There are a number of small businesses with similar types of product offerings and services. In order to become successful in today’s competitive marketplace business owners must strive to present their product as a unique brand. It’s an aspect of business marketing that’s referred to as niche marketing or branding.
The Goal of Branding
The goal is simple. Create visual and mental images that are consistently recognized and linked to the small business in marketing and advertising materials. A successful marketing campaign is one that makes the business stand out when compared to its direct and indirect competitors.
There are six main criteria that define the importance of branding for small businesses:
• Purpose: Provides a direction for future business growth
• Categorization: Defines the specific aspects that makes the business’ brand different from similar product offerings
• Size: Using the identification of a small business to target specific consumer needs
• Price: Demonstrates the value based on the price
• Type of product or service: Shows the customer the value of buying from a small business
• Availability: Offers the customers reassurance that the product and services will always be available for purchase at a fair market price
How the Branding Strategy is Implemented
The branding strategy must effectively employ a combination of methods. When consumers see, hear or read marketing materials, there should be an instant response, that’s brand recognition. The brand is a series of images that are forever linked to the business identifying it as a unique entity.
The image that a small business creates for itself must be carefully defined. Unsuccessful marketing efforts often lead to a decline in revenue and a loss of profitable market sectors. To stay competitive small businesses must deliver the same quality brand in all forms of media. There’s no denying the importance of effective packaging when it comes to presenting the brand as a tangible image of the company’s products and services. This is what attracts the interest of potential customers.
Besides identifying the business from its competitors, marketing methods should provide the consumer with information about the business. The standard comparison for small businesses is that the brand must clearly demonstrate what value the products or services adds to the lives of consumers and their household versus selecting a similar product from a competitor.
Branding in Small Businesses
Unlike large companies, small business owners have to carefully calculate how to use their advertising dollars in order to derive the greatest benefit from all marketing formats. One way to gauge if marketing efforts are successful is any format is to measure the type of consumer feedback that is received in terms of surveys and unsolicited testimonials.
When consumers see something they like based on the unique capabilities of the products or services that are offered; they become loyal, long term customers. It doesn’t matter if there’s a change to the product offerings; the niche market is already created. For help with any of your branding needs, contact Semgeeks today!
