Category: Branding

My husband works in the corporate world. He works for a big company that builds very big things for big clients. He came home from a four-day retreat about to burst.

“Joly, have you ever heard of this thing called a mind map?”

“Tell me about it,” I said.

“It’s this process where you have an idea, and then you make a map of ideas and processes to get to the end result.”

“With little bubbles around the ideas?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said.

“And lines that connect theideas with the other ideas?”

“Yes,” he said.

“And then at the end of the mind map session you’ve got an understanding of how to get from Point A to Point B?”

“Yes!” he exclaimed.

“Sure, we’ve been using those to teach English composition for years.”

“Oh… really?”

“Yeah, I’ve been using mind maps with my students since the 1990’s.”

“Well, they really work,” he said, maybe a little disappointed that he wasn’t turning me on to the whole mind map revolution.

Then he unpacked about 50 travel-sized shampoos and hand lotions, and told me about the rest of his trip.

Heck yeah, mind maps are cool! They work especially well on white boards, where you can sit back and see your big picture, but they work equally well on paper.

Get some different colored pens and start working with an idea that you have for a project.

Let’s say that you are interested in writing a biography about your grandmother who bred Saint Bernard puppies, raised 8 kids, and opened a café in rural Idaho.

Her name would go in the middle of the blank page or white board. Let’s call her Violet. Draw a circle around her name. Then a line would branch out of that and its title would be “Puppies.” Branching off of puppies, you might write ”breeding,” then off of that line “a link to her homeland.” Other topics might include:  “building a business,” “famous customers,” etc…

Another tendril might say, “Café.” Branching off of that might be things related to that business, like “Converting the train depot into a café.” “Recipes” might go on another small branch. Another branch might say “customers.” You can keep going as long as your ideas keep coming.

After you’ve exhausted the topics and details on your mind map, you can begin to structure the topics into hierarchy of importance; or, you might find overlaps which could help create interesting narratives.

I like using mind maps with creative projects because I can get the idea out into the world and then begin to structure it. Mind maps are also an effective way to put business concepts onto paper—or on the white board.

Reach out to me to help get an idea off the ground.

Consistency is a small business owner’s best friend. It’s the secret sauce. It’s why clients keep coming back. And we want that, right? If you’re not consistent with your message, your voice, your branding, your look– your clients will get confused, and might ultimately turn to your competition. Let’s take a look at areas where consistency can be achieved.

CONSISTENCY IN BRANDING

Your branding is how you present your business to the world. It’s your logo, your color scheme, your fonts, your voice, your messaging. Branding has to do with the vibe you give, the feel your business has, the people you have as clients. It is every impression your clients walk away with.

CONSISTENCY IN MESSAGE

If your clients expect everyone in your hair salon to be wearing black, to be listening to The Cure, and to be well versed in the art of permanent eye makeup, you would probably lose a few if you started playing Brittney Spears’ new release in the shop, or if you began sending tweets about your new perky pal the tennis pro. Know who your clients are! Speak to them. Be consistent in your messaging.

If you confuse, you lose

CONSISTENCY IN OUTREACH

Having a media plan is an excellent way to deliver a consistent message. Depending on your business background, you might be very prone to posting on social media. Some clients from the “old school” (aka. not Millennials) are not as comfortable shooting out Tweets every day.

I want my clients to be comfortable with their “exposure” on social media. Again, some people love being out there. Others shy away from it. But being consistent is really important. Sites like Hootsuite let you write your posts ahead of time and send them out consistently. Try sending out posts on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Your clients will subconsciously look forward to reading your posts on those days. Make a media plan and stick to it for consistent results.

REAL-TIME CONSISTENCY

As a former owner of a turn-key business in San Francisco, I saw how consistency in my branding helped me to succeed. Not only was it crucial that the website, newsletters and marketing materials be consistent in tone, look, and message, but my employees had to be trained in the ways of the brand.

How we answered the phone, how we wrapped up sales transactions, the quality of the services we provided, what we looked like to clients… All of this mattered because clients came to TRUST that our business would deliver what they expected every time. It helped my business have a 5-star rating on Yelp, which brought more clients walking through the door.

Contact me for a branding session, or for help crafting a media plan. We can look at where there might be gaps in consistency, and we can build a brand and a client experience that will keep clients loyal and coming back for more.

I know many small business owners who opened their businesses because they came upon an opportunity or an idea and ran with it. The business account was open, the lease was signed, and they were off. They either didn’t have time to drill down and put the basics of their businesses on paper, or they felt like it wasn’t necessary.

However, there are some business basics that are proven to drive successful businesses forward. One is the mission statement. You can’t sell your business without one.

In order to have a solid foundation to build from, you have got to dig to the kernel of what your business is about. Which words sum up your vision? What is the basis of your brand? Have you written a mission statement before and found it’s no longer viable?

Get out your pencil and your yellow pad, because I’m about to take you on a journey that will put strong legs under your business, and allow you to talk with customers and investors alike so that you can grow.

DIG DEEP INTO YOUR VISION

A mission statement is a few sentences explaining why you do what you do. The mission statement represents your company’s values. It may even give a few words about how those values are achieved.

Once you have that down, you can build the what’s and the how’s of your business. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel when writing it; but by bringing your authentic self to the mission statement, you can build a business around what you think the world needs.

Let’s look at a few mission statements that are at the root of some businesses you may recognize.

BRAND: American Express

“We work hard every day to make American Express the world’s most respected service brand.”

MESSAGE: Wow, how’s that for a far reaching goal? But the wording tells us that the people behind the brand “work hard” to make the brand the most respectable in the world. It tells us that their goal is lofty, but that they are willing to put in the effort to be the best.

BRAND: Kickstarter

“To bring creative projects to life.”

MESSAGE: Right on point, Kickstarter targets the creatives who are looking for funding. More than making an idea a reality, the promise here is to bring something to life, to create a cycle, a story, a buzz. A simple, but powerful mission statement.

BRAND: Google

“To organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.”

MESSAGE: Organizing the world’s information? Bring it!  Another short and powerful mission statement, which goes further to explain how it will use the information after it is organized.

BRAND: The Home Depot

“The Home Depot is in the home improvement business and our goal is to provide the highest level of service, the broadest selection of products and the most competitive prices.”

MESSAGE: Very deliberate, practical explanation of what happens at this store. Hard to poke holes in this mission statement.

I’m not here to tell you that I advocate these companies or their products. In fact, you might object to the politics or practices of any of these companies. Personal preferences and politics are one thing, but don’t forget to take a look at what works.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN

Write down a list of some of your favorite companies.

Look up their mission statements.

Do they have mission statements that clearly define what their missions are?

Which mission statements do you like? Which ones are annoying to you? Why do you think certain statements are effective, or why not? This exercise in discernment can help you recognize the tone of the statement you want to create.

Basic research like this can help you start to shape the most important building block of your company.

And hey, if you want to go further, contact me. I’m available to help you put your vision into words.