People talk about branding all the time… you hear “on-brand” or “my brand” from business owners all the time but what is branding, anyway?

A website? 

A sleek logo? 

Eye-catching fonts? 

A pretty color-palette? 

While those are all components of branding, the brand itself is an experience. A perception. A brand is what people immediately think and feel when they think about your business or see your product. 

“A BRAND IS THE SET OF EXPECTATIONS, MEMORIES, STORIES AND RELATIONSHIPS THAT, TAKEN TOGETHER, ACCOUNT FOR A CONSUMERS DECISION TO CHOSE ONE PRODUCT OR SERVICE OVER ANOTHER”

– SETH GODIN

Let’s face it: there are very few original business ideas left. Every market is entirely saturated. It’s all been done in one way or another. But don’t fret! There is room at the table for you! YOUR business IS different and special. Why? Because it’s YOU! The YOU behind your business is what makes it unique. No one else can do it the way that you do. The trick is that you have to stand out from the competition. You have to show your audience who you are in order to get to where you want to be.

Why is Branding Important?

Branding allows you to share the person or people behind the product or service. 

When your audience gets to know you, they will like you and when they like you, they will start to trust you. And that’s where the MAGIC happens! People buy from those that they trust. That connection is the secret sauce of social media marketing! Your audience needs to get to know you to make them want to buy what you’re selling. It’s difficult to grow when you hide behind a beautiful website or perfectly curated Instagram feed without substance. The greatest risk for entrepreneurs in the digital marketplace is when they use social media for sales and promotional purposes ONLY. You HAVE to create conversations, not just serve up sales pitch after sales pitch, if you want to grow your business. 

Connect, build trust, create conversations then close the deal.

Keeping this in mind, your goal when building your brand is to create an experience so you’re more than just another photographer/interior designer/baker/artisan/fill-in-the-blank. You’re someone that your audience trusts, who solves a problem and makes the process easy and fun! Your brand identity should authentically represent you and your business, reflect your core values and resonate with your target audience (also known as your “ideal client”… more on that in a future post!). 

CONSIDER HOW MUCH MAJOR CORPORATIONS SPEND TO GET THEIR NAMES IN FRONT OF THEIR TARGET AUDIENCE—SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING IS FREE! LET’S UTILIZE IT EFFECTIVELY!

Want to learn more? Download my FREE Branding Photography Checklist to get started in planning your next branding session and get ready to grow your presence in the digital market place and elevate your brand!