5 Reasons To Focus on Branding In Your Business

Branding for your business, whether it be online, a huge corporation, a small mom and pop shop, an Etsy shop, or just a vague distant idea is extremely, immeasurably, and without a doubt one of the most important part of “getting started.”

Now I know what you are saying: “Uh, hello, designer, can you say biased?” Well, yes. I might be biased, but I also know that it’s true! Branding helps your business in so many ways – it's more than just looking pretty, too.

I’ve started TheShop because branding shouldn’t be intimidating, off-putting, or an idea killer. Now, TheShop isn’t the end all, be all of branding – but it’s a place to start if you aren’t bringing in a ton of cash yet and want something that says, “I’m professional. I’m legit. I’m valuable.” 

If you’re still like, wait, what’s branding? Check out this post but if you’re ready to know why you need to focus on branding in your business, read on!

---

GIVES YOU CLARITY

Going through a proper branding process gives you clarity on your overall business. By a proper branding process I mean one that asks the hard questions so that you can create a strong base for your business.

Going through a proper branding process will give you clarity on your business (and help you grow)! [Tweet That!]

A mistake I see business owner’s make is that they jump into business, super excited about an idea, but not taking time to think about their “why”, “who”, or “how”. Which – trust me – I get. I did the same thing, even though I actually knew (and was taught) better. It’s just an exciting time and you’re ready to GO! It’s not bad to GO but eventually you’ll need to come back to branding to give you real clarity on your overall business goals, your brand vision, your target audience, etc.

If you’re stuck on those sorts of questions, I highly recommend checking out Building Your Base, my eBook that goes in depth with those questions, your brand’s vision and mission, and more.

---

BUILDS TRUST

Branding, once you’ve gone through the foundations and moved into visuals and eventually a website and social media strategy, works to create a great brand experience. Trust is built through that brand experience, so you want it to be flawless, wonderful, and memorable.

Trust is built through a fantastic brand experience. [Tweet That!]

I talk a lot about building trust in your business because trust = sales and sales are necessary for your business to be an actual business. To build trust, especially in an online business, takes time and energy – but your branding can definitely help. How? Branding creates consistent experiences, so your audience learns and understands you no matter where they see you: on your blog, in a guest blog somewhere else, on Pinterest, in a Periscope, etc. You are always the same person, offering the same sort of advice/expertise, and consistently teaching or giving awesome information out. Think about the people you trust the most in your life – is it not because they’ve consistently been there when they said they would, were a steadfast and solid person who didn’t flake or waver on their values? Your business can embody those sorts of ideals too.

For more information on building trust, check out this post.

---

LOOKS DO MATTER

I know I said earlier that branding is more than just looking pretty – and that is true – but there is something valuable in realizing that in business looks do matter. By that I mean: looking professional does matter.

Say you go into a store and everything is disheveled and thrown about and messy and gross. Do you want to buy things? Or do you want to turn right back around and head to the next store, where maybe things are more expensive, but at least you aren’t scared of what you might step on or breathe in. I know that’s extreme, but the same idea exists with your business. You can’t have a messy and unorganized mess of a business and expect people to think you are professional or valuable or worth spending time and money on.

Beyond just looking professional, going through a branding process will help you create a branding identity (or “looks”) that do work and appeal to your target customer for you. The right color combination, paired with the right strategies behind your social media and content, paired with great copy, and so on, will pull in your target audience for you, show them your value, and prep them for purchase.

---

SHOWS YOUR COMMITMENT

Investing in your business shows that YOU take it seriously. I know that in the beginning investing in branding can seem like the last thing you want to do, which inspired me to start TheShop to cover some of the visuals for you. But, best case scenario, you are investing in a great branding package that includes strategy, visual identity, and a website that are all cohesive and professional.

To your customers or audience this will showcase that you are a “real player” in whatever your industry is. You are a niched, focused, and capable business that can provide real results and want to display your best self.

If I can’t find a website for a business, they’re off my list of potential people to buy from. If I can find a mediocre website and no social media presence, they’re off the list too. I want to work with businesses that are excited, passionate, and I can understand from their branding.

---

BUILDS RECOGNITION

A quick way to start being seen as an expert in your field is to be recognizable. By that I mean, someone sees you on Pinterest, but then stumbles across your Instagram and knows it’s you. Or sees your name on a guest blog and remembers how great your blog is. Having cohesive branding can give you that recognition.

Recognition is valuable as a factor in building trust, which we talked about earlier. It’s also valuable because it shows that you are an established business with a great presence that is putting out content that people like. That sort of social proof is so fantastic for your business.

You can build recognition by having the same profile pictures across social media, and somewhere on your website. Also, creating a brand mission statement and featuring that across social media and online is fantastic. Finally having cohesive graphics to represent your business is hugely valuable (I’ll be having some blog graphics in TheShop).

---

If you’re still on the fence about branding, I have a lot of other posts that talk about the value, how to get started, etc. that I’d love for you to check out. I get that branding can be a scary step in your business, but I’m happy to offer you many outlets to make sure you can get started on the right foot. Whether it be working together one-on-one or getting templates from TheShop, I know we can get your business looking professional, capable, and appealing to your target client.

---

---

When Do I Need To Start Branding My Business?

Start-ups, small businesses, and online businesses all face this question at some point: when do I need to start branding my business? They might even wonder, what is branding, how can branding boost my business, and isn’t it all about the logo (hint: no, it’s not). In different Facebook groups and forums I see questions that often pop up around “not having time” for branding or “not needing it yet” and, to be honest, this makes me a cringe a bit.

You need to start branding your business immediately. [Tweet That!]

Here’s the thing, the process of working with a branding designer and strategist will do a lot more for your business than just get you a logo or a website. It will help you figure out the foundation of your business, uncover your target audience, and set realistic but valuable goals for success.

Now, I don’t want you to feel bad or like you’ve missed out on the branding gravy train, because you can always revisit branding and make sure it’s working the best for you and your business. Here are the two most important times to focus on branding your business: 

---

STARTING A NEW BUSINESS

The best time is in the beginning, for what might be obvious reasons. Start off strong, right? New businesses can knock it out of the park if they come in with a strong visual brand, as well as the foundation to back it up. What I mean by foundation is that they’ve figured out who they are working with, why they want to work with them, and how they can be serve them. These are issues that not only build a strong base for your branding, but ultimately for your entire business.

Ready to learn more about building a strong base? Grab the eBook now!

In the past when I worked with a client who wanted to focus on strategy for growing their new business we worked through those questions. Within answering them, something magical happens and paths start to open up for questions like: what do I blog or talk on social media about? What solutions can I offer within my service packages? How can I position my business and myself?

Knowing these things from the start is hugely beneficial, because most business owners just start working and trying to figure out these questions a few months in – causing strain on their business, their mental capacity to “do it all”, and generally creates a non-cohesive look to their audience (because they’re flip flopping all over the place trying to make sense of their business).

From a visual standpoint, creating a strong branding identity during business launch forces people to take notice of you, trust your authority, and immediately want to know more about your business. Having something that looks good and appealing to your target audience off the bat will only help you to gain those first few clients and launch successfully.

---

CHANGING/ADJUSTING TARGET AUDIENCES

If you’re already a functional business, but have started to make some shifts and narrowing down of your target audience or your offerings then it may be another great time to re-check in with your branding.

You may have done everything “right” in the beginning, but through general business evolution have started to realize where your happy place is and who your happy people are – and therefore are making some adjustments.

A few months into TheCrownFox I had this moment. I didn’t have a “total rebrand”, I had a “branding tune up”, where I just made things a little more clean-cut, more professional, and a lot more visually appealing to the clientele I had realized were the ones I wanted to work with. The want to do this is normal - just make sure you aren’t thinking “rebrand!” as a way to avoid doing other work, and that it is actually coinciding with changes in your business.

If you are going through a major business overhaul (i.e. changing business names or completely changing your offering – like going from being a designer to being a health and wellness coach) then head back up to example number one, because chances are you are just creating a whole new business. 

---

Something that is a common thought is that branding is expensive and therefore needs to be put off until a later date. I get that investing upfront is terrifying for a lot of people and have been developing a solution for you. 

First and foremost, a disclaimer: I will always think that investing in branding and strategy mentorship is the best way to go. I am a strong believer in the idea of outsourcing things that are not your specialty, so that you can focus on the parts of your business you love. 

But, if that’s something that you can’t do right now – for whatever reason – I still want you to have a strong visual presence and the ability to develop and grow your business. 

As far as the visual presence goes, I am SO excited to be launching The Shop in a few weeks. The Shop is going to be a template shop, where you can get quick and affordable solutions for your business. So far I’ve created completely affordable logo packages that will set you up with a primary and secondary logo and three variations, blog/social media graphic templates for Photoshop, and business card templates. The launch is happening at the end of this month and I am so ecstatic to offer solutions for everyone at TheCrownFox (as my brand vision is to be an invaluable branding resource and there’s no dollar sign minimum on that)!

---

---