Brading is much more than just your logo, it also includes the business colourways, fonts, uniforms and even company ethos! All of this together helps t build up a recognisable brand. If you think of companies such as McDonalds for example, you think of red and yellow, their mascot, their logo and also their uniform. All of their restaurants are easily recognisable and have some consistence no matter where they are. You can spot a McDonalds even in a different country.

Your branding and logo etc should be consistent throughout all your marketing whether it be online or offline. Some companies have branding for their premises but then when they get a website created, decide that they want to use something else. This can cause confusion for customers who may question whether you are in the same business. If they go on to your website and see the same branding as on the front of your shop they will then already have a certain amount of trust which is a very important part of selling online.

If you want to change your branding be sure to update everything as quickly as possible. You ideally want all your branding to match within a few weeks of introducing it.

Every business should think about their branding. Branding is not just your logo or your strapline it encompasses everything your business represents and stands for. It does include you logo, colourways, marketing material and website but it also covers your business values and ethos.

The more recognised your brand is the more chance to have of securing deals and making sales. Marketing is the best way to build up you brand and get your business recognised. There are so many different ways in which you can market your business that you may not know where’s best to invest your time and money. If this is the case then it is strongly recommend that you seek the help and advice of a marketing expert

If you are a business that sells to other businesses then you will need to have a different marketing strategy to a business that sells direct to the public. Some parts may overlap but your overall focus will probably be quite different.  Often with business to business sales the brand reputation and recognition is even more important.

When dealing with other businesses you need to make it feel like you are a partner of theirs, working together towards a goal rather than a sales person trying to get them to buy your product.

Video marketing can be highly effective and although it is often not cheap, it can work really well for many businesses.

According to the latest research the average person has an attention span of just over 8 secs. That means you have just 8 seconds in which to grab their attention long enough for them to want to continue watching. This is why it is vitally important that your intro is great.

Don’t focus too much on trying to get your video to go viral. If this is going to happen, it will happen because you have created some create content not because you have promoted it across lots of different platforms constantly. You can over promote your video which can have the opposite effect to what you want. Instead, ensure that you create your video ad with your target audience in mind.

Don’t skimp on filming – many companies spend a long time on working out the details of their video, what is going to happen, who will be in it and what will be said but then when it actually comes to the filming, they don’t invest in quality video software or use the wrong company to produce it for them. This can waste all your hard work and effort.

If you have recently set up a business or have an established business but are looking in to marketing a bit more then you should never underestimate the importance of customer feedback and reviews.

Far too many businesses don’t pay enough attention to customer feedback and don’t investigate returned products or complaints in enough details. This can have a very detrimental effect on the business in the long term. Depending on what type of business you have and how you sell your products, you may need to gather feedback in different ways. If you deal direct with the public then you may want to use social media to gain reviews for your services and products. Be sure to get permission from your customers before you post anything on social media about them (photos, quotes etc) and try and remember to ask as many of them as possible to leave a review for you through Facebook etc. 

If someone leaves you negative feedback it is vital that you do not ignore it. You need to investigate what has happened and respond to it as soon as possible. Try and be polite and offer a solution and ideally get in contact with them to discuss the matter further.

The past 14 months has been a very strange time for many businesses. Some businesses have done really well while many are still struggling at the moment. If you are one of the businesses that are struggling then you may need to think on new ways in which you can start to grow your business and start to increase your turnover again. Online marketing can be really effective and show quick and instant results, if you chose the right avenues to invest your time and money in.

As we have not been able to have much face to face contact with people recently, online marketing has become even more important as many of the sales and enquiries you have will need to come vis your website. If you do not already use one of the many social media platforms to market your business then now definitely is the time to get on board. Social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram can help you reach thousands of people in an instance. This can quickly grow your business. Much of social media marketing is free so your return can be very profitable.

You may have been considering selling your products or services online in the past but never actually made the commitment. If this is the case then now would be the perfect time to take the plunge.