Posts Tagged ‘Branding’
The Wooden Effect
The Wooden Effect. It’s about your character!
Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation. Your character is what you really are while your reputation is merely what others think you are.
John Wooden, Hall of Fame College Basketball Coaching Legend
John Wooden is considered the best college basketball coach ever. It’s hard to dispute his record of ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period, including seven in a row. No other coach has done this.
Wooden stated that he developed a character (brand) for the UCLA Bruins that players had to respect, follow and defend.
Imagine if a small business had this type of success. The best brands in the world develop a character (brand) for their business that people respect, follow and defend.
In order to imitate this success small business owners must start with three basic steps.
- Understand who you are. The UCLA Bruins clearly understood who they were in college basketball. Coach John Wooden ensured that they played basketball displaying the characteristics of the Bruin brand. Small businesses should not compromise their character. But first they need to know what that character is.
- Who are you serving? The Bruins knew that they were there to help the college to be successful, not only in sports, but overall. Wooden demanded that his players represented the UCLA brand with pride, dignity and respect. Many of his players went on to be great professionals in the NBA. The college is still benefitting from the great tradition developed by Wooden’s teams. If small business owners can understand their purpose, then they will undoubtedly achieve long term success.
- Know your market. Los Angeles is a high profile city with great expectations. Wooden knew that he needed to prepare his players and his coaches for these extreme circumstances. Small business owners ignore the market conditions because they fail to do research. If you understand the environment for your business, you will know how to prepare your company on how to deal with them.
Small business owners need to develop a solid character for their company. Success is all how you build great character, not a reputation.
5 Low Cost Marketing Strategies!
Small businesses do not have a lot of cash. This is why they typically avoid marketing. That’s a HUGE MISTAKE! Managing marketing expenses is the SMART WAY to go.
START WITH STRATEGY. The way to save money is to plan to save money. What do I mean? If you are going on a road trip and you understand how to take the most efficient route, then you will save time and money. Efficiency in marketing saves you time and money. Developing a strategy keeps on the right course to connect with the right customer who will buy the right product or service.
DEVELOP AD/Flier TEMPLATES. I always inform my clients to create several ad/flier templates for various occasions. Why? You will constantly receive requests to place ads in publications, on websites and in souvenir booklets. If you create the ad template in advance, then you will save money by not having to rush later. Your ad template will instantly become a Return On Investment!
Use Social Media WISELY! Social media is the wild card for most small businesses. But, they struggle with how to utilize it effectively. First, you should determine which platform works best for your company. Then, you should put together a social media strategy that makes sense and connects with your target audience. Finally, you can use a small ad budget to increase exposure to a global audience on social media. On some platforms you can be more targeted for a special interest audience.
DIRECT MAIL is still a good option based on how you position your database. For example, a child care should consider utilizing direct mail to send parents Easter postcards, summer safety tips, birthday cards and holiday gifts. This would create loyalty throughout the year to its customer base. It’s very strategic. And it won’t cost a lot of money.
Internet Marketing, including e-blasts, newsletters and videos are very affordable to create. However, once again, it goes back to a strategy and schedule. If you use the marketing strategy to create a schedule, then you will save time by doing tasks in advance. This will also save your company money. E-blasts can be used for prospective and current customers. Newsletters are great for establishing relationships within the community through stories and pertinent information. Videos allow the company to ad personality to its brand visually.
The bottom line is the bottom line. Keeping costs low is a mindset. Marketing dollars are saved by creating efficiencies, working a strategy and utilizing tools effectively.