KNEWSTART REPORT

How To Position Yourself & Your Brand

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How To Position Yourself & Your Brand

#1 How to package yourself and your brand i.e. your product or service

Packaging your product or service is all about branding and communication. It’s about image and

voice. And, packaging this so that prospects want to do business with you requires a strategy.

As a business owner it’s your job to define your image and your message so no one

misunderstands who you are and what you stand for.

Your aim here is to master your message, to know your clients, and position your brand and

yourself (as the head of your brand), as a leader in its field. By doing this you’re guaranteed to have

higher sales and more success in your business than your competitors.

So let’s look at image and branding first.

I want you to always remember that perception is reality. Those who win in business are not

necessarily the best in their market but often they’re better marketers.

Your brand – You need to ensure that you’re positioning yourself inline with your business model.

If you’re a premium brand this is vital so you’re not competing on price. This is about attracting the

right sort of fans and loyal customers you want to do business with.

To build a credible brand you need to know your audience so you can design one that fits in with

their taste and reflects your brand’s personality. You’ll need to define your values, your culture and

what your brand stands for. You’ll need to tell your story too and your why. Both of these build

rapport and as connection points to support how you want to be seen and what you want to be

known for. You’ll have to be courageous and stand out from the crowd. As Judy Garland said, “Why

be a second rate version of somebody else, instead be a first rate version of yourself.”

Your headshots – as an authority and leader in your field you’re going to need some professional

PR shots. These will serve for your website, social media efforts and also for the press. Do not

skimp on these. They work for you on autopilot; 24x7 and attract prospects like the moth to the

lamp when done well.

Your website – You need to have a website that looks professional. Now this doesn’t mean

spending a fortune on it, but it does require you to create one that is engaging, relevant and

mobile. I can’t stress that last point enough. You’d be surprised at how many big brands I see that

are not mobile friendly. It’s an unforgiveable crime.

In addition to having your ‘About Page’, you should also have testimonials on your website. This

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saves you having to sell how good you are. Let your clients do the talking instead.

Get press too and then put the logos on your site. Logos always impress people – and that means

both your prospects and your existing clients, who’ll like to talk about it.

Your collateral – Every piece of output you deliver has to reflect your brand. Here you need to go

further than your website and look at your brochures, presentations, emails, proposals – anything

that touches your prospect and client.

Your character - You need to bring your character into everything you do. You need to make it

crystal clear as to who you are, what you do, and how you do it. Then you’ll attract publicity through

your energy, persistence and leadership.

You’ll need to show your opinion on your subject matter as this just demonstrates your leadership

and the fact that you’re an authority in your nice.

Clients want a leader. They’re looking for your unique take on things – an expert opinion.

Remember clients choose to work with you because of the quality of the work you deliver; but

clients choose to say with you because they love your character – your personality.

Your communication or your brand voice – you need to communicate with your audience

regularly; in the voice that they want and in a style that they enjoy. You have to be engaging to keep

their attention and the way to do this is by writing good, fresh, relevant copy i.e. blogs, tips, reports

and videos etc. This is content your audience wants.

You also need to keep Google happy so you’re ranked and seen on the web when your prospects

search for help. This means knowing your prospect inside out – their needs, wants, and pains. You

need to add content including video regularly and keeping it SEO friendly.

You need to add your social media links too. After all, why put all your eggs in one basket with

Google? Diversify instead and be a little risk averse.

Remember these are only starting points for you. It’s up to you to own your online persona as a

leader and present the face you want to be known for to your clients consistently.

#2 How to be constantly in front of you target audience

By now you know that your services are exceptional, and you’ve already identified your market and

know where to find them. Your next task, therefore, is to determine what methods you'll use to get

your message in front of them.

SEO, blogging, guest blogging, commenting on other blogs and social media platforms are all

viable means. Then there’s email marketing for writing messages, the press, mailshots, networking,

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cold calling, speaking engagements, presenting and even writing a book.

The point I’m making here is that you need to get your message out to as many people as you

possibly can consistently. However, you need to be strategic, and you must have a system or else

you’ll get overwhelmed and give up.

I typically allow about 1 hour daily for this and I schedule this too. I know only too well that if it isn’t

scheduled it won’t get done so I use Google and ical as my tools, and I do it in the morning.

So look at your avatar – your ideal customer and prospect. Think about where they hang out and

how they like to be seduced.

And, if you’re not sure ask them, and track your Google Analytics and website stats.

#3 Converting prospects into customers and long-term clients

By now you know, as the sky is blue that people buy from people that they know like and trust. So

the only way to get to turn your prospects into clients is to develop the relationship.

Here are 5 steps you can start taking today to convert leads into long-term clients.

1. Know the goal

One reason many businesses do poorly with lead management is this: they fail to understand their

goal. The goal is this: to get the appointment - nothing more, and nothing less.

So stay focused on just getting the appointment and I promise you that you'll begin to see a

difference in the your lead conversion ratio.

2. Craft a powerful experience

Pay close attention here, because this is where it either happens or it doesn't. To get that

appointment you must craft a powerful experience for all the kinds of leads that come to you. An

experience that makes them say, "Wow, that's amazing!"

Create that experience by determining what your prospects want, then give them that and more.

For example, think about what would make them truly want to do business with you. Is it:

- A response to their inquiries within 15 minutes? - Handy and regular tips to help them with their

business? - Your personal, home phone number? - An introduction to someone who can help them

generate business?

Spell out on paper how to make leads say 'wow' for the different ways that leads come to you. For

example, how will phone calls from advertisements be handled? How will referrals from past clients,

and e-mail leads from your web site be dealt with too? Define the process, communicate it and

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make sure it’s implemented through management.

You're the architect. Build something worth talking about.

3. Categorize your prospects

Here’s a story as to how I used to categorize my prospects. I used to put them into 3 piles – the

good, the bad and the ugly. The good were hotties – ready to buy now. The bad were those that

had potential but needed to be nurtured and kept on the boil. The sales pipeline for them was

longer. The Ugly, however, were a long shot and even longer than them – if at all.

When it comes to categorizing your prospects, develop an action plan for each kind of lead. And

don't drool over the "Good" leads so much that you forget about the "Bad" and Ugly" – they're

potentially your future business. Finally, set up an auto-responder system so you can keep in

contact with them and develop the relationship.

4. Use technology

I'm a big fan of technology and tools to support your business, but I’m no techie. Technology can

help you manage your leads but converting them is a face-to-face and ear-to-ear job.

5. Embrace the basics

I’m going to let you in on a secret. Do you know why the top producers make so much money? It’s

because they embrace the basics.

That's it. They focus on the fundamentals - day in and day out. They get back to people quickly.

They listen. They respond professionally to what they hear. They do their homework. The tasks are

all very basic, yet they’re vital. And, with all the technological facilities and applications out there

these days, it's easy to lose site of the fundamentals. Don't do it.

Hold the basics near and dear to you and you’ll have laid the foundation for a remarkable business.

Conclusion

Whilst there are challenges for you to overcome when creating your personal brand, make no

mistake; there are more advantages available. And, whether you chose to play full out and embrace

it fully or not, one thing is certain – your clients, prospects and competitors will be expecting some

degree of brand personalization. So you can treat it as an asset now or get left behind.

Thank you, as always for reading. If you found this useful, please tell others and get them to sign up

to receive more information.

Wishing you much success!

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About the Author

Jane Frankland is a successful technology entrepreneur,

business consultant and speaker. She has built and sold her own

seven-figure business and is frequently invited to speak about

entrepreneurship, women in business, cyber security and social

media at events around the world. She has over 18 years worth of

experience in business development and has held directorships

and senior executive positions within her own companies and at

several large PLCs. She built her last business in her mid

twenties, and through her latest consultancy, KnewStart, provides

strategic business development solutions to existing or aspiring

entrepreneurs.

Jane believes passionately in entrepreneurship, empowerment and freedom. Through her work she

wants to see more businesses survive and thrive. She is particularly interested in modern business

development methods and is currently writing a book, Who The Google Are You, on how to harness

the power of the Internet for accelerated business growth.

Jane has a BA (Hons) from Loughborough University in Design, is a Nominated Young British

Designer and a Fellow of the Institute of Sales & Marketing (ISMM). She’s also a mother to three

children, has a Weimaraner dog and a black and white moggy. The question you’ll hear her ask the

most in business is ‘what’s your objective?’ The reason why is obvious. Time is precious and unless

you know why you’re doing something why do it at all. However, at home it’s always, “Shall we go?”

Jane can be contacted on:

Email: hello@jane-frankland.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/JaneFrankland LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/JaneFrankland

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