Branding – It’s More Than Just Your USPWritten by Karon Thackston
by Karon Thackston © 2002 http://www.ktamarketing.comWhen you mention word “branding” most people automatically think of USP (unique selling proposition). The overall – and incorrect – perception of a brand is that it simply consists of statement you use to define what you do. Slap your USP on every advertising piece that goes out door and – tah dah – you’re branded! Not even close. Your brand is created from every single thing you do within your business. Your brand is all-encompassing collection of business principles, business strategy, sales, customer relations, appearance, attitude, products, services, advertising, copywriting, Web site design, brochures… your entire company. In order to create a brand that has “staying power”, it must go several levels deep. Consider Walt Disney Company for a moment. What comes to mind when you think of Walt Disney? Most likely Mickey is first, maybe animated movies, then family-oriented, wholesome, quality, etc. Is all of that just a USP? Definitely not! When you phone Walt Disney Company you are greeted by a professional, friendly, helpful person. When you visit one of Walt Disney World locations, staff is helpful, facility is clean, environment is family-oriented and accommodations are first class. What is end result of all this work? Trust. Your customers learn that they’ll get what they expect every time. They trust what you offer. They have faith in it. They depend on it. How would Disney be portrayed if all their advertising lead you to believe that they were a highly-focused, quality, family-oriented organization but – when you visited their theme parks – you found rude staff members, rides that didn’t work, food that was inedible and costumed characters that treated your children horribly?
| | Industry Pro Interview: Expanding Your Market Reach For More SalesWritten by Karon Thackston
© Karon Thackston 2002 http://www.ktamarketing.comHave you ever wondered how to get out of a “sales slump”? I think all of us have! One of most common things we, as small business owners, allow ourselves to suffer through is “narrow mindedness”. We have thoughts about what our product/service is, what it does and who it serves. When we get stuck in this mindset, we lose out on tremendous amounts of income from other markets we might not have even thought about. Bob Serling is about to shed a giant, bright, white light on this matter. Pay close attention… you will learn a LOT. Bob is editor of Product Development Hotline, an online newsletter that helps people create lucrative new products and services, position their products for maximum sales, and sell or license their product ideas for millions. He has helped dozens of companies create new products that fulfill their customers precise needs and position their products for greater profits. KARON: As I've been shopping, I've overheard store managers remark, "we need to move displays around so sales will pick up again on those items". It's true that repositioning (whether physically in a brick and mortar store or finding a new niche online) does increase attention. Tell me reason behind this. BOB: There are two reasons. First, all promotional approaches have a natural life cycle. Response to them degrades over a period of time. So it's important to periodically test new positioning to see if it outperforms your current positioning. If it does, then by all means replace your current positioning. Second, market conditions can dramatically affect success of your positioning. For example, using retail store example, in a tough economy, lobster and champagne may become more difficult to sell. But small quantities of expensive high-quality chocolate still give people a way to pamper themselves without feeling like they're breaking bank. A position of "You can still treat yourself like a king on a pauper's budget" could be used to sell chocolate. KARON: Would repositioning work for ANY industry? How about service-based offerings (legal firms, consulting, etc.), e-books or ad agencies? BOB: Effective positioning is a matter of finding out what matters most to your customers or clients, then "grafting" your product or service to that message. So, yes, any product or service can be repositioned.
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