Social media – Content Hub

Branding is a vital marketing strategy for any business. Branding can elevate you in a crowded market and help your company differentiate itself from your competitors and other brands as well. That’s why branding should be considered as early as possible, more precisely, during the startup stage of a company.

However, branding during the startup stage can often be a real challenge. The main reason is that startups usually lack the resources to commit to branding fully. Still, developing a brand is a long process, and you don’t have to do everything in one day.

Therefore, do what you can with the resources that you have and develop your brand further alongside your startup business. Once you begin the branding process, you can work towards maximizing your exposure and awareness one step at the time. With that in mind, here are a few simple tricks to help maximize brand exposure for your startup.

1. Get creative with your content

If anything can help with your brand exposure, it’s content marketing. Content is, indeed, the most effective form of marketing today. The main reason is that it provides true value to consumers.

Educate, inform and entertain your audience

Create content that is well-made and highly relevant to your audience. No matter if you run a fashion blog, a cooking studio, a pastry shop, or a doggy daycare, you should know by now that your content can make or break your digital presence. To leave it all to chance would be the biggest mistake you could make for your reputation. Instead, take the reins and create a content strategy that will help you stand out in your local market, and if you run an international business, include your global image, too.

Consider various types of content

Stunning images and videos work well for audience engagement. Podcasts and presentations can bring your content closer to a broader audience. When you do your best to diversify through posting videos to your social media feeds, as well as YouTube channel, helpful tutorials, smart infographics, and not just stick to blogs and articles, you’ll have a much better chance to attract more attention and get more people to engage.

Location

Consider the best way to publish content that will boost your brand exposure as much as possible. For instance, social media contests and giveaways are an excellent way to promote your brand, your content and drive customer engagement with free samples of your products or services.

Consistent branding through web design / Source: Vibes Design

2. Utilize SEO

Whether your website is the core of your brand or merely its extension, your digital presence can completely transform your brand’s reputation and visibility alike. Depending on how well you approach your SEO needs, you’ll be able to get in front of the right people at the right time and establish yourself as a significant figure in your industry.

Some new business owners, however, might not have the skills or the resources to devote so much time and effort to crafting their SEO strategy. This may be the time that they turn to a white label SEO company, which enables them to focus on their core tasks while experts handle their digital presence. From continuously researching keywords, technical SEO, all the way to link-building, this is one of the essential parts of your strategy for better positions in the SERPs, and consequently more visibility in front of the right audience.

Contact local web designers

3. Leverage social media

Your first step towards establishing a strong online presence and brand exposure should be social media platforms. Social media is essential for brand awareness because you’re in direct contact with your target audience on various networks.

As you may already know, brands now have a more personal relationship with their customers, and social media can help you build such a relationship. However, to do so, you’ll have to be very social. Here are a few examples of what you should do to boost brand exposure on social media.

Identify your target audience and learn as much as you can about them
Determine the most relevant social media networks to build your presence
Consider your audience’s demographics to tailor your messages better
Incorporate your brand values, brand promise and a unique tone of voice into your messaging
Create a unique approach for every social channel you’re present on
Create top-quality and highly relevant content for your audience.
Engage with your audience frequently
Always remain consistent

Social media is a dynamic and unique environment. If you want to leverage its full potential, you’ll have to develop specific strategies and monitor your results. If things aren’t looking too good, you can always redesign your approach.

Device compatible web design / Source: VMA Web Design

4. Engage in word-of-mouth promotions

It’s no secret that startup businesses don’t have it easy when it comes to competing against well-established competitors in the market. However, you shouldn’t be discouraged just because you lack the resources to outrun someone.

Good brand exposure can work wonders when it comes to gaining a competitive advantage, and the key is word-of-mouth marketing. However, for your word-of-mouth to be successful, you must meet customer expectations, needs and demands. Here are a few ways you can do that.

Provide exceptional customer service and support
Ask for feedback and improve upon it
Keep your promises
Respond to negative feedback well and on time
Focus on customer value
Provide top-quality products and services

Once you gain the favour of your customers, you can ask for referrals and even reward customers for their recommendations. In addition, ensuring customer satisfaction will encourage them to become loyal. Loyal customers often become brand ambassadors, and they’ll further promote your brand to their friends and family.

5. Work with influencers

Influencer marketing might not be so new anymore as a concept, but it’s becoming more relevant than ever, especially for brands that have yet to establish themselves in their market. So, when you’re looking to increase brand awareness, finding an influencer that shares your values and has access to your target market can boost your visibility immeasurably.

Okay, yes, it’s measurable, and it’s amazing what you can do when you track the success of your social campaigns, but the point is that a single bond can make all the difference for your business.

Building brand exposure and maximizing it in the startup stage can be a real challenge. The main reason is that most of your efforts and time are focused on developing and growing your business. However, if you allocate enough resources to your branding strategy, you can start reaping the benefits early on.

When you start your own business, it can be easy to fall into the trap of believing in myths. From bookkeeping to customer service, there are plenty out there – and some of them seem true enough to take seriously. The problem with this? They can steer your business in the wrong direction.

Put simply, it’s about time SMEs stopped spinning so many plates – especially when some plates aren’t worth the time. Here are five small business myths you need to stop believing.

Myth 1: Bookkeeping is just about the numbers

It’s a common myth that bookkeeping is a numbers game. While it’s true that numbers do have a big part to play, it’s actually much more than this. Essentially, a bookeeper is responsible for organising and storing accounting and financial documents such as statements, income tax records, ledgers and journals.

In fact, there are many skills that a good bookkeeper needs to help keep a business afloat that goes beyond being savvy with numbers. Discipline, good communication and a high level of organisation are required. They also need to have a solid understanding of the bigger picture, which means, knowing how expenses or new staff hires will impact the business six or 12 months down the track.

Proper bookkeeping makes it easier to fulfill tax obligations, analyse and manage finances, make plans for the business, and abide by the law. Consult with a local bookkeeper for some professional advice.

Myth 2: Be active on all social media platforms

For small businesses, it’s important to be active on social media. However, it’s equally as important to be active on the right platforms in the right way.

The truth is, being present on every single platform can be overkill. While it might seem easy to use software tools to publish your content automatically across several channels, what works on Facebook doesn’t necessarily work on Twitter or LinkedIn.

Take extra time to optimise your content for each platform. Think about the tone, angle and word length of each post, making sure it’s appropriate for your different audiences. Do your research and find out where your customers are having promising conversations and narrow your presence to where this is happening.

Myth 3: You should be working all the time

Running a small business will certainly keep you busy. It often feels like there is so much to do and so little time to do it. So we overwork ourselves to keep on top of things. However, everyone is human – and everyone needs a break.

Need proof? It’s actually scientifically proven that prioritising your breaks at work will make you happier, more focused and more productive. Taking breaks gives our brains a much-needed rest, allowing us to get back to our tasks with renewed energy and focus. They also relax our brains, helping us retain information and make valuable connections, as well as reevaluate our goals.

Simply put, making time for breaks equals making time for your business.

Myth 4: Voluntary administration is the end of your business

While some people might see it as an extreme action, voluntary administration can be a smart move. The truth is, when your business is in a sticky situation where debts can’t be paid, restructuring your operations, creditors and assets is a way of potentially improving your financial position.

The aim of voluntary administration (VA) is always to get a business back to financial health if possible, or to make sure that creditors get a better return than if the business was liquidated.

If you’re up against the wall, going into VA can give your business breathing space, as an external administrator takes control of your business while its finances can be reviewed. It’s a simple process, and contrary to what some people believe, can help your business get back on track.

Contact local bookkeepers

Myth 5: The customer is always right

There’s no denying that customers are crucial to your business. However, it’s important to balance their needs with yours and your employees’ needs too. Here are three instances when the customer is actually wrong:

When they make you or your staff unhappy
Nobody deserves abuse. Sometimes customers get angry and expect people to be held accountable. However, if you know you or your employee to be right, it’s best to hold your ground.
When they’re bad for business
If a customer is disrespectful for absolutely no reason – it’s better to let them go. It shouldn’t be a matter of finances, especially if it’s causing you or your staff unnecessary trouble.
When they’re not worth it
Some customers simply aren’t valuable to your business, particularly if they’re giving your staff trouble time and time again. Instead, it’s better to focus on customers that deserve your services and are willing to work with you.

Be a small business myth buster

Sometimes it can be tricky to figure out myth from reality. While busting myths is something you’ll naturally do when running a SME, it’s always helpful to know what to believe and what to dismiss before going in.