Branding Archives - Ava Carmichael

What is Intentional Marketing?

What does Intentional Marketing mean, and how should you be doing it??
Well, intentional marketing is a lot like great branding. Intentional marketing embraces the highest level essence of your brand and continues to offer value for its customers at every turn. It’s like a 4-star resort where no details have been spared. Always.

To be intentional in your marketing strategy means this:

You’re very in touch with your brand and company mission
You’re very in tune with your customer’s wants and needs
You consider the needs of potential customers
Everything you do and say has a purpose and leaves a lasting impression. (Even in the business cards you use or product packaging)
You see outcomes, strategies, and foresight in all of your marketing efforts
You aren’t lazy in your efforts and you’re always thinking of ways to woo your clients (your office is 100%, your website is 100%, the experience is 100%, marketing materials are 100%, etc)
You believe in details, quality and always strive to be above average and consistent with these aspects.

Examples of Companies Who Use Intentional Marketing

Apple, Disney, Nike, Tiffany & Co., Whole Foods Market are all great examples of companies who are great with intentional marketing.

Have you ever stayed at a Four Seasons Resort or visited Disneyland park or even purchased an Apple product? Everything that you experience from beginning to end with each one of those companies uses intentional marketing.

How do you Deploy Intentional Marketing Tactics?

Plan ahead. Always be planning ahead with your marketing strategies and goals. Plan every move precisely and with a clear vision of the outcome you’re seeking and execute that plan with your best tactics.
Understand the scope, objectives, and goals you need to reach. Plan according to who you intend to reach and how you plan to reach them. Depending on how wide or narrow your target audience is will determine how much money needs to be budgeted to execute properly, and far in advance you’ll need to plan.
Make sure you and everyone on your team clearly understand your target customers like they know their own friends. In my Branding Course, I teach ways to get to know your target customer like a personal friend. Learn her, know her and make her happy. Create all of your copy, creative around this special target customer. Stop trying to speak to everyone.
Use a project management tool like Trello, Asana or Slack. Keep your team and tasks tight! Stay on track and with the schedule.
Again, there is no such thing as over-planning. Rushing to market with a half-ass/half-executed marketing plan = wasted time, wasted efforts and wasted dollars $$$$$.
Once launched, measure results. If there is time and room to make improvements or adjustments, do it.
Once the marketing efforts are complete, measure again. Read the results and analytics of each campaign and determine ROI.

Intentional marketing means having an eye for detail, knowing what you want to accomplish, knowing your audience and brand and having the patience, capital and tenacity to stick with it and follow through with tight execution.

How to Get Clear on Your Brand Identity

Are you having a brand identity crisis? A lot of people, whether just starting out or not, reach a place where they question their brand identity. They aren’t sure what their message is, or they feel “all over the place.” Here is a quick exercise to help you get clear on your brand message and identity.

Getting clear with your brand identity can be simpler with the right questions

5 Steps to Get Clear on Your Brand Identity

It’s not always easy to see the big picture, and not everyone has the tools necessary to create the brand they envision in their head. Many times they are so busy building their products or service that they neglect the other aspects of their brand. Or, maybe they just aren’t sure how to get there. So how do you get crystal clear on your brand?

When working with clients, there are multiple stages we go through, but the FIVE main questions I always recommend asking yourself are this:

1. What is the overall message you want your brand to convey? In other words, how would you like your audience or the general public to perceive you upon first impression and as a continued experience?

2. List 3 attributes you’d like associated with your brand. For example, youthful, hipster, cutting edge, educational, fun, informative, entertaining, laid back, Southern charm, clean, simple, etc. Only list 3, any more than that and your brand message may get garbled or confusing.

3. What need are you filling in the market, or your market segment? Be clear and very specific on what you’re bringing to the table. What solutions, skills or service do you offer? What value are you giving to them?

4. Who is your #1 ideal customer? Think about who your ideal customer is and make sure your brand identity and voice is speaking to them, specifically.

5. Where do you want to go? In other words, get a mental picture of where you see your brand in 1-3 years. This will help you narrow down and focus your branded content. It will also help you to build a more solid roadmap and marketing plan.

I personally struggled with brand identity when I first started off as a consultant and freelancer. Even with a strong brand building and design background, I was struggling to see and manage my own brand. Crazy, right? Not really. Sometimes it takes another set of professional eyes to help you see what you can’t see.

Branding is built the same way across any widget, person, product line or service. Once I made that connection and translated what I knew about building apparel brands into my own brand, it got a lot clearer.

One client I worked with struggled with branching out beyond her yoga class business. She wanted to embody a full mind, body, spirit and wellness brand and position herself as an influencer of such. Once we knew where she wanted to go, we were able to tailor her content, posts and even website to point toward that message and goal. By creating a professional brand identity package and doing the work associated with her end goal, we were able to position her brand seamlessly.

The five questions exercise above is part of my branding methodology and will definitely help you get really clear on your brand message and goals. It will also help you to create a consistent brand message across your social platforms, and create your value proposition in the market.

Getting clear with your brand will also help you to achieve consistent and cohesive messages with your social media posts and ad creatives. Once you know what content consistently lives on your platforms and within your brand house, you won’t stray from it, and your audience won’t be confused and “tune out.”

Connect with me on Facebook ?

This is the Only Way to Use Facebook for…

I’m not gonna beat around the bush. Your unsolicited business posts, adding your friends and family to your business groups and bizarre marketing copy created by the pyramid scheme you’ve just signed up for is not much fun for your friends and family on Facebook. It might look something like this:

Not only is this kind of marketing bad for your image, but it’s not actually helping your business grow the way it could. More on that in just a bit.

In the past, I’ve been guilty of too much marketing of my products (not MLM) on my personal Facebook page. Back in the day, I thought tapping into my inner circle was a good idea for business. And in some cases, that can be true. Especially if you’re building a brand of your own from the ground up. But, the strongest clientele you can build will love your product, not just buy because they feel obligated.

Below is an example of someone who burned a few bridges after an MLM scheme went sour:

If you’ve been guilty of trying to rally your inner circle to buy your stuff, you have a free pass. Until now. ?

We love you, we will support you in any way we can, but we want to hear from you on Facebook, not your business. And, to be totally honest, we don’t always want or need that new skillet, lip balm, whitening toothpaste or household cleaner you’re trying to hock from the latest MLM company.

If you want to actually grow your business, there’s really only ONE way to use Facebook for business (without annoying your friends and family)

Here’s How to Use Facebook for Your Business

Have a personal (main) Facebook profile account with your friends, family, long lost elementary school pals, etc. Feel free to share your baby and dog photos, comments, likes, post updates, etc. Keep that personal stuff THERE. Make sure you have your posting default preferences set to ‘Friends Only’. If you choose to post as ‘Public’ make sure you are OK with the world seeing that post. Most people like to keep their status updates to ‘Friends Only’ for privacy reasons.
Keep your business and brand separate from your personal page. (Or, have a marketing manager create and manage a business Facebook Page for you and stay off Facebook completely if you want.)
Create a Business Page through your personal account and post all of your business-related stuff there. Yes, you may occasionally post personal photos. People who follow your business will like to see the personal side of you, behind the scenes and the process.
Do not invite your friends to Like your Business Page. (Unless, of course, they are your best friend or, in my case, my siblings who will Like whatever page I ask because that’s just how we roll.)
Do not add Friends or Acquaintances to your Group page, either. You may send Invites or Requests to Like, but adding them without their consent is assuming and rude.
Keep your business separate from your personal Facebook page. Nobody on your friends and family list wants to feel like you’re always selling them something. This may ruin the trust and respect you have with them.
Add your Business Page link on your profile. On your personal Facebook profile, under ‘Work’, by all means, add “Works at My Bad Ass Self (a.k.a Your FB Business Page)” and if people want to click there to follow your biz page, awesome. Otherwise, don’t bother your friends and family unless they ask. It’s annoying and inauthentic to your relationship with them. You wouldn’t call all of them on the daily and say “hey, you wanna buy my sh*t?”
Post on your personal page about your busine only when it’s more personal. If you have a genuine request such as, “Hey, I’m looking for a legit test subject for my new face cream. I’ll give it to you for free. Any takers?” feel free to post this on your personal Facebook status. Your friends will probably come out from the rocks they were hiding under real quick. ?

Why You Gotta Keep ’em Separated

The reason it’s so important to keep your business stuff separate from your personal Facebook page is this: when you spam your friends or rely too heavily on them for sales, you aren’t actually targeting your audience or reaching the right people. Secondly, you may lose your mojo when your friends and family don’t respond to your sales pitches. This is not a demographic you can rely on, and it doesn’t necessarily provide the right outcome for what you’re selling. Just because they aren’t responding, doesn’t mean your product sucks.

?A much better solution is to create a strong brand message with a professional logo, graphics and a few well-converting (targeted) Facebook ads to attract your perfect audience. Work on growing your fan and client base from your business page. You will also be able to track your metrics on a business page. You can see how well you’re growing, learn about what works and what doesn’t. You’ll gain a lot of insights you won’t get by just marketing to your friends through your personal Facebook page. Take your business seriously and your clients will see you as a serious business.

Lastly, but not to be taken lightly, Facebook may shut your personal account down if you’re using it for business. So, get that Business Page started right away to avoid Facebook penalizing you.

The bottom line is this: Treat and respect your relationships on social media the way you do in real life. Respect the platform. Respect and honor your business, too. Take it seriously and the reward will pay off. I promise.