When an entrepreneur brands his or her product, business or concept, inadvertently the entrepreneur himself often becomes associated with that brand. After all, Bill Gates equals Microsoft, and Steve Jobs is synonymous with Apple computers. This is not really a problem, until the entrepreneur in question considers a new and unrelated start-up. This is not entirely unlikely, after all: we are familiar with the “serial entrepreneur” concept. However, do we being the customer take that entrepreneur seriously when they start company number 2? Imagine Bill Gates starting a fashion line? While movie stars seem to pull it off, it doesn’t mean we can look like we can “do it all”.
I recently ran into a wall of disbelief when I announced to be developing a new business. Friends know me as a writer and communications/marketing strategist, so this new idea came as a shock. To me it was interesting to see that I had branded myself sufficiently well to cause this reaction. People have associated me with pen and paper for years, and I will probably (thankfully) never shake that “brand image”. However, it does open a new area of potential problems: how does one market a new business while operating under an existing label?
So far, all I can say is “start fresh”. Provided your new business has nothing to do with the old. If the two are grossly unrelated, you will likely not be able to use your existing reputation to attract clients for your newest venture. This puts you at square one anyways, and associating one company with the other will only cause confusion.
Another issue I already eluded to is the possible loss of credibility with existing clients. They sometimes assume that because you are taking on a “side job”, your current business is not doing too well, i.e. you may not really be as “good as you seem”. While your entrepreneurial spirit and energy should be applauded, we are as a society accustomed to assume the worst when people take on extra work. On the flip side, you may be considered so good at designing t-shirts that nobody can believe you are actually capable of doing anything else. Starting a restaurant may not appear as logical to your clients as it does to you.
My opinion, as a marketing strategist, is to determine which company relies most on you personally for its brand recognition. For example; my copy writing/marketing practice heavily relies on my name and personal reputation. Luckily, because my new venture is in the retail industry, I can build a new brand for it and do not need to rely on the existing one.
Now, to satisfy some of your curiosity and throw in another branding lesson; what am I selling? I am selling products that satisfy an environmentally conscious life style, to consumers who value 100% hand-made items, from 100% natural materials…
And who doesn’t want to save the planet these days?
I am still working on the launch, but once it is up and running I will keep you posted on my branding progress!
Until next time,
Christine
