5 Facets in Your Marketing
We all see in our own lives a sphere of influence that we have in our small interpersonal relationships. Is this not the case for our brands within our marketplace sphere? The connection between different channels of communication, visual data/input and tone/messaging creates a unique shape of who we are. This differentiated shape becomes that understandable piece to those around us. Who, what and how we are. If you look at science and mathematics you will see that shapes, whether tangible or intangible, scatter that landscape. They depict outcomes, journeys and predictions. Looking at a branded company as a similar entity we can see that there are parallel patterns. The shapes have facets that require each plane to support its adjacent plane in order to exist in the space cohesively, balanced and effective. What are these facets?
Photo: Engage
5 Facets of Your Company Brand:
- Branding
- Web Presence
- Engagement
- Search
- Online Marketing
Each one of these facets must be developed with equal focus and consideration within the marketplace sphere in order to maintain an order and balance. One outstepping the other will cause the outcome to falter, creating imbalance and expended energy putting out fires along that path. We don’t always see this as we start to execute within a specific media. We become stuck sometimes within one arena we are more comfortable in or would prefer to spend our time in and perhaps disregard the other facets as less important or procrastinate in attending to them. In this circumstance the shape of your marketing objective becomes off balance and off the mark. The marketing sphere (your audience) will still digest the message and the content but the result will be less than effective with marginal results.
How can we keep the shape of our marketing efforts balanced?
- Start with a strong brand foundation – Align your Messaging with your audience’s needs and expectations. The visuals providing that emotional connection that delivers a clear message and the cultural or lifestyle perception of the brand to be consistent with what the audience believes the product/service will offer.
- Build it into your web presence – Your brand now has a voice and can tell a more detailed story of what the customer/client is going to receive with as much valuable content that is necessary without (and this is important) overwhelming them.
- Engagement needs to be a two way street – Dialogue needs to happen and don’t expect to blurt your material all over your customer/client. Allow them to be first engaged in the subject (paint them ‘their’ picture) and be able to add in their own content where admissible while keeping from adding any of YOUR ‘seagulls’ into their picture. Giving your audience some say in your brand within guided parameters gives them power (and you growth)!
- Search and be found – If your customer/client is looking for ‘stoves’ please don’t try to sell them ‘range tops’. Not everyone understands your underground jargon or will adopt it so please be thoughtful to your audience in providing the right search criteria that suits them rather than your internal ‘tech’ department manuscript.
- Online never stops – So you have each facet working, now keep the plates spinning. It might be a push on your brand plate or a tap on your engagement but each facet has to maintain in continuous motion and harmony. Take that step back to review each one in unison in its entire form. The branded shape needs to allow for ongoing input to keep it fresh and have a measurement for it. Guessing is just that … guessing.
So how is your shape faring? Is your polygon (polyhedron) wobbling at the moment? Check and see which facet you are not attending to or perhaps lacking completely. Then make adjustments to keep the shape of the company brand expanding and sustainable. The best part of evaluating your brand is that you can always re-hone your branded presence to get the perfect balance for success!
@anyadowning
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#4 – So glad someone's saying it out loud and proud! Who searches for "range top"? :)
Great post Anya!
I really like the visual you've provided as well!
Exactly Mallie! Yet I have been in meetings where the conversation has been around just that … "Oh no, we have to use this terminology for our customers!". Uh, perhaps not. ;-)
Thank you Dan! We are all primarily visually oriented in our engagement, emotional connections and of course buying.
I find the best way to counter number 4 is to show them how it will affect their bottom line. If you show them how many people actually search for "range top" versus actual consumer speak and convert that into projected sales, then they soon change their tune! I'm always banging on about getting rid of jargon! But then I guess we're fond of our jargon in the marketing industry too!
Financial pendulum saves the day … I like that you offer that perspective. Sure we all have our own circle of vocab we like to use but if my audience is marketing professionals then, yeah, makes sense but if they are fishermen I better find some new ‘bait’. ;-)