Creative Business Branding 101 – How to Set Yourself Apart
30. Jul, 2012 
38 Comments
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Circles - ORIGINAL mixed media painting| by: Cherylconnell
Branding is one of those subjects that can be very confusing for small business owners just starting out. Referring to business, when you here the term “branding” what comes to mind?
- A logo
- A style, look, or feel
- An ideal
But how? Well let’s start with the basics. Keep these 3 things in mind.
What is a brand?
A brand tells who you are, what you do, and how you do it.
You reflect your brand, and people perceive your brand.
Why you need a brand.
- To set yourself apart
- Effective Marketingperceive
How to create your brand.
Okay, creating your brand…
- Mission Statement. Why do you do what you do. Your goal for your business…besides to make a profit? This can go on your shop profile or in your shop announcement. Definitely on your “About Me” page if you have a website or blog. Keep it semi-short though. People don’t want to read a book! To do this, explain why you create the products you sell. Tell who your selling them to {your target market}. Example: My mission is to provide affordable handmade, natural kitchen utensils made from the finest materials available in order to provide my customers with beautiful, long-lasting, quality products for their homes.
- Describe your products
- Describe your target market
- Business or Product NameKeywords: handmade, natural, quality. Business name: The Handmade Kitchen.
- Tagline. Taglines need to reinforce your mission statement. They’re obviously shorter, but they need to convey the same message. Example: Affordable, handmade, quality utensils that add beauty to any kitchen.
How to use your brand.
. Don’t forget to get the color codes used in your graphics. If you ever need more graphics you’ll want your colors to match up.
Tell me what you’ve done to brand your business.
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awesome write up…totally makes sense ..and something I have been looking at more recently… I just struggle with target market … that’s the one area Im so stuck on
Check out this article by April Bowles-Olin of Blacksburg Belle…it’s about how to identify your ideal customer…aka. target market!
http://bit.ly/fDSOM1
Hope this helps you! Go get it!
I just had a logo, banner & avatar designed by a fellow Etsyian — bymasselyn. Very affordable and well worth it. (The avatar should show up here if I did everything right at Gravatar yesterday!) I’m also splurging and having some professional pictures taken of just a handful of my bags for promotional purposes. As soon as I they’re ready, I’m getting some MOO cards with the new logo and pictures. I absolutely hate my old cards now that I have the new design. Now if I can just get my courage up to work on getting my bags in some local shops, I’ll have accomplished the next goal on my list!
Wow! Way to go girl! You are on the ball. Good luck with all your projects, and go ahead and schedule what you need to do to get your bags in some local shops into your planner now! Don’t wait!!!
This is goooooood info.
Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it Debra!
Great info Meagan. Something more for me to take on board, inwardly digest, and action it. Eek!
Thank you.
Sue
amazingbeads
I recently changed shops to have my shop name reflect what I sell more accurately. I’m re photographing everything to have a similar look, and I’m going to have a new logo made up to show my brand better.
Good for you Jacqueline & good luck with your shop graphics.
Thanks Megan off to read…
I have a wide variety of items, an eclectic mix. That confuses me as to my brand, because I carry many styles. Any thoughts on this?
Thanks,
Liz
Hey Liz! I took a look at your shop, and you can definitely come up with a brand for your business. You sell jewelry. It doesn’t matter that it’s eclectic…it’s all jewelry. Go through the steps…starting with your mission statement and move on from there. Your brand will revolve around your handmade, one of a kind, jewelry. You can have different product lines {metal cast jewelry and so forth} as long as it’s jewelry. Does this all make sense?
Thanks Meagan! Very informative. You’ve provided some very clear specific ideas…
Great advice. Thanks much.
I’m so glad you all are learning so much!
This is a great post! and am gleaning so much from the comments as well! Thanks!
I’m afraid I tend to be “all over the place” with my things, but I finally came up with a tag line… “Bags, Tags, and Girlie Things” LOL that should about sum it up…sorta! Could you take a look at my shop and give any suggestions? Would love it!
my shop: http://www.sweetjeanette.etsy.com
I noticed there’s no link in my name. sorry about that.
Hey Jeanette! I did check your shop out, & here are 3 things I think you should focus on.
1) You need a shop banner. It looks professional & it should reflect your brand.
2) Narrow your focus down. You don’t want your shop to look like a flea market. You want a specific category of products. You’re bags and clutches look very well made. If it were me, I’d brand my business around them. I’d focus on listing a lot of different options for customers to choose from.
3) Work on photos. Everyone shop’s photos get better over time. Read as much as you can about how to take better pictures & practice, practice, practice. Here are some things to consider…backgrounds, lighting, & props.
Hope this helps Jeanette! Good luck!
Can you explain this part to me….”Market & Promote it. Your brand that is. I’m not talking about your business or your products. I’m talking about your brand.”?
Does that mean every time I mention my business, Jewels by Trish, I should add more to it to keep the branding going.
This is my Etsy shop if you need more info on me: http://www/jewelsbytrish.etsy.com
Thanks!
I’m so sorry Trish! That’s actually a typo! It should read, “I’m not talking about your services or your products.” not business or your products. Again, I’m very sorry for the confusion.
Here’s what I mean.
Your shop’s niche is jewelry. There are a millions people who make and sell jewelry. You need to brand your shop. You want it to stand out among the crowd. What makes your jewelry different than most other shops. Do you use rare gemstones in all your pieces? Do you make every single piece by hand {not buying premade anything, I mean}? Do you only buy American made products? Whatever sets you apart and makes you different.
I suggest following my steps above, coming up with a tagline to put on your banner, and then when you market or advertise your shop – talk about what it is that makes you distinct. Use your tagline. Then people will know and be familiar with your business so that when you launch a new product in your shop, they’ll automatically think it’s as great as the rest of your products without you having to do much promoting at all.
Does that make sense?
This is such great information- I have a background in marketing and PR but sometimes when it’s something close to you, an outside source really helps bring things into focus better. I’m giving some though to changing my tagline based on your comments- trying to find one that conveys the coziness of the product line (my items are all made from vintage sweaters) but I also want to play up the idea of surrounding oneself with pretty things just to brighten the day…..would love any thoughts!
http://www.linaloos.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/linaloos
One other thing I would suggest to others is to look into whether your area has a group or society promoting handmade items- I just applied to Handmade Boston for the networking potential and for the feedback from others in the same line of business.
Hey Jennifer! I totally get what you’re saying about it being more difficult to critique your own products since you see them so much!
I took a look at your website & shop & my suggestion for a tagline would be something along the lines of “Brighten Your Day With Eco-Friendly Accessories From Vintage Sweaters”. Also, write up 3-4 drafts & have a few people take a look at your shop & pick which one fits your biz best!
I’m also loving your keychains! I think you’ve got a great thing going with them. Keep up the good work & it will pay off.
off to write my mission statement. thank you for your wise words.
Completely agree!
thanks for sharing these useful tips =] I’m trying them out on y etsy
x
Great post!
I have worked really hard on this but I feel like the word “branding” throws me off. It is just so hard to see! Does that make sense? Its hard to do it when you can’t see it…lol
Would you stop by my shop? Tell me what you think? http://www.etsy.com/shop/MegsCrochetJewels
Thanks!!
WOW Meghan! Your jewelry is beautiful! It’s definitely something that you don’t see everyday so you have a great selling point there.
I took a look at your shop, FB & Twitter profiles, & your blog & of course I’m just going by a quick review here, but you seem to be staying pretty consistent with your photos & banner, but not so much your blog & Twitter backgrounds. To me personally, it’s worth paying the money to hire a designer to design graphics that fit your brand to use everywhere. You can find some pretty good priced designers on Etsy if you look around. Pick 2-3 colors & 2 fonts that you’re consistent with across the board. You’ll look more focused & professional.
One other thing I noticed was your tagline…you say your jewelry is for everyone. To me that doesn’t make me want to buy it if it’s for everyone. I want something unique, handmade, & special. It pays to narrow down your target market & get yourself into a niche!
Good luck! Again, you have beautiful products!
Great Advice! I changed the name of my store and logo recently and have seen a huge difference in my sales! Branding really works. Thanks for the article!
You’re so welcome! I’m glad you’re seeing benefits from it. You have a beautiful shop, BTW! Stick with it!
I’m still reading through your article and, as always, learning more and more!
One thing caught my eye as I was reading about branding. You (or someone) suggested getting the color codes when you order banners/avatars so you can match up colors later on down the road.
Here’s a really simple tool that matches colors exactly every single time: ColorCop. It’s a small download that can tell you the exact color code just by pointing it over the color you want to match. http://www.colorcop.com
I’ve used this hundreds of times and consider it one of the handiest gadgets I have on my computer!
Just went to check this out. The website is actually http://www.colorcop.net. Thanks so much for the tip Marcia! This looks really great!
It seems that the article is incomplete? There are bullets that have nothing next to them & some of the sentences end in the middle. Looks like a useful article, but I would like to read it in its entirety.
Branding is one of those aspects of business development people often forget. They are so involved with the product and service, they neglect to make it memorable and distinguishable to buyers. Having a tag, defining your target market and appealing to their needs is essential to stand out from your competitors and make people think of your business.
Any mission statement ideas. Business is called Jewelryology. I made earrings?!?!?!