Brush off Your Brand: 12 Steps for the New Decade: First Step

Step 1.
Review the Past

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
-- George Santayana"

When you look back at the last year, you evaluate many aspects of your life and your business but one overlooked and critically important component is brand. Your brand in a word is your “promise.” How well have you kept your promise and what can you do to polish your promise for next year?

People ask me what I mean by the brand being the promise. Your brand is your promise made to your customers and clients. Maybe you offer to increase their revenues, improve their health or improve their processes. Whatever the case, as you can see, the brand is not your service or your product, it is what they expect as a result of that product or service.

People don’t want a cell phone, they want the ability to communicate and find enjoyment wherever they are. Some want to text, others to talk and others to surf the web or play games. So the first thing to look at in reevaluating your brand is what do your customers want.

However to answer this question, as you know, you must know who your clients are. Seems like a no-brainer, but wait. Has your client base shifted over the last year? Are you serving more women than men? Is your business aging with your customers or still targeting the same age as you did a few years ago? How else have your customers changed? To answer this you might want to list your 2009 customers and compare them with years past. Not considering these changes may mislead you as you spend money to make your brand known.

Once answered you can return to looking at your customers’ wants and needs. Ask yourself, do my customers need my services/products or do they want them? You might think, especially in the current economy, that people only buy what they need. Even when times are tough, people still buy what they want. Although people are more cautious with spending, they still spend on wants. Hollywood box-office receipts set a new record this year.

Do your customers need your service/products? When your offering is a need, you will have competitors. Your task is to be sure they know you are the best source for that product or service. What promise accompanies your offering? Many people today put off purchasing needed items and services until they can no longer go without them. Then they make a last-minute decision. How can you be ready?

When your offering fills a want, you may have fewer competitors. Art, boutique items, s and specialized services like workshops may only be available from one vendor but again how do you promote your brand so that customer knows to come to you. Even if you have no competition, you are still vying for their dollars.

You might need help from an outside set of eyes. Ask a friend to help or bring in a marketing consultant to aid you in this activity

So to brush up your brand, you need to review your customers shifting wants and needs, your offerings and how the two can be presented within your brand to attract new and keep existing customers and clients. Your brand is the basis for accomplishing this challenge.

Next entry is about Clearing the Decks.