Branding your small business: time for a makeover?

Purpose of this blog post is to provide a straightforward way to begin a brand makeover. This seems to be a sticking point for many small business owners – where to begin?!

Start at the beginning: what is branding?

Branding. It's more than a just a logo, slogan and company colours. A brand is how your business is known by the customer – it is the combination of the qualities, customer expectations and value your business provides. Sounds complicated but it isn’t. No master's degree or marketing firm needed either. In fact, since YOU know your business best, drawing on your own knowledge and familiarity about your business and your customers is the best way make your brand stand out. It comes down to asking the right questions, focusing your answers and then using that information to build your brand.

Below is a short, to-the-point brand makeover worksheet. By completing the questions, you will be on your way to reinvigorating your brand, whether you are brand new to the game, or an old pro.

Mini brand makeover worksheet

By taking a few minutes to answer these three questions, you will be able to help yourself refocus your brand by providing key information that focuses on the VALUE you provide to your customers. 

Download it FREE. Here is a screen grab to see for yourself.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/9kf2dkudrrde40v/MiniBrandMakeover_worksheet.pdf

1. List 3 things that your customers will get from you that they won’t get from your competitors. (HINT: What does your business do better than anyone else? This can be part of the experience of buying from you, not only limited to the product or service itself.)

1._________________________________

2. _________________________________

3. _________________________________

2.    In one sentence, state why your customers come to your business. (HINT: refer to the 3 things in question one to ensure this statement shows why your business is different, what you do better, and the VALUE you offer to them).

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

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3. Make a list of the TOP 3 things you would like your business to BEST be known for.

 1.    ____________________________________________________________

 2.    ____________________________________________________________

 3.    ____________________________________________________________

These questions provide a great baseline for building (or rebuilding) your small business brand as they answer the right questions. The key is defining what sets your business apart AND provides value to your customers.

As always, I am happy to discuss any questions or clarifications that may help you complete this worksheet. Enter a comment below, or go directly to my Facebook page where this post will be listed as well. I am here to help – ask questions!

Best of luck! ~

Nancy

P.S.

If you would like to take this worksheet a step further and actually start to implement the information you entered, I have a bonus PDF worksheet that will help you create your brand positioning statement AND a ‘how-to’ guide that will show you how to translate this information into your brand

What you get: It provides tangible examples for how, with ease and little effort, you can communicate your brand to your customers consistently. If you would like to receive this additional resource, please submit your email address at the side. Your email will remain 100% confidential and will not be shared with any other site, person or entity. J