David Ray serves as co-owner and General Manager of Cyber City Circuits, Augusta’s largest electronics manufacturer. But Ray admits he still has more to learn about branding.
That’s why he attended the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce’s Third Thursday Business Builder event on Thursday, May 19. Kate Sanders and Cynthia South with the Alison South Marketing Group presented strategies for building a strong brand and effectively conveying it to potential customers.
“Your brand is your identity and how people interact with your company,” Ray said.
Sanders, Alison South’s Chief Operating Officer, said to build a strong brand, business owners must research their competitors and determine what’s important to their customers.
“Don’t be internally focused on your external message,” she said. “Think of your customers’ needs and goals.”
That means if everything on your website is about you, customers may move on to one of your competitors. Sanders said it’s important to do consumer research prior to designing a brand.
“Asking questions should be a huge priority,” she said.
Business owners should also look up how many competitors they have.
“If you want to buy a new pair of running shoes, there maybe three to five brands you know about, but there are potentially hundreds of brands online,” Sanders said.
She said some of the most effective brands raise customer anticipation. For example, she uses the Domino’s Tracker to get real-time updates about when her pizzas will be delivered. Her husband doesn’t believe it works, but the tracker tells Sanders if the pizzas are still in the oven or on the way to their house.
She encourages her clients to choose strong business names and think about the colors and fonts they use.
South said brands should be original, recognizable, and memorable. She discussed the benefits of having a strong brand, including employee recruitment, which is especially important in the current job market.
“People want to work for strong companies,” South said.
She said effective branding also drives customer behavior and makes them want to buy a business’s products or services.
Like South, Sanders said effective branding helps businesses stand out from their competitors.
“We are inundated with brands and messaging,” she said.
For more information about Alison South, visit alisonsouthmarketing.com or call 803-226-0284.
