Do you understand how much your brand actually adds to the value of your business? If you’re looking to merge, sell or attract investors, it’s really important to know this.

It’s also helpful because you can make the right case for spending money on your brand because you know it adds to the bottom line. You can even factor this spend into the balance sheet and include it as a sizable chunk of your business’s intangible assets.

So how does it work then?

Firstly, we should look at some historical facts and figures. Large brands carry billions of dollars’ worth of value. For example, the Apple brand comes in at around 323 billion dollars with Amazon not far behind. Here are some more stats on UK brands.

Yes, these are eye-watering sums of money but even small businesses can carry strong brand value within their sector or local market. Some brands even command 40% of the purchase price when companies decide to sell.  Since this is where most of our businesses operate, brand equity is certainly something we should leverage in terms of growth.

It’s no surprise then that John Stuart, Chairman of Quaker, said: “If this business were to split up, I would give you the land and bricks and mortar. I would take the brands and trademarks and I would be far better off than you.”

And this was back in 1900! Think about the brand value of Quaker as it stands today. Now we’re starting to see the big picture, aren’t we?

Why we need to invest in our brands

Another fact backed up by research is that your brand is worth more when you invest in it. Every modern company that has driven above average profitable growth has invested heavily in their brand.

OK, enough of the facts, now let’s talk about how your brand adds value to your business.

Basically, there are three key things that affect your positioning in the marketplace. Valuable brands:

• Are highly recognisable
• Are positively perceived
• Have loyal followers

Now let’s break this down to explain what we mean here.

We believe that a company is deemed to be highly recognisable if its:

• Purpose and brand values are clear and people buy into them
• Brand personality is evident through everything it does – from the way it speaks to customers to the way it shows integrity and humanity
• Attributes are a key differentiator over other competitors
• Brand story is believable and creates an emotional connection with people

But these are only some of the things we think are important. There are many, many more ways that your business is seen and heard.

Next then, what do we mean by positively perceived? These are our three main criteria:

• Customers trust and rate your business highly and would recommend you to friends and family
• Your business is seen as a force for good and gives back to its local community
• Partners and suppliers are happy to work with you and support you

Lastly then, let’s discuss customer loyalty. We’re not just talking about people who follow your business on social media here. It’s about customers who endorse your products and services.

You need to engage, capture and measure feedback in order to build a loyal customer base. And you know if your customers are loyal if they’re:

• Happy advocates of what you offer
• Willing to pay a little more for your products/services
• Giving you unsolicited positive feedback

Want to know more? Sign up for our monthly blog. Next time we’ll be talking about how to work out how much your brand is worth.

We also run Brand workshops, so please let us know if you’re interested in joining us. You can find details here.

If there’s one thing every business should have learned through lockdown, it’s the importance of having an online brand presence.

That’s because doing business digitally is here to stay. But if you’re not convinced, there are some pretty compelling statistics emerging.

Yes, no matter which survey you read, it appears that over 80% of people read online reviews before they buy.

And over 80% now search for a product or service online. For the purposes of our research, we checked out smartinsights.com 

So the high street might be opening back up again, thankfully, but the buying experience definitely starts online.

This means improving your digital presence is a must so we’ve come up with some key pointers which might help.

• Be visible

Firstly, help your customers to find you. Build a captivating website so that search engines can easily find your products and services.

And, remember, it must work on mobile devices because this is where people do their research.

This is called Search Engine Optimisation or SEO for short, which sounds complicated. That’s right, it isn’t easy to get your head around but it’s so important.  

• Be valuable

Our second tip is to make sure that your website is engaging and useful for your customers. For example, share your expertise and offer advice – it’s not about the ‘big sell’.

Writing a blog post and sharing it on your social media channels is a great way to do this.

Or, sending your customers an e-newsletter they can sign up to is another great way of showing your value.

Whatever you do, the content must be helpful to them, not a sales pitch.

Also, make sure people can see that your business is legitimate, caring and authentic. This means having clear brand values and purpose.

• Be sociable

Thirdly, you should connect and interact using social media platforms that suit your business offer. However, you must think about this in a strategic way.

Any channels you choose must be specifically useful for your line of business, so do your homework. And don’t forget, it’s about quality, not quantity.

It’s also really important to show your human side. Today’s consumer wants to know you personally – they expect you to be their friend and they want a conversation. So keep it real.  

• Be active

Tip number four is all about your brand. That’s because strong and healthy brands live and breathe by being busy online.

This means investing time in your website, your social media channels and your digital marketing.

It’s important to schedule a specific slot into your business week and to stick to it religiously.

Basically, engaging regularly is the difference between building your online profile and actually having an online presence.

• Be different

And so on to our final pointer. One thing that hasn’t changed when it comes to marketing your business is being unique. That’s why it’s so important to develop and understand what we call your market differentiators.

In simple terms, this means showing customers why they should buy from you.

What do you do differently from your competitors? Essentially, this is your brand DNA and this is the bedrock of your business offer.

How we can help

If you think we can help you to build your online business presence, please let us know.

As business owners, we might feel like we’re in the ‘Last Chance Saloon’ right now but not if we start thinking differently. We can get through this if we change our mindset.

But, before we get into the ‘how’, we need to look at the ‘why’. Let’s go back to last year when Covid-19 took over our lives and threatened our businesses. Why didn’t we see it coming?

Maybe it’s because, as business people, we’re natural optimists. Or, as problem-solvers, we find a way to deal with most challenges. Perhaps, more likely, it’s because we never really think the unthinkable.

Okay, yes we plan for risk and make our forecasts, but, this is exactly why we need to change our perspective. It’s ‘make or break’ time for our brands.

We have to think round corners to make sure that the global pandemic doesn’t destroy our livelihoods.

So how can we do this? There are two topics below that will challenge your thinking.   

Topic 1: Time to diversify?

One thing you can do is change your offer. It’s a risky move but diversification can lead to new markets and new customers.

By adding new products or services, or even launching into new sectors, you can add value to your business and your brand. Ask yourself and your team:

• Is there a gap in the market?
• Is there demand for something new?
• Can you adapt your business to meet this need?

Start by weighing up the risks before you invest time or money. Then think about the untapped expertise you have within your business that you could exploit. Where could this take your business?

Don’t forget to ask your customers what they want because buying habits have changed dramatically since lockdown began.

Most of us now buy online, buy from businesses we trust and buy into more ethical brands. There are some startling findings in the Edelman Trust Barometer 2020.

Also, make sure to get the right people with the right skills you need to support your new venture. Take a look at The Government’s ‘Plan for Jobs‘ skills and employment programmes: information for employers.

Topic 2: Time to innovate?

An even bolder step is to reimagine your business completely. For opportunists, innovators and entrepreneurs, this is your year. Change direction, change your brand, why not change everything?

Did you know that lockdown has spawned thousands of new businesses across the UK? Often this has meant specialists in one sector closing up shop and starting again in a different sector. Yes, scary but true, and probably unthinkable before the pandemic.

So what can you do? What’s the big idea? Where’s the opportunity? Every business is different so we don’t have any pearly words to share here except to say be brave, be bold and be different.

We’re running free webinars from April so sign up now if you want to join us. We’ll be sharing our thoughts, predictions and ideas together on how we can all survive and thrive through 2021 and beyond. It’s good to talk!

To sign up please click on this link https://hopecreative.co.uk/contact/