Comments on: Business and Branding #2: Finding What Works

By: Sandy Johnston

Sandy Johnston — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:16:18 +0000

I work from home through my webpage. I’ve been working very hard on branding my webpage especially after reading your great page. Branding has become a chore but I am definitely glad I have found your site…. I am a believer of knowledge is power and learning how to brand yourself properly is VERY important which I didn’t focus on as much as I should!

By: Des Walsh

Des Walsh — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 01:53:34 +0000

Bobby
That’s a great story. Kind of – your market has branded you :). It reminds me that when we go to the local market we have private names for the various stallholders – the mushroom guy, the honey guy, funny man (sells lots by cracking jokes, some – nicely – at the customers expense), veggie lady, the flower guy, the egg people, the herb people, avocado man … Easy to see how they could do better by branding themselves.

By: Bobby - Gourmet Chocolate

Bobby - Gourmet Chocolate — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 01:30:00 +0000

On your subject of Business and Branding#2: Finding What Works, I think that it is important to pay close attention to your customers and listen to what they have to say about you and your business during normal visits and conversations. Then, all you have to do is to insert a bit of common sense and you’re on your way to branding your business. After all, the whole concept of business branding (that is for me) is creating an easy way for customers to remember, relate to your business, and promote your business little to no effort while carrying on with their normal daily routines. For example, my home based business is running a series of online “healthy chocolate” stores. Approximately 90 percent of my orders are drop shipped from the corporate warehouse. I ship the remaining orders via US Priority Mail. After a few visits to the post office, I noticed that the postal workers started referring to me as “the healthy chocolate man”. I also noticed that on each visit, they would ask more questions about my chocolate, my business, and specifics questions regarding whether or not my high antioxidant healthy chocolate would help their particular issue. They also told me that they had friends and relatives that had health issues and wondered if my healthy chocolate would help them. Then it hit me. My customers and postal worker contacts had determined that “business branding” for me was calling me “the healthy chocolate man” which was easy for them to remember, relate to, and pass on to others. I also learned that my customers were asking me more and more questions about the health benefits of my “high antioxidant chocolate” and that I had become a “healthy chocolate benefits” resource for them. I decided that instead of simply trying to promote and sell healthy chocolate, I needed to concentrate on providing (in layman’s terms) information about my high antioxidant healthy chocolate and how it helps to fight specific diseases such as diabetes, crohn’s disease, fibromyalgia, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, etc. Now, my sites are known for providing “health benefits” information about healthy high antioxidant gourmet chocolate. I get a ton of emails from visitors to my site each week, asking questions about my healthy chocolate. Quite naturally, some of them turn into customers.

By: Business and Branding #1: Built to Last or Built for Now : Thinking Home Business

Sat, 23 Aug 2008 07:01:40 +0000

[…] Business and Branding #2: Finding What Works : Thinking Home Business August 11, 2008 6:01 pm […] series on Business and Branding, I suggested that the business environment today requires that our brands be built for now, rather than, as in older times, built to last. The two are not, of course, inherently […] […]

By: Business and Branding #3: Brand You : Thinking Home Business

Business and Branding #3: Brand You : Thinking Home Business — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 06:18:06 +0000

[…] the second of this short series on Business and Branding, Finding What Works, I mentioned that my core brand these days is effectively my own name, as in the name of my other […]