All brand builders, from start-up owners to veteran entrepreneurs, have asked themselves: How Can I Get New Clients When Nobody's Heard of Me? Most of them have wished they had better branding strategies for attracting and appealing to their ideal customers, and yet, the truth is that they never really had to wonder at all.
From the very beginning, you can turn strangers to friends and friends to loyal clients with one simple formula.
Are you at least a little bit curious about what that formula might be?
Believe it or not, in just a few minutes' time, you're going to learn about the branding strategies that will make all that possible.
And here we go…
Nurture Your A.C.E.S. with the Right Branding Strategies
Let's start by talking about your list. You've heard that the money is in the list…and I want you to forget about that because it's just not true. Actually, the money is in the relationships you have with the people on that list. I don't care if you only have 100 names on there; if you have an engaging, reciprocal relationship with those people, you have far more value than if you had 10,000 people on that list.
So now, let's talk about how you can go from zero to hero with those people. It's all about making your brand visible to your target audience and then nurturing the relationship seeds that are planted.
Our acronym is A.C.E.S., and here's what it stands for:
Attract
Convert
Engage
Systemise
Here's what each of those four branding strategies entails:
- ATTRACT: This is where it all starts; where you gain the attention of your ideal customers and magnetise them to your brand. Look for joint venture opportunities with business owners who complement (rather than compete with) your brand. Start by making a list of five professionals who have lists with high concentrations of your ideal customers. Connect with those five people and talk about mutual benefit (specifically, the value you can offer them). Look for publishers, networkers and bloggers who want to use your intellectual property to enhance their own endeavours. And finally, as you work to make those constructive connections (for the purpose of exposure and attraction), always do so with a mind focussed on planting seeds and nurturing relationships.
- CONVERT: Contrary to what you've learnt, this is not about closing sales. It's about converting strangers to friends. Do this right, and the sales will follow. This is not about making the money just yet; instead, it's about adding drops to the trust bucket. In today's market, trust is the currency of choice for consumers, and they're not just buyers; they are invaluable additions to your network. Approach conversion with a spirit of service. You'll be surprised just how easily those sales come about.
- ENGAGE: If you want people to stay interested in your brand, you've got to show interest in them. Start and continue conversations on social media (which will take your posts to the tops of feeds). Continually strive to send heartbeats out into the brand-o-sphere. Find out what keeps your audience's attention and makes them want to participate (video is usually a top pick for engagement). Ask questions and make their answers matter.
- SYSTEMISE: When you find what works for your brand (as far as attracting and retaining customers), turn those strategies into systems. Develop automations for making the processes feel seamless, so that you can spend your time attracting and engaging new "strangers," rather than spending your time on performing redundant tasks. Bring team members into this systemisation to ensure they have responsibility over assignments that suit them best, freeing yourself to work on your business, rather than in your business.
Targeted, Deliberate Branding Strategies Work
As you build your list, remember that you only want to attract your ideal customers. They are the people who have an intense appreciation for what you do, who are happy to pay you what you're worth, and who will be proud to recommend you to their friends. Padding your list with indifferent consumers will only make building your brand feel like a frustrating, thankless task. Keeping your list small and focussed will increase your sense of accomplishment…and your bottom line.
The brand strategies I have found most effective are yours for the taking. My mission is to warn you about the mistakes I've made and to show you the shortcuts I've found to be most profitable. I am sharing a lot of that information in the How to Build a Brand group, with daily advice, live Brand Breakthroughs shows, international experts and much more. Join today! It's FREE!
