What are you nuts? We can’t do that!

confusedOr can we?

In helping companies to position themselves, half of the challenge is inspiring them and the other half is encouraging them to embrace what may seem at first to be impossible. Much of what I do is listen to how your company works. What is it that your customers love about you? What would they miss if you were to disappear over night? I have to get into how you think. If you are an owner – the visionary of the company, your dynamic plays a large role in your brand. Your decisions have affected for a large part the reputation your brand carries into your marketplace.

Many times in developing the positioning strategy for companies much of what inspires the Bold Idea comes directly from the mouth of the company’s visionary – other times the Bold Idea is inspired by the visionary’s passion. How ever the idea comes, it almost always emboldens you, the visionary to do remarkable things with it. This is due to the fact that we are bringing to the table a very compelling proposition for the customer. My job in developing the Bold Idea Positioning Strategy is to find a marketable point of differentiation. Many customers have built a very good business being all things to all people. If they wish to go to the next level they must be bold. They must stand out in the customers mind as the clear choice, not one of many.

The very nature of a bold idea challenges and then inspires. Your competition will probably think you’re nuts (at least that’s what their hope is). Even they know that while a bold idea is what everyone craves very view have the fortitude to act on it.

The Bold Idea Positioning Strategy is your opportunity to show the real value of your company and its relationship with your customers and competition in a spectacular way.

No, you’re not nuts and YES you will succeed!

Gawd Brand It!! Do As I Say Not As I Do!

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I came across an interesting article today that smacks the face of good branding. It speaks to authenticity. Colby Sambrotto, the founder of ‘for sale by owner’ recently sold his home through a real estate owner. He even paid full commission. What does that say about his authenticity? The negative press will certainly hurt the DIY market. Read the story here.

Are you and your brand on the same page? Do you manufacture parts for GM but drive a Chrysler? You can’t have it both ways. We are all guided by our perceptions. I’ve met people who sold sales training packages but they themselves never used it in their sales efforts. I’ve met Dale Carnegie guru’s who never exhibited traits complementary to Mr. Carnegie’s principals. Hypocrisy abounds. It takes real effort to live your brand. To do otherwise shows that you don’t take branding seriously and put its value as so much spin.

Branding is not a slogan or an “I wish I was great.”

Branding is the reality of your company at this point in time.

It’s not what you wished it was or hope it could be one day. Real estate agents across the continent are going to be re-defining Mr. Sambrotto’s DIY brand for him over the next little while. He wrongly thought his personal and business brand were exclusive of each other. That kind of arrogance can be very costly and hard to back away from.

Is Your Brand Image Up To The Challenges To Come?

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Your brand image is the face of your brand. It is the first thing your target audience sees when first introduced to you. What do you suppose goes through their mind when they see your brand image? Are the colors and imagery resonating by correctly representing your brand values and personality? How about consistency, are [...]

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How to Benefit From A Cohesive Brand Strategy

An interesting brand strategy to me has always been putting the owner’s persona front and center. Make them the face and voice of the brand. Everything we read today speaks to the relationships we build with customers. Make ‘em smile when they see you coming. Volunteering for local charities. Networking. A good number of small [...]

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So You Want To Build A Brand.

Where does one start to build a brand? Do you just let nature dictate, or should you plant your own seeds and nurture it along? My answer has to be the latter. As I see brand as essentially your reputation, I often tell start-ups to determine what they’d like their brand to stand for and [...]

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Are You Holding You Back?

Is your brand continually evolving? Are you always watching for tools and education to put more opportunity in your cross-hairs? Just last year I fine-tuned my website. I really thought the look and functionality was exactly what my brand reflected. In the year or more since that re-do I recognized that to update or improve [...]

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You’ve Been Voluntold!

If you’re anything like myself – you do a great deal of local networking. At least two or three days a week, you might run into me at some event or another. Some are professional groups where my target customers lurk and others are general professional organizations local and national. In a few of these [...]

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