite level executive administrative and supply chain expertise. She has many years as a strategic MRO buyer for a large specialty chemical manufacturer, as well as an extensive background in database management, project management, contract administration and business continuity/disaster recovery preparedness. www.LotusBusinessResources.com

If you are located in the Northern Hemisphere, Summer is finally here!

It is the time of year many people plan a getaway for some rest and relaxation. As a small business owner, you may see a downturn in client activities at this time of year. This is normal, especially with your client’s planned vacations, slowdowns, etc. This is a great time for you to work on your Summer business plans! Here are 5 easy Summer business planning ideas that you can incorporate into your business before your plate gets full in the Fall.

#1: Consistent posting on your social media

One thing a small business should never do is DISAPPEAR during the Summer. Even if you are relaxing on a beach somewhere; enjoying a drink with a little umbrella in it, take some time before you leave to schedule your Summer posts. There are so many automated tools out there that can help you with this task. Heck, Facebook has their own (free) posting scheduler available! So, take some time now to plan your Summer posts!

#2: Learn something new or update existing skills

The downtime that comes with the Summer season is the PERFECT time to take or finish the course you may not have had time to work on, during the first half of the year. If you don’t have any unfinished courses, you can look into some of the many changes that have happened over the past 6 months on many of the social media platforms. Do you know what the new suggested sizes are for your social media graphics? Hmmm.

#3: Update or optimize your website

Have you looked at your website lately? Do you know how long it takes to upload (on desktop and mobile)? Have you optimized your website for loading time and SEO? Is there something you can do to increase your Google Analytics scores? Are you set up for analytics? These are things that you can look at during the Summer.

#4: Make backup arrangements

If your business is not going to slow down (Yay for you)! However, are YOU planning on taking some time off? Do you have backup arrangements in place? You know your clients the best. Are they accepting of others doing their work; or do they expect you to be available at all times? A break from the daily grind has been proven to be a healthy decision. Framingham Heart Study ran a 20-year study and found that women who vacationed once every 6 years or less, were almost EIGHT TIMES more likely to develop heart disease, than women who took at least 2 vacations per year!

#5: Continue to market your business

Your business marketing should not stop during the Summer months. This is the perfect time to connect with a potential client who needs support but cannot find it! When everyone else is taking time off, your continued marketing will show businesses that you are available! Consider writing an article that explains how you can help during times when others may have closed up shop!

If you keep these 5 Summer Business Planning tips in mind, not only will you continue to engage with your existing clients and make new connections with potential clients, but, you might also be able to get a little time off yourself (which we know is a healthy life choice)!

Don’t forget – if you need to eliminate some tasks, in order to free up the time to work on your Summer business planning; collaborate with Lotus Business Resources, LLC, a professional Virtual Business Resource Specialist!

Lotus Business Resources LLC can help you with Social Media Management, Content Creation (including blog writing and graphics), Project Management, Contract and Business Presentation creation as well.

For those of you that are entering this wonderful time of year…Have a happy, healthy, safe and prosperous Summer season!

Karen Kannegiesser is an online business resource assistant with over three decades of C-suite level executive administrative and supply chain expertise. She has many years as a strategic MRO buyer for a large specialty chemical manufacturer, as well as an extensive background in database management, project management, contract administration and business continuity/disaster recovery preparedness.www.LotusBusinessResources.com