10 June 2021|Latest Posts, Marketing, PR, Promotion
If you’re an entrepreneur or business founder looking to boost your brand, one of the first ports of call should be a PR agency.
After all, while you may be an expert in what you do, a carefully-crafted PR campaign can work wonders for spreading the word and exposing you to a wider audience.
Before we get into the nitty gritty, let’s first go back to some branding basics…
What is a brand?
The term ‘brand’ is Germanic in origin and originally meant burning wood. In Middle English, the meaning shifted to mean permanently marking with hot metal.
In the 17th century, the phrase brand became a mark of ownership in any form and in the industrial revolution it really took off with the meaning as we understand it today.
But what is it? Some people may say a brand is a name, logo or symbol – but at Harvey & Hugo we strongly believe that a brand is a feeling. That’s why it is important to tell your brand story and use the correct PR services to spark emotion in your audience.
For as social psychologist and professor Jonathan Haidt says: “The human mind is a story processor, not a logic processor.”
So, what can you do to make your brand stand out in today’s fierce battle for attention?
Getting to know you
Firstly, you need to make sure you really know your brand – after all, if you don’t, how can you expect anyone else to?
Hone in on your ‘why’, know your purpose, develop clear values, brand statements and key messaging and find your USP – don’t be afraid to be different!
Once you’re clear on your message, you need a strategy to target the right people at the right time.
Planning ahead can help you to structure your ideas for how you’ll tell and share your story, and will keep you consistent and on track.
Your strategy is also where you can set out your key performance indicators, develop campaign ideas and themes and establish your target market.
Read all about it
An oldie but goodie, press releases are a simple but effective way of raising awareness and creating brand perceptions. They are also seen as more credible and trustworthy than adverts and, being free, are much more cost-effective.
However, sometimes you need more than a press release to get your thoughts and opinions across, and that’s where article-writing comes into play. Strong written work that is shared across different publications is a great way to get your brand recognised.
If this is done well, in time you and your brand will become recognised as leaders in your field – which brings us to our next point.
A person of influence
If you like the idea of becoming an influencer in your industry, then it’s time for some profile building.
At the end of the day, people buy from people, which is why it’s so important to boost your own personal brand as well as your company’s.
Therefore, positioning you as a key person of influence is a win-win situation, building trust and respect for not only you personally, but also your brand.
There’s plenty you can do to raise your personal profile, starting with improving your personal social media accounts, and you may also want to look for interview and speaking opportunities.
Using a combination of the above can, in time, make you famous for the products and services you offer.
A winning plan
Awards can be an often be overlooked when it comes to brand-building, but really, is there any better way to show off your expertise than have other people do it for you?
Simply being nominated for an award can improve your brand awareness and put your business in front of new customers – and think of all that amazing PR if you win.
However, it’s important to be strategic when it comes to awards; don’t just enter any and all. Think carefully about which you have a realistic chance of winning, and which will be of most relevance to your target audience.
Forging links
The online realm has opened up a whole new world of possibilities for building your brand – but it’s not all as straightforward as it seems.
Yes, we’re talking link-building, a way of boosting your credibility by getting someone equally (or, ideally, even more) credible to share your content.
You can do this by sending stories out to websites to increase backlinks (an incoming hyperlink from one webpage to another website) to your website.
To further boost your online game, it’s worth making sure any online content you put in your website is full of relevant keywords for your industry, to further push you up the Google rankings.
Staying social
Social media is another great (and largely free) way to promote your brand, but, as always, you need to have a plan in place first.
You’ll need to start with deciding what platforms work best for your business before choosing what type of content to share and how often to post.
Remember, it’s not all about selling; social media is perfect for a more informal look at your business and why you do what you do. Behind-the-scenes, staff profiles and how-to guides are all ideally suited to this medium.
Thanks to the digital revolution, it’s never been easier to spread the word about your brand – but that also means the landscape has become more crowded.
Taking the time to create a rounded PR strategy means you can hit the ground running, keeping your eye on the prize and ensuring your hard work pays off.
About the Author
Charlotte Nichols has over 15 years of experience in the PR and marketing sector and established her company Harvey & Hugo during that time. Charlotte’s mission is to use PR, social media and marketing techniques to make brands lovable and memorable. The flexible offering of Harvey & Hugo makes PR and marketing accessible to all.
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