Building the BIG Brand on a Small-Biz Budget

Part of running a successful enterprise is the ability to build a recognizable and unforgetable brand. Large corporations pay millions of dollars a year to maintain their brand. However, as a small business person, you are fully capable of doing some of the same things for far less. In fact, you probably already do and some of these things and don't even know it.

But, what is a brand? Your compnay's brand is its name and basically anything and everything your company's reputation rests upon. Know what your consumer values and create a mission statement that centers upon their values and belief structure. Further, you have to truly believe in what you say because anything disingenious will lack sincerity and easily be noticed by your audience. So, do not insult your audience's intelligence-put youself in their shoes and market to them the way you would want to be marketed to. Evolve with them so that your communication never fails to asuage their deepest needs, wants, concerns and desires.

According to allbusiness.com, a small business owner can sharpen his brand without incurring fees from a full-fledged branding company. At a minimum, business cards, letterhead, signage, and other existing corporate identity should all display a consistent usage of the company name, logo, and tag line information. If this isn't the case, an overhaul is in order. Make decisions about the color of all of your business cards — letterhead as well as the ink. It takes some discipline, but it's important to your brand to stick to those decisions for years to come.

Before you go much further in starting your startup business-consider your brand. What do you have to offer? What makes you unique? And what are your business's core values? All of these things will play an integral role in helping you position your company within a market potentially flooded with other companies just like yours. You want to STAND OUT and make your company's presence memorable, and most importantly...unforgetable. And you CAN do this on a smaller budget...just be clear about your wants and needs and be creative as you go to attain them.

Good luck!

For more small biz advice or other business strategy questions, please email betterbizservices@yahoo.com OR visit our website at http://www.betterbizservices.com/.