5 Useful Brand Strategy Basics All New Entrepreneurs Need to Be Successful

*This is a guest post by brand strategist Asia Dore. See the end of this post for her bio!

When you’re a new entrepreneur, branding might seem a bit superfluous - like a fun extra, a backburner project, or something you deserve only after you’ve built a successful business. But developing your brand is actually the best place to start because it makes every other part of your business better. And yes I am prepared to die on this hill, so it’s a good thing I brought snacks.

There’s a colossal pile of misinformation out there about branding, so you’re not alone if you find the whole idea to be overwhelming, confusing, and a little dull. But I’m here, as your no-bullshit brand strategist, to simplify the concept so you can fully utilize the power of your brand to grow your business!

Let’s go over five brand strategy basics you need to know as a new entrepreneur.

1. WHAT BRAND STRATEGY IS

Your brand isn’t your logo, your website, or even your business - it’s just your reputation. It’s how people feel about you and your expertise. It’s the specific spot you take up in their brain.

If you follow the corporate rules of branding (ewww), you’ll get sucked into the idea that you should be in constant control of how your brand is perceived. But for us entrepreneurs who actually want ethical, sustainable businesses, branding isn’t a process meant to manipulate. It’s simply about doing and saying and creating things that naturally make people feel the way you’d like them to feel.

Your brand is what people say it is. That might feel a little unnerving at first, but this is where your brand strategy comes in. The goal of your brand strategy is to get two ideas to connect: what you want your brand to be, and what it actually is. Again, this doesn’t have to be complicated! All you have to do is intentionally put things into the world that allow you to become recognized for the thing you want to be recognized for.

2. WHO YOUR BRAND IS ACTUALLY FOR

Even though your brand is built by you, it’s built for someone else: your ideal clients. And while we’d rather squirt Tabasco directly into our eye holes than fill out one more Ideal Client Avatar Worksheet, the fact is you HAVE to know who your brand is for in order to make it effective.

The secret to figuring out your ideal clients? Focus less on demographics and more on psychographics, less on who they are and more on who they want to be. Branding is all about emotion, so let yourself think beyond the logistical problems you’re solving with your offers. Humans are still humans, even during a business transaction!

3. WHERE TO START WITH YOUR BRAND STRATEGY

Your brand strategy needs to clarify four things: exactly what you do, exactly who you do it for, exactly how you do it differently, and exactly why it matters.

Most entrepreneurs make the mistake of staying shallow, neutral, and broad with those four points - but I encourage you to get painfully deep and definitive. The more specific you are, the less confused your audience will be, and the stronger your brand will get.

There are 11 total components of an effective brand strategy, which you can learn about in my free No-Bullshit Guide to Branding!

4. YOU PROBABLY DON’T NEED TO REBRAND

Being clear, specific, and consistent is the best way to build a strong brand as a new entrepreneur, which means bouncing around or rebranding or starting over every time you feel antsy in your business is actually doing more harm than good.

Typically when my clients come to me thinking they need to rebrand, what they actually need to do is double down, dig their heels in, and stubbornly reinforce the brand they’ve already built. If you’re feeling ants in your pants and think rebranding might be the solution, here are some common culprits (and how to double down instead!):

• You’re bored of your brand message (Good! This is a clear sign you’re sharing it enough. No one is paying as much attention to your business as you are - saying the same thing over and over and over again in different ways is the best way to solidify your brand position and become the go-to expert in your niche.)

• You have shiny object syndrome (There’s nothing wrong with trying a new strategy, but only if you have an intention and energy for it - NOT because you’re giving up on a previous idea. Strategies need time to work and patience is critical for experimentation. Believe me, I know this is annoying - but it’s true.)

• You don’t feel like you can be yourself (It’s totally possible to be professional AND show your true personality. If you don’t feel like you can be yourself in your business, it’s time to look into your fears around what other people think about you. Being yourself is actually one of the best branding moves to make because it will ensure your brand is unique. No one else is you. You might think that’s cliché, and you might be right, but it doesn’t mean I’m wrong!)

• You’re annoyed at your platform or industry and want to burn it all down (Amazing! This means you want to be an agent for change and use your business as an actual tool for improvement instead of just as a vehicle to make cash. Use your annoyance as fuel for your content, and use your content to share your ideas about how we can feel, do, and be better. Inspire. Motivate. Protect. Educate. Revolutionize. Let’s do this.)

Unless your purpose, values, or ideal client have drastically changed I can guarantee you don’t need to rebrand.

5. WHAT TO CONSIDER BEFORE MAKING A SHIFT IN YOUR BRAND

When I say you probably don’t need to rebrand, I’m not implying your brand won’t naturally change. The world will evolve, your business will evolve, you’ll evolve, and your brand needs to evolve with you.

So if you’ve decided it IS actually time for some kind of shift, make sure you do it with strategy, a plan, and clearly defined goals - otherwise you and your audience might get confused, which will only weaken your brand position. Revisit and make tweaks to your brand strategy BEFORE changing up anything on the external side, because if your brand shifts your marketing will need to shift too!

👉 Check out this post that Amy wrote on MY site and grab her free Marketer's Guide to Rebranding Checklist!

GUEST POST BIO

 Asia Dore is a brand strategist on a mission to simplify and revolutionize the concept of branding so every entrepreneur can take full advantage of it to grow their business. Using her signature STRATEGY/AUDACITY Method, she’s helped hundreds of business owners build effective and profitable brands that empower them to leverage their unique expertise.

https://asiadore.com