Branding

by Bob Osgoodby

No, we're not talking about identifying our cattle with a hot iron, but
using effective techniques for letting your potential customers know who you
are, and what you do. One of the maxims of any advertising campaign is to
try to make your company a household word.  Many of the major
corporations such as Budweiser and Wendy's have discovered how to do this,
and we could take a few lessons from them.

I chuckle when I see ads where the only contact is an email address. With
no other information available than what is in their ad, they are simply
wasting their time.

A Web Site Is Essential

First, and foremost, if you are serious about doing business on the
Internet, you must have a web site.  When visitors arrive there, it
should be immediately obvious as to what you actually do.  Don't forget -
people visiting your site have come there for a specific reason.  If you
don't make it immediately clear what you do, they may just "click away". 
Any good ad will feature what benefit the person will receive by doing
business with you.  You want your "brand" to be loud and clear, and not
hidden behind a lot of "glitz".

Provide Contact Information

You must have contact information.  A picture of you can go a long way to
humanizing your web site.  People prefer doing business with other people,
 not a nameless company, without any way of contacting them, other than a
form to fill out or email.  You must have a physical address, and
preferably a phone number where someone can contact you. The more you can
make your potential clients comfortable with you, the better your odds of
getting their business.

Provide Quality Content

Verbal content is king.  If your copy is not good, you will not succeed.
Many web sites simply throw up a few graphics and a few "buzzwords", and
wonder why they don't get a good response. People have taken the time to
come to your site and are looking for answers.  A visitor to your web
site, should leave with few, if any unanswered questions.

You web site must immediately tell the public exactly what you do. It
should be the first thing people see if they visit your web site. The web
site - http://ListsAreUs.com  -gives a good example of this. On the first
page, without having to arrow down, you immediately know what the web
site is all about. All of their advertising, which is specific to the
market they wish to reach, carries this brand.

Establish Your Brand

If you are to succeed in your online business, you must have a brand that
will not only be remembered, but reinforces what you are trying to
promote. But that is not all that must be done. Newsletters and Ezines,
specific to the market you wish to target are an excellent way to reach
potential clients.  While your ads should be brief, as people scanning a
publication may skip by your ad, it must be compelling.  This is where
your brand is so important.

A web site with a minimum of information however, will normally not
obtain your goals. Face it, you got them to visit your site with your ad,
and now they are looking for answers.  If they don't find what they are
looking for, the odds are they won't come back.  While your ad must be
brief, here you can (and must) tell the entire story.

Branding is critical to your business.  Once you get "your" brand to be a
household name for your target market, you won't get burned, and are well
on your way down the road of ecommerce.


Did you know that subscribers to Bob Osgoodby's Free Ezine the "Tip of
the Day" get a Free Ad for their Business at his Web Site? Great Business
and Computer Tips - Monday. Wednesday. And Friday. Instructions on how to
place an ad are in the Newsletter. Subscribe at: http://adv-marketing.
com/business/subscribe2.htm

Home | Contact | Order | Site Map |Subscribe   

Copyright 2006 Jennifer Stewart Write101.com