Branding Challenge Series

In Mistake #1, I revealed to you that I named my company while doing my taxes.  Not only was that a poor decision, but naming the business should not even have been the first task in branding.

I, like many, picked a name and registered it even before I wrote a mission statement. Some business owners have written a tagline before they’ve identified target markets.  And most create all the obvious elements first, then developed the brand. I am here to tell you that the order in which you tackle the elements of branding are very important. Whether you are planning to be a big corporation or a small business, developing your brand in the correct order can eliminate major brand weaknesses later.

Branding Your Business Smartly: Step 1

The first things to figure out is identify the market you want to serve, assess the competition, and know yourself.

Markets

Identify the market you will serve by figuring out: What are their…

• major problems?
• needs?
• desires?
• characteristics?

Competition

Assess the competition by finding out:

• What are they offering?
• What do they do well?
• What are they doing wrong?
• What can you improve upon?

Yourself

• What can you offer?
• What are your strengths?
• What are your weaknesses?  (Don’t skip this step, very important to be honest.)

Over the years I have found that most people can identify the markets and rip apart the competition.  Where we struggle is ourselves.  We know ourselves so well that it is hard to start.  To make starting easier the follow these steps:

Write a vision statement: What is the company vision for the world, vision for your product or service?

Write a mission statement: After writing your vision statement, this should almost create itself.

Write down the goals of the business or product. (This where you can utilize your market and competition research)

Describe the business model you are planning to implement

Write your business plan

I know this requires a lot of thought and will take time.  But think of all the time and money you will save by branding smartly the first time.  After the above is completed, you can now begin thinking of a name for your company.  You may want to consider bringing in a branding specialist to help develop your unique branding strategy and as well as help with choosing the perfect name.

Next “Challenge” issue: Join a Tribe

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