One of the best ways to market your business is by developing your brand and increasing awareness of it. However, building a brand can be difficult and expensive (especially for startups). Over the years, marketing experts have been coming up with complex solutions for businesses to raise brand awareness, but it does not take a big marketing staff to come up with ways to increase your brand awareness in your market. Sometimes all that it takes is a look around at the stuff you use every day and imagining your brand there.
Raise Brand Awareness Using Office Supplies and Swag
Creating a brand means establishing a form of recognition; something people can associate with your business when they see it. Most brand images revolve around a logo or a catchphrase depicting what the business offers. The simpler the logo, the easier it is to fit it on any number of objects. You can put your brand on things like pencils, coffee mugs, notepads, sticky notes, or rubber wristbands. Some of your business swag could include shirts, branded water bottles, caps, and even jackets. They should all have a purpose, and you should have specific criteria for handing them out (like a prize wheel or spending incentive reward).
During networking, you are likely to hand out your business card to several people. Handing out your business swag can supplement (or even replace, depending on how formal your networking is) the business cards. If possible, the things you are using should make it easy for the people using them to find your business later (like a phone number or web address).
Your efforts will be magnified by the forethought and deliberate intent behind the creation of each item. Putting QR codes on items that you are selling to seniors might not work as well as it would for marketing to a younger audience with a greater familiarity with technology. If your business revolves around service and maintenance, then putting your business information on the object you are servicing (such as a magnet or a sticker) means that your information is the first thing the customer sees if they need assistance.
Utilizing Branded Packaging
If your business is based on the retail industry, you should consider branding your packaging. Add your business logo or image with a memorable motto and contact information onto your bags, boxes, tape, or other common shipping items. This way, you can market yourself using your current customers. With customers walking around with packaging displaying your business name and logo, more people are bound to notice, creating awareness about your brand wherever it is seen. Your packaging in a garbage can is the last marketing gasp and a clear sign that your product was found useful enough by someone to purchase, so don’t waste the opportunity.
Using Stickers
It is common to see people putting stickers on their doorsteps, vehicles, backpacks, motorcycles, and bicycles. You can increase your brand awareness by giving customers a sticker for their every visit. With your sticker displayed on these vehicles or strategic places across the service, the area can go a long way in increasing your client base. For example, many companies issue college students with stickers to put on their mobile devices like phones, tablets, and laptops. The sticker should portray your logo or something you design to identify your business with. These are typically made with vinyl lettering and are heavily customizable. With the sticker on different surfaces courtesy of your customers, more people will view and identify with your brand.
Using Car Wraps
Your startup or business probably has a car that is used for operations or something you use to get to and from networking, meetings, or running business errands. This car can be used together with your marketing strategy. These wraps are custom designed to cover your entire vehicle, turning your car into a billboard for your business. This is a great option whether you have a brick-and-mortar business or are just running an online shop. It is flexible enough for every kind of business from restaurants and retail to plumbers. This is a sure way of attracting attention because everywhere you go, people are bound to notice the marketing details printed on your vehicle. Frequently using this vehicle around the service area increases people's familiarity with your brand wherever you drive and it has a longer lifespan than a billboard. After all, billboards are distractions for drivers, who are supposed to be looking at the other cars on the road. Give people an excuse to be better drivers by paying attention to your brand on the road. Productivity and public service all in one! All jokes aside, this is a great tool and you should definitely consider its applications for your business.
Strategically Using Freebies
People like free things. However, you do not want to give all your customers a t-shirt that costs $10 to produce when they buy a $1.00 keychain. People wearing shirts with your branding or using items like pens and branded mugs help increase people's familiarity with your brand, but you can also run the risk of creating a lot of waste by giving out swag indiscriminately. Brainstorm the most effective uses for your swag. Give out these items to customers based on different criteria you set for your business. You can’t expect to get a sale for every pen you hand out, but the chances of it improve when you are deliberate about how you do it.
You do not have to limit the freebies for use and distribution at your base of operations alone, either. You can attend local events (depending on the state of COVID in your area) to interact with people, giving them these items for stopping by your booth. Where so many remote meetings are common nowadays, get the addresses of your business contacts and mail them some swag after a good meeting to reinforce the good experience. Combined with a personalized thank you, this can make a big difference in how your brand is remembered.
These are a few of the many techniques that businesses have employed to sell their brands effectively. Take a look around your office and look at the things you use every day. Imagine your brand on them, and then find a way to make that a part of your customers’ lives. Whether it is indiscriminate giveaways or targeted brand reinforcement, you’ll find the right answer for your business's needs.