I hear you. You’re shouting loud and proud about the fantastic branding you’ve put together. You have a logo ready to go, and you even have some gorgeous brand colors you’re ready to splash over everything – but what if I told you that that isn’t what branding is all about? 

Yup, there’s a reason that even with a logo as beautiful as yours, your company is still getting lost in the sea of competition. 

Your brand is really the heart of your business. It’s so much more than just a logo.

It’s what makes you memorable, and it’s what keeps your audience interested in what you have to offer. Your brand is the trust your potential clients have in your capabilities, and it’s the very presence you’ve built for yourself online. 

Without a strong brand strategy, you won’t be able to reach the stage where your brand is recognized as the go-to business in your niche. Without great branding, you’ll just be another business on Google’s long, endless pages.

So when we’re talking about branding, we’re not just focusing on what your website or social media pages look like. We’re talking about how you interact with your audience, what you do to make them feel like you understand their needs, and how you show them that you’re different from your competitors. 

But how do you develop a brand strategy that shows your audience that you’re the right business to work with?

We’re getting to that, don’t worry. 

We’re here to show you ten easy steps you can follow to develop a brand strategy like no other!

How to build a brand strategy that works

Developing a brand that stands out from your competitors isn’t easy, and we’d be lying to you if we claimed it was. It takes time, dedication, and a lot of research, but it’s worth it – we promise!

Now, you’re probably thinking: “Is it really worth all the effort?” We’d say absolutely. Especially with the number of businesses flooding the internet these days. 

Building a brand in an environment with seemingly endless choices for consumers is difficult. But this environment makes creating a brand strategy more critical than ever before. If you want to get ahead of the other brands in your niche, then having a refined brand strategy will get you there. 

So, without further delay – here are ten steps you can take to develop your brand strategy.

Set your goals

If you want the strongest brand online, you must first have a clear plan and goals. Without goals, you won’t have anything to aim for. You’ll just be creating a brand for the sake of having a brand. 

We always recommend setting SMART goals. These are the goals that are:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Realistic 
• Time-sensitive

This type of goal will help you focus your branding more and fill you and your team with a sense of accomplishment once you smash through those goals. 

Before you go any further, ensure you have some SMART goals at the ready, so you can aim towards them when developing a brand strategy. 

Understand your audience

You won’t get anywhere without a clear goal, but you also won’t get very far if you don’t understand your audience. You must know who they are, what they want, and how you can help them. 

Think for just a moment, who are your target clients?

Don’t say everybody! This is where many businesses, especially those in smaller niches, make a huge mistake. 

You’re much more likely to succeed online if you have a clearly defined target audience that you know is interested in your offer. 

The easiest way to figure out exactly who you’re targeting is to develop a customer persona. 

A customer persona details information about your ideal client. It includes:

• Who they are
• What they want
• What their pain points are
• How can you help them
• Where they live
• How much they earn
• What their job is
• When they check their emails
• Personal information like their name, age, and how many kids they have

After you’ve set some excellent SMART goals, sit down with your team to develop a detailed customer persona to ensure you’re always targeting the right type of client and not everybody. 

Highlight what makes you different

This is what sets you apart from your competitors. Your pièce de résistance. The most crucial aspect of your entire business. The part that will make your audience go, “wow, I need to work with them!”

Of course, what we’re referring to, are your USPs or your unique selling proposition. This is the unique piece of flavor your company offers your target audience, and it’s the final point that tips the scales in your favor. 

If you want to beat your competitors to the punch, then you have to figure out what makes you special. Then you have to show your potential clients this uniqueness, so they know you’re the right choice to go with. 

Research your competitors

If branding is about working out your uniqueness and why you’re the perfect choice for your audience, then you’ll have to take a deep dive into the companies you share the platform with. 

A little bit of social stalking never hurt anybody! Besides, it’s necessary if you want to discover how you’re different from your competitors and how you can offer your audience more. 

Your goal is to stand out to your audience, so by looking at what your competitors have to offer, you can discover ways to get ahead of them. 

Figure out how to communicate your message

Let’s recap real quick. You’ve discovered what your goals are, you know who your audience is, and you’re aware of what makes you unique. Now what?

Now, it’s time to discover how to communicate this to your audience and secure them as your clients. 

The first thing you have to do is figure out what your audience is like. How do they communicate? What social media platforms are they on? When do they check their emails? 

All of this is vital to the success of your brand’s communication efforts. 

For example, there’s no point in trying to get in touch with Sam at 9 am if they’re already at work and have no access to their phone or email.

Once you know the appropriate time to contact your audience, strike! Schedule emails for this time, and post on social media during lunch breaks or when they check their phone after dinner. 

This will make your communication efforts a lot easier – trust us!

Top tip: Your communication doesn’t end when you’ve sent an email or uploaded a post. If your audience interacts with it by commenting or sharing, don’t forget to comment back! This is great for enhancing your brand awareness. 

Sort out your content marketing

Content marketing is a massive part of your brand strategy because it lets your audience get to know you more. 

By posting content full of valuable, exciting, and irresistible information, your audience will be hooked on your every word. The more you provide them with content, the more likely they’ll think of you when searching for an expert in your niche. 

People trust companies that offer content marketing. If they see that you know your stuff, they’re more likely to work with you – simple as that!

Besides, content is guaranteed to take your brand awareness to a new level. 61% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase from companies that deliver a unique content experience.

Develop your website 

We’re all aware you can’t get anywhere online without a website. A website is your most important tool when it comes to brand development. It’s where your audience turns to if they want to learn more about what you do, how you do it, and how you can help them. 

Your audience won’t take you very seriously if you don’t have a modern, user-friendly, informative, and well-designed website. 

It doesn’t matter how good your message is or how impactful your social media posts are. If your website doesn’t work, your leads won’t bite. 

Know your brand voice

Your brand voice is how you talk to your audience. It’s the words you use, the tone you have, and the verbal persona you take on when a potential client reads your content. 

Knowing your brand voice and having a consistent one are essential to any successful brand strategy, so make sure you know exactly how to talk to your audience. 

It’s essential to ensure that everybody in your business knows and understands your voice so you can stay consistent and your content will succeed online. 

Build a brand toolkit

A brand toolkit is just what you need to keep everything nice and neatly organized. It’s a selection of documents describing your services, branding, voice, audience, and everything else that goes into your brand strategy. 

Why do you need a brand toolkit?

Let’s say you hire a new employee. To avoid having to sit down with them for hours and explain every step of your branding, you can simply send them a toolkit and get them started. 

A brand toolkit is vital for keeping your branding consistent at all times. 87% of consumers believe that brands should provide a consistent experience. 

Track and improve

The final step is the easiest step of all. Once you’ve completed your brand strategy, ensure you’re constantly tracking it. Check analytics and record your progress to see if it’s working for your business. 

If you notice something isn’t working as well as you thought it would, then simply change and improve your strategy to help you reach your goals. 

So, now you know how to create a brand strategy to help your business succeed. If you want some help in your journey to becoming a branding genius – we’d love to help. 

Get in touch with our team today to discuss how you can start improving your coaching company’s business processes through effective branding.

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