Social Media Branding!

Definition

According to one marketing company, “A brand is the idea or image of a specific product or service that consumers connect with, by identifying the name, logo, slogan, or design of the company who owns the idea or image. Branding is when that idea or image is marketed so that it is recognisable by more and more people, and identified with a certain service or product when there are many other companies offering the same service or product”.

Application

The key for your social media branding is to identify yourself and indeed your business to yourself, know it, own it, and be it, consistently, and to the best of your abilities, thereby distinguishing yourself from others. Your brand is who you are, what you stand for, what you want to achieve in your life, your morals, ethics, values, interests, hobbies, and lifestyle etc. If you know YOU and your business, everything else is pretty straightforward after that!

Remember: There are people already doing what you do, so getting your branding right to differentiate yourself is paramount to success!

Example

If you want an example of branding, check out my Facebook business page. I have my own logo, motto/tagline and colours. I post frequently about the same things, and even mention it on my “Intro” which simply states: “I help people create their ideal lifestyles from wherever they are using a laptop :)”. I am consistent with everything I do, so my Facebook page is pretty popular because people buy into me, because I know me and so do they!

However, I also have several other pages, for my social media agency Bham Digital, for my pharmaceutical consultancy Bham Pharma, and for my food blog Spiced Up By Bilal. Each has its own set of branding, colours, feel and motto. The videos I record for each of my pages are also different, in terms of the camera I use, where I record, the tone, style and even angle, so you cannot confuse one page with another, each page is unique in its expression of the different things that interest me. My values and principles are intact, but the way in which I deliver my message about a particular topic is different.

Defining Your Own Brand

Defining your brand is like a journey of self-discovery. It can be difficult, time‑consuming and uncomfortable. It requires, at the very least, that you answer the questions below, so I urge you to answer them because you are your business!

  1. What is your mission? (Your WHY)
  2. What are the benefits and features of you, your products and services?
  3. What do your customers and prospects already think of you?
  4. What qualities do you want them to associate with you?

Do your research. Learn the needs, habits and desires of your current and prospective customers and team members. And don’t rely on what you think they think. Know what they think!

Marketing Your Brand

Once you’ve defined your brand, how do you get the word out? Here are a few simple, time-tested tips:

  1. Get a great logo. Ask a graphic designer or creative friend of yours. Fiverr is great and cheap too! Place it everywhere.
  2. Write down your brand messaging. What are the key messages you want to communicate about your brand? Everyone in your team should be aware of your brand attributes.
  3. Integrate your brand. Branding extends to every aspect of who you are – how you reply messages, your e-mail signature, everything.
  4. Create a “voice” for you that reflects your brand. This voice should be applied to all written communication and incorporated in the visual imagery of all materials, online and off. Is your brand friendly? Be conversational. Is it ritzy? Be more formal. You get the gist.
  5. Develop a tagline/motto. Write a memorable, meaningful and concise statement that captures the essence of your brand.
  6. Design templates and create brand standards for your marketing materials. Use the same colour scheme, logo placement, look and feel throughout. You don’t need to be fancy, just consistent. Canva is great for this!
  7. Be true to your brand. Customers and team members won’t return to you–or refer you to someone else–if you don’t deliver on your brand promise.
  8. Be consistent. This tip involves all the above and is the most important tip on this list. If you can’t do this, your attempts at establishing a brand will fail.

If you’re looking at organising your social media branding, please do get in touch, I’d love to help 🙂