Marketing Archives - Downing https://www.downing.nz Authentic brands. Effective websites. Compelling marketing Mon, 13 Jun 2022 04:08:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.0 https://www.downing.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/favicon.png Marketing Archives - Downing https://www.downing.nz 32 32 Winning In the Age of Disruption https://www.downing.nz/winning-in-the-age-of-disruption/ Fri, 20 May 2022 04:51:17 +0000 https://www.downing.nz/?p=4417 The post Winning In the Age of Disruption appeared first on Downing.

]]>

Winning In the Age of Disruption

How do you maintain and grow sales in this age of massive disruption? Covid, world politics, rising costs and interest rates, staff shortages and general anxiety are smashing many businesses, affecting sales and profitability. How should we respond?

The game has changed. If we keep on doing the same thing and expect a different result, we delude ourselves. Is it time to make some active changes, investing time and attention in smart marketing?

Are you a Gatherer or a Hunter?

In the world of marketing, there are two types of business leaders: Gatherers and Hunters.

Gatherers grow their businesses by word-of-mouth referrals. They pick up customers more by accident rather than intentional marketing activity. They tend to get the low-hanging fruit of easy sales. I call this Passive Marketing and it is surprising how many businesses operate this way. Unfortunately, this is not working for many businesses anymore. Some of these passive marketing businesses are seeing a drop off in sales and are wondering how they are going to survive this next season.

In the age of disruption, the low-hanging fruit is being snapped up by the Hunters. Hunters don’t wait for customers to come through the door. They go and target new customers where they are doing life, and build a relationship with them. They spend time finding out what their customer’s pain points are. They use this information to create attractive solutions to their customer’s pain. Hunters are agile and prepared to adjust their products and services to solve customer problems, rather than trying to push their own agenda.

Once they know their products are good they develop engaging messages that connect with customers. They gain trust by answering questions that customers are asking. They provide value before they ask for a sale and they speak in a way that customers understand. They show their customers how their life will be so much better if they choose their solution.

Hunters know that they can’t win by relying on their direct sales alone. They seek to amplify their efforts through digital platforms that their customers are using. They go hunting on places like Facebook, Linkedin, TikTok, Youtube and Google. They know how to use email, digital advertising, and video to get attention and build a relationship to the point where they can ask for a sale.

Hunters are not happy with their website not coming up on the first page of Google. They are not happy if their website is failing to deliver leads or convert to sales. They are not happy when they invest in ads and have no way of measuring how effective they are. They expect to see results and take action when advertising and marketing fail to deliver results.

Courage is the main characteristic of the hunter. They are happy to put themselves out there, learn some new skills and give it a go. They are prepared to take some risk and invest in Marketing. If they can’t do this themselves they reach out for professional help to assist with this.

So what will it be? Passive or Active? Gatherer or Hunter?Hopefully, it will be happy hunting.

The post Winning In the Age of Disruption appeared first on Downing.

]]> What is a digital marketing strategy and why does your business need one? https://www.downing.nz/what-is-a-digital-marketing-strategy/ Mon, 13 Sep 2021 04:50:39 +0000 https://www.downing.nz/?p=3889 The post What is a digital marketing strategy and why does your business need one? appeared first on Downing.

]]>

What is a digital marketing strategy and why does your business need one?

Holly looking at you

The average person spends more than seven hours per day engaged in some form of digital media, over double what they spend on traditional media. With that number rising, having a digital marketing strategy for your business is now more important than ever.

What is a Digital Marketing Strategy?

Your Digital Marketing Strategy is a roadmap to a purposeful and consistent relationship with your audience online. It’s how you coordinate market intelligence to deliver your business goals. It includes a buying journey, from awareness, to consideration, to transaction, to ambassador.

Where do you start?

Your Digital Marketing Strategy is a fundamental part of your overarching marketing and business plan. Be clear on what your business goals are, then:

1. Define your audience and create their buying journey
2. From that, develop your consumer engagement funnel
3. Prepare messaging and assets for each stage of that funnel
4. Define your KPIs and create a schedule of deliverables

But wait, do you know what stage of the buying process your audience is at?

How you communicate with your audience depends on what stage of the buying journey they are at. The last thing you want to do is give the wrong message to the wrong audience.

Brand loyalty is like having a best friend. It’s a relationship that builds over time, and has different stages that build on common interests and respect. Knowing what stage your brand relationship is at is important; you wouldn’t reintroduce yourself to your best friend every time you chat! A strong strategy has responsive messages tailored to each stage of that customer journey.

Having a good Digital Marketing Strategy is fundamental for businesses to be successful online. Want to know more? Talk to us about how we can help you with loveable branding and purposeful marketing.

digital marketing should work with your business strategy

The post What is a digital marketing strategy and why does your business need one? appeared first on Downing.

]]> The number 1 marketing tool that will make the biggest impact, for little cost. https://www.downing.nz/the-number-1-marketing-tool-that-will-make-the-biggest-impact-without-costing-you-a-cent/ Thu, 19 Nov 2020 00:10:53 +0000 http://www.downing.nz/?p=2870 We live in an increasingly noisy world. We are inundated with messages trying to get our attention to buy, join, give, subscribe and engage. We shut off from most of them, but we open our wallets to messages that get our attention and speak to us.

The post The number 1 marketing tool that will make the biggest impact, for little cost. appeared first on Downing.

]]>

The number 1 marketing tool that will make the biggest impact for little cost.

We live in an increasingly noisy world. We are inundated with messages trying to get our attention to buy, join, give, subscribe and engage. We shut off from most of them, but we open our wallets to messages that get our attention and speak to us. We connect when businesses speak like they know us, offering products and services that make our life better, take away the pain and help us get to where we want to go. Many successful companies craft clear one-line messages that connect with customers and keep the cash coming in.

Crafting a one-liner is the most important marketing you can do and it won’t cost a cent, just your time.

This article shows four steps to create a powerful one-liner that will motivate customers to choose you instead of the competition. Once you have it sorted you will use your one-liner everywhere – on your website, business cards, email footer and anywhere you interact with clients or customers.

Powerful one-liners need to have four components, all beginning with a ‘P’:

1. Problems to solve

2. People who need a solution

3. Plans to solve the problem

4. Perfect outcomes

What’s the problem?

I guarantee that if you are in business, then you are solving a problem for someone. You need to identify that problem, pain or obstacle. Is it lack of time, skill, resources, knowledge, or bad health – the list is endless. The more specific you can be with the problem, the more effective your message will be.

Who is the person?

You need to define a specific person or group of people whose problem you are helping to solve. E.g. It could be Mums who have no time for themselves or it could be business leaders who find it hard to communicate with their customers.

What’s your plan?

Now talk about how you help solve your customers’ problems. What do you offer (in a word or two) that solves their problem? Let’s think of our Mums as if you own a gym. “Busy Mums get superior fitness with Social Spin –  the 20 minute fitness class that will help you live a happy, active life with your children”. The problem is lack of time but the plan is ‘Social Spin – the 20 minute fitness class’. 

What’s the perfect outcome?

Once you have defined a problem, a person and a plan, you need a perfect ending. How will what you offer make my life better? How will I feel once I have used your product or service – fit, healthy, free, confident, connected? In the example of a Mum above, she will have a ‘happy, active life with her children’.

Another example is our one-liner at Downing.

“In a noisy world, we help your business stand out with creative marketing that attracts customers, makes sales, and adds value to your products and services.”

The four P’s above are all in there. Notice the focus of the four P’s Is more about our customers and their needs and how their life will be better rather than all about our business.

Don’t try to be clever with your one-liner, just be clear. Donald Miller, the author of Story Brand says, ‘If you confuse, you lose.’ Your one-liner needs to be direct, clear and easy to understand. You are not trying to be clever, just clear. Don’t make your customers think too hard, give them a simple solution to their problem.

Have fun crafting your one-liner, then use it everywhere. Let me know how you get on.

The post The number 1 marketing tool that will make the biggest impact, for little cost. appeared first on Downing.

]]> Should I Cut My Marketing Budget During A Recession? https://www.downing.nz/should-i-cut-or-increase-my-marketing-budget-in-a-recession/ Mon, 14 Sep 2020 02:56:49 +0000 http://www.downing.nz/?p=2766 If your first reaction is to cut your marketing budget, when faced with a downturn, you should think again.

The post Should I Cut My Marketing Budget During A Recession? appeared first on Downing.

]]>

Should I Cut My Marketing Budget During A Recession?

If your first reaction is to cut your marketing budget, when faced with a downturn, you should think again.

It takes courage to maintain or even increase your marketing spend when there is so much negativity flying around.

Research shows positive results for investing in marketing

Research shows that those who stepped up their marketing in previous recessions enjoyed success. Businesses that maintained or increased their marketing spend in the 1981 economic downturn grew by 275% over those that cut back1. During the recession of 1991, businesses that increased their spending saw up to 70% increase in sales2. There were similar results for sales and profitability in 2001, and 2007 downturns3.

Cheesy soap operas wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for the Great Depression of the 1930s.  Radio advertising costs dropped dramatically at this time. Marketing giant Proctor & Gamble jumped on the opportunity and used their soap brands to sponsor radio dramas aimed at homemakers. P&G went into the depression between the 15th or 20th largest consumer packaged goods firm in the USA. By the time they came out of the depression it was the largest in the world.5

Marketing focuses on reaching new and existing markets, keeping your name and offer in the minds of customers, and delivers leads to your salespeople. It is a vital sharp-end of business growth. So marketing shouldn’t be the first thing you cut. 

    “A man who stops advertising to save money is like a man who stops a clock to save time.” — Henry Ford

      If competitors are withdrawing from marketing activity that will open the opportunity for you to jump into their place. It’s not a time to pull back, rather it’s time to push forward.

      Even if you can’t supply customer demand at the moment you can still focus on building your brand with customers. Rather than solely focusing on short-term tactical sales, such as discount offers, allocate resources to promote your brand.

      If you disappear from your customer’s minds then they may forget you or a competitor may take your place. History shows that recovery after a recession can be fast and furious. Those not prepared for it will miss out on the benefits of an economic upturn.

        Focus on what delivers results

        You will want to make sure you cut out any waste. It is important to focus your marketing efforts on what can be measured and delivers results. For this reason, we are looking to digital channels to work harder for us to produce a return on investment to the business owner. We are also being very careful with the use of traditional activities, such as events, sponsorship, and generic media advertising.  We are focussing on digital marketing that delivers sales results and therefore cash to the business owner. Digital marketing also makes it easier to control your marketing spend.

          To start with, make sure you identify problems your customers may have and then clearly communicate how your business can help solve these problems. Then select the best platforms to start communicating with your customers.

          It is unlikely that one marketing channel alone will deliver the results you are looking for. We suggest that you use many digital channels for marketing. Here are some tools that we are working with and seeing good results and will help rationalise your advertising spend:

          6 effective marketing tools that get results

          1

          A website that has a clear customer journey and makes a clear value offer is vital.  Having eCommerce enabled is essential for many businesses now. Writing good quality website content that answers customers’ questions is still an effective way to generate inquiries.

          2

          Investing time and effort into a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) platform is an effective way to harness the power of digital. A good CRM comes packed with tools to help you prospect for new business, convert people into customers, can provide support after the sale and ongoing communication with existing customers.

          3

          Social Media can build a large audience that can be converted to customers in ways traditional media never could.

          4

          Like social media, digital advertising can reach new markets and increase your market share in highly measurable and affordable ways.

          5

          Don’t forget email marketing. It is still a great way to retain a strong relationship with existing customers.

          6

          Lastly, direct contact either by phone or in-person is often the best approach.

          So, keep your advertising expenditures up unless your short term survival depends on it. Be wary of switching from marketing that builds your brand to price discounting.

          Be sensitive to how your customers are feeling and show empathy and care in your advertising. You may even look for opportunities to help others who are struggling at this present economic times.

          Keep sharing your brand good news, and if history is anything to go by the good times will return and so will strong sales and bigger profits.

          References

          1.  Advertising In A Recession (PDF)
          2. The History of Advertising During a Recession (Article)
          3. When A Recession Comes, Don’t Stop Advertising (Article)
          4. Don’t Go Dark (Article)

          The post Should I Cut My Marketing Budget During A Recession? appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>                     How to get your own Gifs and Stickers on Social Media https://www.downing.nz/how-to-create-a-gif-sticker-for-social-media/ Thu, 27 Aug 2020 05:07:23 +0000 http://www.downing.nz/?p=2617 Here’s your quick guide on how you can have your own set of custom branded gifs for use in Instgram and Tik Tok stories using Giphy.

          The post How to get your own Gifs and Stickers on Social Media appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>

          How to get your own Gifs and Stickers on Social Media

          Have you seen the little animated stickers used on Instagram and Facebook stories? Have you ever wondered how to get your own?

           

          Here’s your quick guide on how you can have your own set of custom branded gifs for use in social media. Spoiler alert: It’s a lot easier than you think…

          Why gifs are good

          Having a set of gifs/stickers available on social media enables your brand to be showcased anywhere in the world. They are known as ‘stickers’ in Instagram and Facebook, and are used by millions of people every day to add flavour to their stories.

          So how does it work? When one of your loyal customers share an Instagram story with your brand in it, they may decide to decorate the story with a sticker. They will search through a library of animated gifs until they find one that suits them, then share that post with all their followers. So what if you had your own brand assets available for them to use in their stories? Instead of using a generic gif, they could simply search for your brand name and grab one of your unique gifs to add to their story. 

          Your brand is then seen by all their contacts. Boom that’s free advertising!

          How do you get your own branded gifs appearing on social media?

          The biggest gif platform is a company named Giphy — they serve more than 10 billion gifs every day to social platforms such as Instagram and Facebook. If you want your brand to appear in Instagram or facebook search results, you need a verified Giphy account.

          Gifs vs Stickers? Gifs and Stickers are much the same thing. Gifs are short animated images; stickers are a type of gif, but with transparency and are available in social media.

          This ‘help me’ gif has had more than 13,000,000 views!

          Hold up… How do you actually pronounce Gif?

          Some favour the hard ‘G’ (as in gift), and others the soft ‘G’ (as in gym). And don’t get us started on the rebels who pronounce each letter independently. It’s fair to say this is an incendiary topic that has rustled many jimmies. We’ll leave the pronunciation decision to you and skip straight to answer the ‘how?’ question.

          How to get verified on Giphy

          The way to get your Gifs and stickers appearing in social media starts with Giphy. It’s easy to set up an account and (at the time of writing) free! The tricky step is getting verified. Each sticker you see on Instagram stories comes from a Giphy account that has been approved by the Giphy team. Unfortunately there is no guarantee that your account will get verified so it is important that you upload high-quality gifs, and meet all the Giphy criteria.

          Here’s your step-by-step process to get started:

          1. Set up your Giphy account at https://giphy.com/join 
          2. Pick your username and display name, insert your social media links, and write a sparkly blurb about your business.
          3. Upload gifs! To get verified you need to upload at least five gifs before you can apply. If you don’t have the five gifs to get started, we can help you with that. Scroll down to see how.
          4. Once you’ve uploaded those gifs then you can apply for verification at https://giphy.com/apply
          5. Now we wait. Verification is not guaranteed, nor is it a quick process—in some cases it can take months for approval. So cross those fingers and go enjoy life.

          We can help you through each step if you need.

          Quick Tip: Giphy like to see social media accounts that are active. Are you engaging with your followers and posting regularly? This will help you during the verification process. Take a look at some of Giphy’s tips on getting verified here.

          Help! I need five gifs to get the verification process started!

          One of the hurdles that businesses face is having the five-gif-minimum to get started. Downing can help you develop a gif pack. We’ve been helping businesses of all sizes produce stunning marketing for more than 25 years and we use a creative approach to help you get gifs that work with your brand. Tell us about your business,  and the types of gifs you want by getting in contact with us. We will then give you an idea of the costs involved for Downing to produce your very own gifs. 

          The post How to get your own Gifs and Stickers on Social Media appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>                     Don’t propose to your customers on the first date. https://www.downing.nz/dont-propose-to-your-customers-on-the-first-date/ Mon, 10 Feb 2020 01:15:20 +0000 https://www.downing.nz/?p=2364 Your future spouse needs to get to know you before they are ready to spend the rest of their lives with you. It’s the same with your customers. Many businesses ask for the sale before they’ve built a relationship and wonder why they get rejected.

          The post Don’t propose to your customers on the first date. appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>

          Don’t propose to your customers on the first date.

          Your future spouse needs to get to know you before they are ready to spend the rest of their lives with you. It’s the same with your customers. Many businesses ask for the sale before they’ve built a relationship and wonder why they get rejected.

          There’s a whole journey that customers take as they move towards buying a product or service. The buying journey framework is an effective way to plan your communication activity and understand your customer’s needs. Successful businesses master the art of engaging with their audience and potential customers during every stage of their buying journey.

          Downing-Diagrams-customer-journey

          Awareness ——————

          The first stage in your customer’s journey is awareness. Your customers start out with no idea that you exist. You need to let them know who you are, what you offer, and why they should choose you. Optimising your website for search engines, creating valuable content, and running digital ad campaigns can all help you create awareness.

          Interest ——————

          Now your customers know that you exist, help them engage further with you. Be interesting! Have a beautiful brand and stellar photography to tell your story. Talk to them in their language, using words and phrases that they can relate to.

          Create ‘High-Value Content’ that helps them solve a problem in their decision making and give it away for free. If you’re selling mountain bikes, write a comprehensive guide titled, “what to look for when buying a new mountain bike”. You’ll immediately gain credibility with your potential customers because you’ve offered them something valuable. You don’t want to focus on promoting and selling your product at this stage because your customer hasn’t progressed to the decision stage in their journey. This could be in the form of a post on your website, video on social media or a PDF that customers can download. It’s a good idea to get the customer’s email address in exchange for the ‘High-Value Content’ so you can begin to build an ongoing dialogue with them via email.

          Desire ——————

          Now you’ve established rapport and begun to build a relationship, you’ll need to create the desire in your customer’s minds to choose you and your product or service over your competitors. At this stage, your customer might have questions like, “What do I like about this business that would make me choose them and their products over and above everyone else?” “Will I receive good value from this business?”  By the way – value doesn’t mean offering the lowest price. Value means providing the best customer experience, solving problems and having great communication.

          Action ——————

          When a customer decides to buy from you, it’s because you’ve communicated effectively that the whole experience your brand offers is the best choice for them. Now it’s time to ask them to buy. Give them obvious and easy ways to purchase.

          Delivery ——————

          Getting a customer to buy isn’t the end of the process. How you deliver your product or service will determine how your customer feels about their experience. Great communication is essential at this stage – particularly for big-ticket items or service-based business. It’s important for customers to feel like their expectations have been met and for you to address anything that wasn’t quite right.

          Support ——————

          If there is an issue with your service delivery or product, you have the opportunity to turn customers around from what could be a negative experience into a positive experience. This can only happen if you can communicate well and effectively resolve the problem.

          Advocacy ——————

          If you’ve delivered well and supported your customer through their buying journey, you can expect to build a genuine fan! They’ll tell their friends, engage on social media, and share their positive experiences. They can even begin to lead other customers through the purchasing journey.

          When you introduce a new product, your advocates re-enter their purchase journey at a much later stage, because they already love working with you.

          Remember that not everyone is ready to buy right away. Make sure you continue to build communication tools that help your customers move along their journey towards becoming an advocate and loyal fan of your business.

          The post Don’t propose to your customers on the first date. appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>                     Should I have a social media page instead of a website — or both? https://www.downing.nz/should-i-have-a-social-media-page-instead-of-a-website-or-both/ Fri, 13 Sep 2019 23:44:46 +0000 https://www.downing.nz/?p=2326 As social media platforms, like Facebook and Instagram, have become increasingly popular the relationship between brand and audience have become easier to navigate. This has led some businesses to use social media exclusively to promote their business instead of a website. There are a few important factors that need to be considered before making this decision.

          The post Should I have a social media page instead of a website — or both? appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>

          Should I have a social media page instead of a website — or both?

          As social media platforms, like Facebook and Instagram, have become increasingly popular the relationship between brand and audience have become easier to navigate. This has led some businesses to use social media exclusively to promote their business instead of a website. There are a few important factors that need to be considered before making this decision.

          Control ———————

          While a social media page is yours, it is owned by a third-party site, and so must follow their terms of service. If you violate their terms of service your page could be blocked or even shut down. In comparison, a website and its content is owned by you and is yours to control. A website also won’t be affected by the same social media algorithms that affect engagement. Also, to use social media as your main digital communication tool, your potential customer will also need to have a social media page of their own. A website is ready and available to anyone.

          Design ———————

          Social media restricts how you can set out content and information. While your page will be unique to your brand, it will have the exact same layout and design as every other brand. A website allows you creative freedom to show off your brand through a multitude of avenues.

          Revenue 

          ———————

          A website allows you to not only sell your product or service but also sell ad space to generate revenue. This is not always an option through social media platforms.

          Stats ———————

          On many social media platforms, your page statistics are visible for anyone to see. This can be great, but also detrimental if you haven’t yet built up a large following. The more followers you have, the more likes you will receive. Your website’s statistics are your own. You’re free to do with them what you will, and your audience doesn’t know how many visitors your site has each month.

          Delivery

          ———————

          Social media pages need you to read through the content to find out what the brand is and what they do. A website gives you control of what you want your audience to see and can provide them with all the information they need quickly. Your website may also increase perceived credibility to your brand.

          Engagement

          ———————

          Social media allows you to easily interact with your audience. Yet, if people stop engaging with your posts as much and visit your page less, social media algorithms may remove your content from the feed. A website makes it a lot harder to build and engage audiences, but you’re not going to lose engagement due to algorithms.

          Competition

          ———————

          On social media your competitors are everywhere. There’s more content on social media than anyone has time to read or view. If your content isn’t the most engaging thing in someone’s NewsFeed they’re going to scroll right past it. A website is your own territory. If someone is on your site, they’re there to see you. Keeping them on your website and engaging with them is your next challenge.

          The Verdict

          ———————

          We aren’t saying you shouldn’t have a social media page for your brand at all, but it’s not going to be enough on its own. A website is a necessity. Both – working together – are great! Your website should be the ‘hub’ of your online presence, whereas social media platforms should be used as a marketing tool for your brand. This way, you’re in control of your brand and what you want your audience to see. Use social media as a tool to drive traffic back to your website and engage with your brand.

          The post Should I have a social media page instead of a website — or both? appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>                     How to beat Google – try a different strategy. https://www.downing.nz/how-to-beat-google/ Tue, 02 Jul 2019 22:16:46 +0000 https://www.downing.nz/?p=1760 If you’ve Googled your brand’s website lately, you’ve probably noticed something. Perhaps your listing used to be near the top of the search results or at least made the first page. Now, it’s halfway down the page, or doesn’t even make the cut! What gives?

          The post How to beat Google – try a different strategy. appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>

          If you’ve Googled your brand’s website lately, you’ve probably noticed something. Perhaps your listing used to be near the top of the search results or at least made the first page. Now, it’s halfway down the page, or doesn’t even make the cut! What gives?

          Over the past several years, Google has made a lot of changes to the Search Engine Results Page (SERP), slowly adding more and more features that optimise the user experience. Information has never been easier to find. People want to know the age of a specific public figure? Instead of having to go to their Wikipedia page, Google will provide it in a ‘featured snippet’ or information card. Want to find restaurants nearby? Google will give you a list with reviews attached.

           

          Why is Google getting harder? 

          While these features make it easier for the consumer to find information, they’ve made it much harder for businesses to achieve organic listings, and thus, organic traffic to their website. If you search up your brand’s general industry, you’ll likely find two paidlistings, a local pack, map, or a knowledge graph, before finally reaching the organic listings – already halfway down the page!

          Consumers can usually distinguish between paid listings and organic listings, however, there is still a portion of people that will ultimately click on a paid listing instead. And ads are becoming more expensive and difficult to spot. Where they once had a yellow ad icon beside them, the icon is now much less prominent, making it look more like an organic listing at a glance.

          It’s not your ranking that’s the problem. More than likely, your ranking has remained fairly consistent over the past few years, even if your listing has moved down the page. It’s because while rankings are fairly resistant to change, your placement on the SERP page isn’t. Depending on what someone searches, different SERP features may appear for them, which will affect your listing’s position on the page.

          Thankfully, there is a way you can still achieve great amounts of organic traffic. How? By not focusing on beating Google.

           

          Play a different game

          The fact is, you can’t truly beat Google at their own game. If SERP listings is a game of chess, Google is a chess grandmaster and everyone else is an amateur at best or doesn’t even know how to play.

          What you can do is play a different game. We have found that people will often search Google for brand names they know rather than generic product categories. Customers want to find out more info about the brands they are buying. Things like what ingredients you use and where they come from, what is your sustainability policy or what sort of service and support you provide?

          If your branding is strong and effective, your target audience will search for your specific brand name. If you can make your brand known and remembered outside of Google, consumers will choose you over your competition – without having to look at a SERP page filled with ads, maps and reviews.

          Build your brand

          Building a strong brand is the key to success. Harness strong ownership over your brand’s creative elements, and work on communicating with your target audience in the most effective way. Determine what makes your brand different from your competition; what unique offer or story your brand can give consumers that makes you stand out. Establish what your target audience wants, and how you can give it to them.

           

          Tips to build a brand outside of Google

          • Email lists are very effective for connecting with your audience without relying on Google. Email lists are like a pneumatic tube of sorts from which your content is sent straight to your audience in a neat little package.
          • Create content that solves a problem for your audience. Great quality content will keep people interested in what your brand has to say, and make them want to keep listening.
          • Social media is a great avenue for which to build the story of your brand, and communicate with your audience directly.

          We are not saying, give up on trying to get higher rankings on Google. We are saying, rather, don’t focus on beating Google at a game you can’t win. Focus on building a powerful brand, with effective marketing so people come to Google with your name in their mind already.

          The post How to beat Google – try a different strategy. appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>                     How to define your brand’s purpose https://www.downing.nz/what-is-the-purpose-of-purpose-when-it-comes-to-branding/ Wed, 05 Jun 2019 03:28:26 +0000 http://134.209.14.202/?p=1545 “What a tragedy it would be to climb the ladder of success only to find it’s leaning against the wrong wall.” Success is all about having the right purpose. This is not so much about what you are doing but why you are doing it, and is something to be thinking of when creating your brand. Brands that have a clear purpose and a deeper meaning are very attractive and resonate with their customers with authenticity.

          The post How to define your brand’s purpose appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>

          Brands with a purpose connect emotionally

          “What a tragedy it would be to climb the ladder of success only to find it’s leaning against the wrong wall.” Success is all about having the right purpose. This is not so much about what you are doing but why you are doing it, and is something to be thinking of when creating your brand. Brands that have a clear purpose and a deeper meaning are very attractive and resonate with their customers with authenticity.

          As the world moves away from traditional mass media like radio and TV, and into the fragmented world of online channels, the job of the brand in creating its audience is that much more important. Traditional mass media tends to deliver you to an existing audience, but in the digital world, this onus falls onto the brand to attract and appeal to their ideal customers, and to stand out in the vast sea of competition. Only a few get this right.

          Brands that have had success with this, have built their followers by standing for something much bigger than the products or services they sell. These brands know that people gather around ideals and causes that resonate with them, and so create their purpose around these.

          A decade ago Dove turned a bland soap pack that claimed to be ‘creamy’, into a purpose-driven brand on a mission to ‘make women feel comfortable in the skin they are in, to create a world where beauty is a source of confidence and not anxiety’. They have done this in a way that feels really authentic, and so have built a loyal following of believers that are attracted to this message and purpose.

          Some other examples of brands that have clear purpose and meaning are:

          • TED – Ideas worth spreading. ‘We believe in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately the world.’
          • FedEx – The world on time
          • Amazon – to be the earth’s most customer-centric company
          • Starbucks – ‘To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time.’

          While this sounds great for the bigger brands, you may be thinking but what about my small or medium-sized business? Well, all who are now big were once small too, and they would have faced the same challenges and successes that you do. The difference these established brands have is that they have had more energy – energy born from their desire to fulfil their purpose and make a change.

          How do you dig deeper to define your purpose?

          Define your big ‘why’

          • Ask yourself the following questions:
          • Who are you?
          • What do you do?
          • Why does it matter?
          • This helps you work through where you are now in a practical sense and connects to your higher purpose. You are not trying to create a slogan but a clear statement of why you exist. The slogan may come later. Keep on asking yourself ‘Why does it matter?’ until you get down to your core purpose.

          Define your enemy

          Working out what you are fighting against can help define what you are fighting for. Are you against bad design, pollution, poor customer service, ignorance or lost potential. The list is endless.

          Keep it simple

          Try to wrap your thinking up in a simple statement or a few words. You want something that is easy to work with and easy to communicate. The ultimate is to get your purpose down to one word. The first word that comes to mind when you mention Volvo is ‘safety’. If you can do the same you will be doing well.

          Make it emotive

          You can make your purpose easier to remember if it has emotion or if it makes some kind of promise and provides hope. Emotive words such as vitality, adventure, freedom, achievement are examples of words that connect emotionally and can make a purpose pack a punch.

          Defining and creating a purpose statement is just the beginning. The real exciting step is making it a reality through every part of your organisation. Getting all stakeholders onboard with your purpose, living and breathing it is the challenge of a life time – let me know how you get on?

          Brands that have a clear purpose and a deeper meaning are very attractive and resonate with their customers with authenticity.

          The post How to define your brand’s purpose appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>                     People ignore brands that ignore people… https://www.downing.nz/people-ignore-brands-that-ignore-people/ Tue, 04 Jun 2019 23:58:12 +0000 http://134.209.14.202/?p=1494 … or people love brands that love people. It’s a simple thought but it’s one that I work hard to bring people back to. A brand doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It lives in the real world, repelling competitors, and attracting customers

          The post People ignore brands that ignore people… appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>

          … or people love brands that love people. It’s a simple thought but it’s one that I work hard to bring people back to. A brand doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It lives in the real world, repelling competitors, and attracting customers

          Some people in business start by developing a product but few start by developing the customer. ‘Build it and they will come’ is the mantra. Then you get focused on pushing that product or service to customers because you have sales targets and bills to pay. Ask yourself, how do I move from being a corporate-focused, product-focused brand to a customer, people-focused brand?

          Think Small
          One way you can start is to think small. In your thinking and planning create your brand for one person before you try to get hundreds or thousands of customers. Think about that one person, their fears, their pain points, where they live, what they do in their spare time, their work environment, social habits, what they read and watch and what they do in the weekend. What keeps them up at night and what do they dream about doing in the future? Then begin to imagine how your product or service will solve their problems. How does it fit into their world? The answers to these types of questions will help form systems, culture and communication that is more about your customer than you.

          Create an experience that is bigger than the product.
          Ask yourself ‘how can we make what we offer the best experience for our customer?’ How are they going to feel after using our product? Will they feel like a rock star celebrity or ‘just another brick in the wall’? What amazing experience are you going to provide that will cause them to talk and share with their friends? I have clients who call their customers 3 months after they buy their product to see how it was going, to make sure everything was ok. The amount of new business they generated by showing they care was astounding.

          Walk in your customers shoes
          Think about the journey customers take to connect with your brand. How will they make the decision to buy your product and what obstacles they have to overcome to find you? How will they hear about you? What will convince them to get in touch with you? How will they contact you? What will the experience be like when they do get in touch? Will you embrace like friends or meet with a cautious smile?

          ‘Gimme what I want, what I really really want’
          Someone once said ‘You don’t go into a hardware store to buy a drill what you really want is a hole. Work out the outcome your customers want. When you know what they really want then you will speak a different language. Speak to the outcome that you are providing rather than the product you are selling.

          When you have developed your customer journey and experience then go to a wider audience with a voice that speaks to an individual person with emotion and personality. Make your communication more like two people having a chat and you will connect with authenticity.

          You don’t go into a hardware store to buy a drill, what you really want is a hole. Work out the outcome your customers want.

          The post People ignore brands that ignore people… appeared first on Downing.

          ]]>