TY - BOOK AU - Will, Amy TI - Launching and building a brand for dummies SN - 9781119748038 U1 - 658.827 PY - 2022/// CY - New Jersey PB - John Wiley & Sons, Inc. KW - Trademarks--Design KW - Advertising--Brand name products KW - Brand name products KW - Branding (Marketing)--Management N1 - TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1 About This Book 1 Foolish Assumptions 2 Icons Used in This Book 3 Beyond the Book 3 Where to Go from Here 4 Part 1: Getting Started with Branding 5 Chapter 1: Wrapping Your Brain around Branding 7 Understanding What a Brand Is and Does 8 Recognizing Different Brand Types 9 Business or corporate brand 10 Product brand 10 Service brand 11 Personal brand 12 Other brand types 13 Grasping Brand Architecture Basics 13 Knowing When to Brand 14 Opening a new business 15 Promoting an existing business 15 Introducing a new product or service 16 Furthering your career 16 Becoming an influencer or a celebrity 17 Fundraising for a not-for-profit organization 18 Raising capital for your business 18 Expanding into new markets 19 Stepping Through the Branding Process 19 Step 1: Creating something to brand 19 Step 2: Positioning and defining your brand 19 Step 3: Establishing your branding goals 20 Step 4: Defining your brand’s customer avatar 20 Step 5: Creating a brand style guide 21 Step 6: Building a branded website, app, and email account 21 Step 7: Forming strategic partnerships 22 Step 8: Launching your brand 22 Step 9: Promoting your brand 22 Step 10: Caring for and protecting your brand 23 Chapter 2: Creating and Financing Your Brand 25 Deciding What You’re Going to Brand 25 Business or corporate brand 26 Product brand 27 Service brand 28 Personal brand 28 Identifying or Creating a Niche Market 29 Solving a difficult problem 30 Fulfilling an unmet need (or creating one) 31 Specializing to create a new market niche 31 Offering something unique 31 Formalizing Your Brand As a Business? If You Haven’t Already 32 Incorporating your business 32 Registering your business 35 Financing Your Business/Brand 37 Budgeting for your business/brand 37 Creating a business plan 38 Getting grants 39 Financing with debt and equity 40 Exploring alternative financing options 41 Chapter 3: Positioning and Defining Your Brand 43 Positioning Your Brand 44 Choosing a brand positioning strategy 44 Checking out the competition 47 Identifying what makes your brand different and better 48 Identifying your place on a brand positioning map 49 Writing your brand positioning statement 50 Defining Your Brand Identity 51 Establishing your brand’s mission and values 51 Exploring your brand’s personality 53 Writing your brand identity statement 54 Naming Your Brand 56 Following brand naming parameters 57 Brainstorming brand names 58 Choosing the best brand name 58 Chapter 4: Clarifying Your Branding Goals 59 Identifying Your Branding Goals/Objectives 60 Increasing brand recognition and awareness 60 Creating an emotional connection 63 Differentiating your business, product, service, or self 64 Building credibility and trust 64 Driving sales 65 Creating Your One-Year Branding Plan 66 Monitoring and Evaluating the Success of Your Branding Efforts 66 Choosing metrics and key performance indicators 67 Collecting and analyzing data: The tools of the trade 68 Chapter 5: Defining and Refining Your Customer Avatars 69 Discovering Who Your Target Customers Are 70 Identifying your target customers 71 Gathering and analyzing data about your target customers 71 Evaluating your customers’ interests 74 Finding out where customers go and what they do 76 Describing Your Customer Avatars in Your Own Words 77 Redefining Your Customer Avatars As They Evolve 78 Putting Your Customer Avatars to Work 79 Part 2: Attending to Brand Fundamentals 81 Chapter 6: Creating a Brand Style Guide, Media Kit, and Templates 83 Creating a Brand Style Guide 84 Appreciating a style guide’s value 84 Setting corporate guidelines 86 Creating a color palette 86 Establishing typographical guidelines 89 Designing a logo 90 Specifying guidelines for photos, illustrations, and other artwork 92 Setting guidelines for voice and tone 93 Assembling and Using a Media Kit 94 Creating your own media kit 94 Targeting your media kit to your audience 95 Deciding when to send a media kit 96 Creating Your Own Branded Templates 96 Chapter 7: Building a Branded Website, App, and Email Account 99 Going It Alone or Hiring a Developer 100 Doing it yourself 100 Hiring a developer 102 Claiming Your Domain Name and Choosing a Hosting Service 104 Choosing and registering a domain name 104 Choosing a hosting service and plan 105 Walking Through the Basics of Building a Website 107 Choosing the right site type and elements to include on your site 107 Installing a CMS (or not) 108 Choosing a theme 110 Integrating your logo and other brand assets 110 Posting content 111 Making your site easy to navigate 114 Driving Traffic to Your Site 115 Making your site attractive to search engines 115 Building incoming links 116 Promoting your site 117 Using Web Analytics to Improve Your Online Branding Activities 118 Setting up Google Analytics 118 Checking out your site’s Google Analytics 120 Establishing a Branded Email Account 121 Launching a Branded App 122 Chapter 8: Writing Copy That Supports Your Brand Messaging 125 Exploring Types of Copy You Can Use to Promote Your Brand 126 Advertising copy 126 Audio/video scripts 127 Blog posts 127 Books 129 Catalog copy: Product descriptions and listings 129 Email messages 129 Press releases 130 Social media profiles and posts 130 Web pages 131 White papers 132 Deciding Whether to Fly Solo or Hire a Copywriter 133 Creating an Editorial Calendar 133 Crafting Brand-Boosting Copy 134 Maximizing Your Reach with Search Engine Optimization 136 Recognizing the difference between discovery and search 136 Strategy time! 138 Chapter 9: Building Strategic Partnerships 141 Considering Potential Benefits and Risks of Strategic Partnerships 142 Potential benefits 142 Possible risks 143 Finding and Selecting a Cobranding Partner 143 Identifying your why 144 Developing a list of selection criteria 144 Evaluating potential partners 145 Checking out successful cobranding partnerships 147 Developing and Delivering a Pitch for a Strategic Partnership 148 Determining what you want from the partnership 148 Defining your value proposition 149 Pitching your proposal 151 Building an email template 152 Agreeing on the Terms of Your Partnership 154 Steering Clear of Common Partnership Pitfalls 154 Chapter 10: Launching Your Brand 157 Planning Your Launch Campaign 157 Deciding where to launch 158 Confirming your key target audiences 159 Creating a to-do list 159 Timing your launch for maximum impact 160 Creating a launch calendar 162 Preparing incentives for initial customers 162 Choosing metrics for success and establishing your benchmarks 163 Budgeting for your launch 164 Launching your brand internally 165 Tapping the Power of the Press to Launch Your Brand 166 Deciding whether to hire a PR firm 167 Creating a hit list for press and influencers 167 Creating a brand launch press release 168 Improving Your Campaign’s Chances of Going Viral 170 Part 3: Building A Strong Brand Presence 173 Chapter 11: Creating In-Person Experiences 175 Creating a Pop-Up Shop 176 Scoping out your options 176 Planning a physical pop-up shop 178 Promoting your pop-up shop 180 Getting your physical pop-up shop up and running 180 Getting Your Products into Stores 181 Laying the groundwork 181 Identifying stores to launch in 182 Creating a line sheet 183 Preparing samples 183 Developing your pitch 183 Negotiating an agreement 184 Choosing and working with a manufacturer 185 Taking Advantage of Marketing Event Opportunities 186 Attending and participating in trade shows, conferences, and expos 186 Hosting seminars in your area of expertise 187 Hosting other events 189 Landing event sponsorships 189 Chapter 12: Blogging, Podcasting, and YouTubing 191 Appreciating the Value of Content Marketing 192 Promoting Your Brand Via Podcasting 192 Naming your podcast 193 Gearing up to podcast 193 Recording, editing, and uploading a podcast 198 Blogging to Promote Your Brand 203 Choosing a blogging platform 203 Naming your blog 204 Composing blog entries 204 Posting blog entries 206 Engaging with your readers 207 Working with guest bloggers 208 Spreading the word about your blog 208 Building Brand Recognition with Online Videos 209 Recognizing the different genres you can use to promote your brand 209 Recording a video 210 Editing your video 211 Uploading videos to YouTube 211 Creating a branded thumbnail 212 Creating a branded YouTube channel 213 Monetizing Your Content 215 Chapter 13: Promoting Your Brand via Social Media 217 Getting Started with Branding on Social Media 218 Scoping out popular platforms 219 Choosing different metrics for different platforms 224 Following the Rules of the Road 225 Optimizing your social media profile 225 Posting regularly 226 Monitoring and responding to posts 227 Choosing your friends carefully 227 Harnessing the Power of Photos and Video 228 Taking your own photos on a budget 228 Recording and posting video content 229 Hiring content creators 229 Teaming Up with Influencers 230 Micro influencer versus macro influencer 231 Paid influencer versus organic influencer 231 Saving Time and Effort with Social Media Management Tools 232 Planoly 232 Hootsuite 232 Tailwind 232 Buffer 233 Chapter 14: Email Marketing 235 Becoming a Trusted Sender 236 Defining Your Objectives 237 Building a Quality Email List 239 Composing Effective Email Messages 240 Sizing up your audience 241 Offering something of value 242 Creating From and Subject lines that grab people’s attention 243 Writing a clear call to action 244 Composing your message 245 Researching emails in your industry 246 Including images 246 A/B testing email copy 247 Exploring Email Marketing Platforms (Free and Paid) 248 Tracking Results: Email Metrics 249 Chapter 15: Boosting Brand Awareness with Paid Advertising 251 Weighing the Pros and Cons of Paid Advertising 252 Pros 252 Cons 253 Getting Started with Paid Advertising 253 Tapping the power of search engine marketing and pay-per-click advertising 254 Advertising on social media platforms 256 Advertising through popular podcasts 259 Paying influencers and other talent to promote your brand 260 Running TV and radio ads 262 Advertising in print media 263 Working with Advertising Agencies 264 Knowing when to outsource 264 Choosing the right advertising agency for your brand 265 Tracking Results 265 Chapter 16: Building a Vibrant Community around Your Brand 267 Starting with a Sense of Purpose 268 Formulating a community-building strategy 268 Nurturing shared values 269 Support a common cause 271 Creating Safe Spaces 272 Stimulating Engagement 272 Welcoming newbies 273 Asking thought-provoking questions 274 Sharing user-generated content 274 Responding to questions and comments 275 Tagging people in posts 275 Taking a poll 276 Recognizing and rewarding community leaders 276 Empowering Your Community 277 Remaining Positive At All Times 277 Part 4: Feeding and Caring for Your Brand 279 Chapter 17: Scaling Your Brand Identity 281 Surveying Different Approaches to Scaling a Brand 282 Conducting a Brand Audit 283 Recognizing the benefits of a brand audit 283 Auditing your brand 283 Creating a Scaling Plan 285 Setting milestones 286 Sourcing products at larger quantities without sacrificing quality 286 Scaling a service brand 288 Outsourcing Responsibilities to Lighten Your Load 289 Hiring the right people 289 Choosing a contractor or employee 290 Using your brand style guide for training 290 Chapter 18: Building on Customer Loyalty and Longevity 293 Identifying Your Top Customers 294 Defining criteria for evaluating customer value 294 Collecting and organizing customer data 294 Rewarding Customer Loyalty 296 Creating a customer loyalty program 297 Creating and issuing discount codes 298 Expanding your offers 300 Getting Customer Feedback 301 Requesting feedback via email 302 Conducting an online survey 303 Soliciting testimonials 304 Gathering feedback via your blog 305 Requesting feedback at checkout 305 Encouraging Customers to Share Why They’re Loyal to Your Brand 306 Chapter 19: Dealing with Competition and Other Threats to Your Brand 309 Remaining Sensitive to the Changing Needs of Your Target Market 310 Keeping the Competition at Bay 311 Identifying your competition 311 Striving to go beyond quality and value 312 Staying abreast of changes in your industry 312 Focusing on innovation 313 Protecting Your Brand 314 Registering your business with government agencies 314 Trademarking your brand 314 Defending your trademarks 318 Preventing and Recovering from Publicity Disasters 319 Part 5: The Part of Tens 321 Chapter 20: Ten Ways to Make Your Marketing Campaigns Go Viral 323 Plan for Phenomenal Success 324 Build Your Email List 325 Get Emotional 326 Compose a Catchy Campaign Slogan 327 Never Underestimate the Power of Visuals 327 Choose Media Outlets Strategically 328 Pitch Your Brand to the Media 328 Extend Your Reach with Promoted Posts on Social Media 329 Use Hashtags to Generate Buzz 330 Make Your Message Easy to Share 330 Chapter 21: Ten Ways to Distinguish Your Brand from the Competition 331 Offer Quality Products/Services 332 Deliver Exceptional Customer Service 333 Target a Price Point 334 Offer a Guarantee or Warranty (or Both) 334 Cash in on Your Good Looks: Design 335 Become a Disrupter 336 Create a Unique Brand Experience 337 Carve Out a Niche for Yourself 338 Build Community Around Your Brand 338 Be a Force for Good 339 Chapter 22: Ten Ways to Drive Customers to Your Website 341 Treat Your Website as Brand Central 342 Use SEO to Your Advantage 342 Deliver Content That’s Fresh, Relevant, and Valuable to Your Target Market 343 Promote Your Content on Social Media 344 Spread the Word via Email 344 Take Advantage of Guest Blogging 345 Engage with Your Visitors 345 Post Useful Content on Reddit 346 Recruit Influencers 346 Answer Questions on Quora 347 Index 349 N2 - hese days, customers want to have a deeply felt connection to the brands behind the products they're purchasing, which means that if you're starting a business, a strong brand DNA has got to be part of your creative process from day one. And it needs to be more than just an abstract idea: to give your brand life—and a bigger chance of surviving against the competition—you need to have a standout launch strategy and a set plan for growing your brand in a noisy marketplace. In Launching & Building a Brand For Dummies, Amy Will—who launched her first business at just 24-years-old and has been the brains behind four strong and buzzworthy brands—covers everything from crafting a powerful brand identity and planning that all-important launch to being prepared to scale up as you begin to take off. She reveals crucial lessons from her personal experience in launching five companies, as well as detailing case studies from some of the strongest brands out there, accompanied by insights and advice from successful founders and branding experts. Stand out on social media Create viral campaigns Build on Customer Loyalty and LongevityDeal with the competition Whether you're thinking of starting a business or are already building up your market share, memorable brand identity will be the key to—and Launching & Building a Brand For Dummies one of the secrets of—your future standout success ER -