Never Minded Branding for Narrow Minded Businesses

If you’ve been in the marketing and branding industry long enough to be able to spot the purple cow from its purple dung, you will be able to have identified a number of “small business marketing catchphrases” along the way:

1. I don’t need marketing. I’m doing well enough as it is.
2. Technology doesn’t apply to my business.
3. This social media thing is hogwash. Who has time for all this?
4. I use my e-mail to communicate; branding it is a waste of money.
5. I’ve managed to keep my business going up until now, haven’t I? Why spend money on something new if nothing is broke? (spot the pun)

I think to best illustrate the embrace of change, a true short story would suffice. I have a friend, a photographer by trade, he is one of those people I would, rather carefully, label as pigheaded. Being employed could very well disguise this, but when he opted to go freelance a couple of months back, the reality of the situation quickly dawned upon him: He will have to source some clients.

Being in the marketing industry I was of course burdened with providing some cheap advice to help him along the way. But, being pigheaded made it especially hard at times to convince him of a change in tactics.

Having a presence online to showcase his portfolio was one of my first recommendations. Instead of opting for a blog that he could use to share his expertise, connect with fellow photographers and build a loyal community, and integrating the blog with (mostly) free 3rd party applications, he opted for a static website. Fair enough.

But this is where he got smart. He built up a personal (and of course professional) presence on none other than Facebook. He connected with industry peers, aspiring models, athletes and especially focused on groups where he could exchange ideas, subtly market his portfolio and establish trusting relationships with real people.

His static website now simply mirrors his portfolio, serving as a conversion platform for individuals or businesses wishing to employ his skills. It took him a couple of painstaking months to finally get his business rolling, but these days he is quite comfortably keeping shop by using those tactics.

Creating a brand impression is as critical as ever. In 2009, with the global recession underway, smarter tactics will have to suffice.

When marketing budgets are limited and businesses are conducive to it, these following tactics should be your first approach:

1. Establish relationships by connecting with peers and your target audience. There are a number of platforms like Facebook, Linked-In, Plaxo, Twitter etc.
2. Create a web presence, preferably a blogging platform which is far more receptive to Google search results. Share your thoughts, ideas and expertise. It established credibility.
3. Brand your e-mail. We’ve become to loathe e-mail, but we’ll be sending more e-mail this year than we did last. The opportunities are endless.

With these three examples from a buzzing 2008, I look forward to exploring the new trends in 2009 as they emerge.

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