This guide outlines why and how brand marketing can boost your business reputation and business success.
To keep your business afloat, you need a strong reputation. Unless you take good care of your image, you could end up losing customers. Luckily, there are lots of different ways that brand marketing can help you can enhance your business reputation. To help you create a winning brand marketing strategy, here are a few ideas.
Ways to improve brand marketing
Boost your brand story
All strong brands need an enticing brand story, a story that your audience can identify with. The story should be emotive and authentic, including both challenges and successes. The idea is to humanize your brand and show people why they should choose you. Focusing on your branding strategies is a fantastic way to boost your reputation.
Improve your CSR strategy
Modern brands need to think carefully about corporate social responsibility. People want to buy from ethical brands that care about social causes and the planet. When you improve your CSR strategy, you’ll be bound to enhance your brand marketing and reputation at the same time. There are lots of different ways that you can develop a strong CSR strategy, here are a few examples, to get your ideas flowing:
- Partner up with or donate to charities that you care about.
- Empower your employees; give them opportunities to help the local community.
- Think about the earth, use eco-friendly suppliers and practices.
- Closely consider diversity and inclusion; how could you improve or advocate for change.
Be authentic
If you’re serious about enhancing your brand marketing, you’ll need to present yourself as an authentic and humanized brand. Remain transparent, and show your customers a little something from behind the scenes. You might put off videos of your team, or host live webinars? User-generated content is another great way to present yourself as authentic.
A strong company culture
With a strong company culture, you’ll impress your employees, your partners, and your clients. To develop a strong company culture you need to nurture the relationships within your company, giving everyone the chance to reach their true potential. To develop a strong company culture, focus on the following steps:
- Create brand values as a company.
- Provide company perks for employees.
- Support your staff with their career development.
- Avoid a hierarchical structure.
- Encourage autonomous teams.
- Develop an effective CSR strategy.
Social media presence
A great business reputation and brand marketing rely on a strong social media presence. When you have respect and authority on social media, you’ll boost brand loyalty, and look after your company image. There are many different ways to improve your social media presence, for example:
- Develop an amazing content strategy; produce content that your customers engage with. From video content to polls and competitions, there are plenty of options.
- Interact with your customers, and ensure fast response times. Remember to respond to negative as well as positive comments.
- Be active on social media, brands need to put out consistent content, across all different channels.
Reputation management services
Reputation management services operate to help all different types of businesses. These services will perform various tasks on your behalf, to keep your reputation intact. For example, a reputation management company might help you to collective positive reviews, or resolve any brand criticism.
A reputation management company can also help you with social listening, to monitor your brand marketing online. Looking after your online reputation can be a challenge, with so many different platforms out there. To support your strategy, it’s a great call to hire in the experts.
Gather feedback
Customer feedback can help your company in so many different ways. When you gather customer feedback, you can utilize it to make positive changes to your business. Feedback can be used to make your products and services better, which can improve your reputation and brand marketing. When you’re gathering feedback about your products, the following questions might come in handy:
- Would you say that our product is worth the set price?
- Can you describe what convinced you to buy the product?
- What (if anything) almost stopped you from buying this product?
- What (if any) challenges are you attempting to solve with our product?
- What is it that you like most about our product or service?
Offer loyalty programs
Loyalty programs can be a great way to enhance your business reputation. When you provide loyalty programs, you’ll entice your customers, ensuring that they feel part of a community. Besides boosting your good reputation, there are many brand marketing benefits of loyalty programs:
- Can help you to support business during slow periods.
- Loyalty programs can help you to create mailing lists.
- You can use loyalty programs to collect metrics.
- A great way to stand out from your competitors.
Focus on product quality
If you want to build a great business reputation, you’ll need to focus on product quality. Unless you offer a quality product or service, it can be difficult to keep your reputation intact. When customers have a bad experience, they tend to share it far and wide. Delivering a quality proud is the best way to stop your brand from coming under fire. To help you focus on product quality, keep the following considerations in mind:
- Put a product quality management system in place.
- Optimize the product development process.
- Use competitor research to help you.
- Ensure thorough product testing stages.
- Use customer feedback to your advantage.
Problem solve
Sometimes, enhancing your reputation is about problem-solving. When your customers have an issue, you’ve got to deal with it in the best way possible. No matter how great your business is, you’re going to get complaints from time to time. These complaints might not even necessarily be justified, (but you’ll need to know how to deal with them regardless)! When you’re solving problems and complaints for your customers, keep these tips in mind:
- Ask the right questions to get all the insights you need. If you’re not sure what the key issue is, ask for examples and elaboration.
- Offer as fast a response as possible.
- Once you’ve found a solution, remember to verify that the problem has actually been solved.
- Record the complaint, this will help you to define trends.
Take care of your building
Remember your brand marketing is made up of just about everything you do. Upholding your reputation is about presenting a professional image at all times. If you’re a brick-and-mortar company, or you at least use a warehouse, you’ll need to take great care of your building.
Your office should be well decorated; use modern furniture, plants, and artwork. Ensure that maintenance work is carried out promptly and that you use the appropriate drainage systems for your type of building. For example, a slotted drain is often used for industrial or manufacturing settings.
From aesthetics to health and safety and maintenance, everything about your workplace can contribute to your reputation. When it comes to these areas, you’ll need to pay attention to detail.
Offer extra value
Enhancing your business reputation is sometimes about going above and beyond. If you want the best rep in your sector, you’ve got to offer something unique in your brand marketing. There are plenty of different ways to do this, here are a few ideas:
- Provide an entertaining podcast, here you can discuss sector topics, and interview special guests.
- Run special competitions, give your audience the chance to win prizes.
- Offer personalized marketing, to suit your customer needs.
- Invite your customers to be part of the product creation process.
Hire PR experts
If you need a little help boosting your business reputation, consider hiring a PR expert for brand marketing. PR professionals can help you to protect and improve your business in many different ways. A typical PR service would consist of the following activities:
- Help companies to build brand marketing awareness.
- Help companies to protect their reputation.
- Can help support a brand with market research.
- Damage control if there’s any bad press.
Build a community
Improving your brand reputation is all about building a brand community. When you build a community you’ll ensure that your customers feel a part of something. Which helps to drive brand loyalty. There are many different ways that you can create a community. You might use your social media channels, or draw in your community using a podcast. Keep your customers at the center of your brand marketing story. This will help them to feel a part of your company.
The takeaway
Enhancing your business reputation and brand marketing can take a lot of time and effort. The tasks involved are ongoing, it’s about all staying one step ahead. Unless you pay close attention to your brand reputation, you risk losing out on customers and decreased brand loyalty. One of the most important things is developing a great CSR strategy, customers are paying more close attention to brand values, and how they act in society. Focusing on these key points will help you to improve your brand image in the long-run.
