News + Notes on Branding
Learning how to stand out from others can be tough. But it's possible, if you do some work.
Know your competition to make yourself stand out. Most small businesses exist in industries that have many competitors. It's very hard for them to set themselves apart from the fray. Most large companies have large enough marketing budgets to allow them to establish a voice ... they can be everywhere you turn, because they've paid to be there. Smaller firms can't afford that, so they need to be craftier.
One easy thing to do is to collect all your top competitors' print ads from magazines and newspapers, print out pages from their websites, and spread everything out on a tabletop or paste them to a wall. Look at them all at once. What are they all saying? Are they the same? Or are they different? Is there anything they are not saying that you could say? Compare them to your ads or website; how do you measure up ... honestly?
Example: On Newbury Street in Boston is a T-shirt company called Johnny Cupcakes. They make unique T-shirts, but the real key is the buying experience: they sell their apparel in a pirate-themed faux bakery. The shirts are displayed like bakery items, and they're sold in donut and cookie boxes. It's all packaging and personality, and people line up down the street to buy their shirts.
Standing apart from others is only part of the battle. Getting close to your customers is critical.
Learn how -> Part 3