By Scott D. White
Developing brand value is critical to every organization and when professionally executed, delivers a clear and measurable competitive advantage to your firm. It does so by helping you establish a positive connection and value-relationship with your customer, which, over time, will build brand equity and increase brand value.
Once this value-relationship is established, both internally and externally, it can be measured, monitored and enhanced periodically, as needed, to strengthen your brand’s effectiveness and increase your bottom line. Whether you’re building a new brand or energizing an existing one, developing brand value maximizes the value-relationship between corporate profitability and the perception of your brand.
The Assessment
The first step in the fine art of branding
Customers factor brands into every purchase. The stronger the brand, meaning the clearer the position it occupies in their minds, the more value it has and the more likely they are to choose it — again and again. The goal is to get them to choose your brand over your competitions. And that’s where a strong brand value can help.
I recommend an in-depth assessment, a strategic survey used to determine the state of your company’s brand. It helps you discover key elements important to satisfying your customer base utilizing brand research findings. The assessment provides a foundation upon which to develop the best model for customizing your brand communications master plan.
The Assessment allows you to accurately measure the present effectiveness and value of your brand. It establishes brand value as a benchmark for future enhancement. How? By zeroing in on which qualities and attributes of your products, services and company make you different from your competition. And, how well they are perceived in the market. It helps you modify and align products, positioning messages and communications with laser point accuracy on your customers’ specific needs and wants.
The Assessment is really a personality profile of your brand. It describes your good points, but more importantly, highlights where you are weak. It does so by using a system of inter-related measurements to gauge brand perceptions and effectiveness.
Using a grading scale of 1-10, the assessment can test vital aspects of your brand as it relates to:
• Products or services
• Target markets
• Messaging
• Communications.
An assessment conducts interviews with management, marketing, sales and other key employees. It will uncover segments of company operations that can do more to nourish the brand, helping you pinpoint areas ripe for improvement. The external research of an assessment includes surveys with clients, prospects, vendors and key industry personnel. It will conduct a “competitive analysis” which tells you how targeted audiences see you, your products or services and how you stack up against the competition.
After your assessment is complete tabulate the results and ask for a customized Brand Analysis Report. These are usually very informative. Often revealing. Only after analyzing all the essential components of the branding assessment can information be provided. This detailed document shows exactly where you can improve.
The Brand Plan
How your brand can become a work of art
Your brand is your company’s power base, its number one asset. Developing a Brand Plan is designed to ensure that your company delivers on its brand promise. It provides companies with a guidebook for continually building, measuring and enhancing brand value and helps you achieve clarity of branding focus and direction.
First, I recommend an Assessment to find your brand’s present position and value. Then I recommend developing The Brand Plan, an in-depth master Brand Plan that defines the strategies, which can strengthen and improve your brand’s performance and market position by establishing a connection and value-relationship with your customer.
Unlike The Assessment, the picture that is painted is not a snapshot of what you are today. The Brand Plan helps you redefine brand personality in the marketplace. It’s how your company will be tomorrow, how it will be seen and perceived by customers, potential customers, your managers, employees and vendors. When managed properly, The Brand Plan increases financial security, growth and earnings potential. It will establish a clearly defined brand vision for employees and management. Both their motivation and commitment to the delivery of the brand promise will greatly increase.
The Brand Plan is a strategic master Brand Plan that will contain specific internal and external strategies and tactics, all with the goal of turning your brand into a work of art. It’s a brandmaster action Brand Plan that encompasses:
• Brand objectives
• Brand positioning, the promise of the brand
• Brand strategy & tactics
The Brand Plan aligns products, services, and communications for uniform delivery of the brand promise throughout your enterprise. Everything is spelled out, integrated, and ready for execution. This vital tool empowers every person in your company to show the true colors of your brand. It gives form and unity to communications that differentiate your brand in the marketplace. It provides a rallying point for employees and provides a cornerstone document of all corporate resources to support brand core competencies.
As people understand the defined objectives, more ideas blossom, making the brand grow even stronger. After all, the true test of any Brand Plan is for it to appreciate over time. The Brand Plan is not a static document to be hung in some dusty museum. It’s a living, breathing, dynamic statement of change based on proven scientific testing, data analysis and measurable results.
Capture more mindshare with a Brand Value Plan... your palette for branding success.
Scott White is President of Brand Identity Guru a leading Corporate Branding and Branding Research firm in Boston, MA.
Brand Identity Guru specializes in creating corporate and product brands that increase sales, market share, customer loyalty, and brand valuation.
This Article may be freely copied as long as it is not modified and this resource box accompanies the article, together with working hyperlinks.
Over the course of his 15-year branding career, Scott White has worked in a wide variety of industries: high-tech, manufacturing, computer hardware and software, telecommunications, banking, restaurants, fashion, healthcare, Internet, retail, and service businesses, as well as numerous non-profit organizations.
Brand Identity Guru clients include: Sun Life Financial, Coca Cola, HP, Sun, Nordstrom, American Federal Mortgage, Franklin Sports and many others, including numerous emerging growth companies.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scott_D._White
4/14/2009
Brand Value Plan - Brand Identity Guru
7/03/2007
Here's Lesson #2 of 'Power Up Your Email' Course
Simon Grabowski
Thanks for requesting my free seven-lesson email course...
"Power up Your Profits by Packing Your Email Marketing With More Punch."
Without further ado, Here's...
Lesson #2: Different (and Profitable!) Ways to Use Smart Autoresponders
So, autoresponders allow you to automate the process of instantly replying to someone who either 1) asked for more information or 2) did something (such as buying from you).
When you start putting the wheels in motion to consistently follow up with your prospects, you'll start seeing the incredible results this amazing tool brings!
For example, you can use your autoresponder to...
Send instant information to people who request it;
Follow-up automatically with your HOT prospects;
Deliver a multi-step course or offer lessons by email;
Publish your ezine by broadcasting to your opt-in list;
Convert inactive or "dead" leads in your current list;
And promote (i.e., "upsell") backend products!
But before I go into further detail about these, I want you to understand the power of automation and the importance and the huge savings! of using GetResponse.
Why Put Your Business on Autopilot...
Let's say you place a simple classified ad on the Internet for your product. It carries your offer and your email address so that your prospects can contact you for more information.
Great. Now, let's also say that your ad is viewed by thousands of people and, conservatively, generates over 300 queries on the first day of publishing. That's pretty good, right?
But here's the kicker...
Every information request you receive has a specific question to answer. Now, how in the world are you going to be able to handle 300 information requests without going nuts?
For example, answering just one email may take you anywhere from 10-15 minutes! If you do the math, you have 75 hours of work ahead of you... And that's only for the first day!
That means, on the first day you'll only be able to answer just a third of those requests that's just 100! The other 200 will still be waiting and likely lose all interest by that point!
Your HOTTEST prospects have now gone ice cold! And this doesn't account for all the future requests you are bound to receive on the second or third day your ad is published!
You Must "Hit the Iron While It's HOT!"
Prospects want information fast. But they will lose interest if they have to wait for your response! Heck, some of them won't probably even remember you by the time you respond!
And a bigger problem is, this is just for the initial reply you haven't even begun following up with them, yet! Can you see the damage and the frustration! this can cause you?
It's impossible to manually handle such a large volume of requests... At least, to do it all, and on time, particularly when the prospect is "hot!" (Unless you have a staff of workers!)
If you think that hiring staff is the way to go, don't forget that on the Internet, people from around the world are seeing your ad, 24/7, around the clock. Can you afford overtime?
However, autoresponders like GetResponse allow you to instantly answer ALL information requests from anyone around the world at any time... Even while you sleep!
So, let's at the same scenario but with a different twist...
You advertise with your classified ad again. But this time, however, you insert your autoresponder's email address for offering more information instead of your personal one.
When someone sends email to that address, they receive a reply within seconds! Not in minutes, hours or days, but NOW!
Going a Step Further...
To this point, I'm sure you understand the concept. But now, let me show you how you can start seeing the immense profitability in using "smart" autoreponders specifically.
Let's say that the people who requested your information got it, read it over but pushed it aside... They're just undecided at this point and want to "think about it." It's understandable.
But if you leave it at that, here's what can happen...
They're too busy and never go ahead,
They lost or misplaced your email,
They became swamped with other emails,
They deleted your email by accident,
They forgot about your offer,
They lost interest in your offer,
They found a better offer elsewhere,
They forgot how to contact you,
And so on.
Can you see the problem?
With an "intelligent" autoresponder like GetResponse you can set it up so that additional reminder messages are sent out to your prospects automatically!
By increasing the number of exposures to your message, your prospects will likely never forget or lose your email, and your prospect will think of you first when they do go ahead!
If, out of those 300 initial information requests, 10 people go ahead, the remaining 290 are kept for you, added to your autoresponder cycle and automatically followed up with...
... As many times as is necessary!
Moreover, they're instantly added to your database, so you can contact them at any time, in the future, when you want! That way, you can start building a targeted opt-in list!
On top of getting automated, sequenced follow-ups, you can use it to publish an ezine, promote offers from JV partners or affiliate programs, or make special announcements!
Doing so, you've not only raised the chances of selling that customer but also increased that customer's lifetime value by increasing the number of sales... With the same customer!
For example, let's say your business is about car parts. Your initial reply sends information about your business, or perhaps about a specific part a person wants more information on.
They then get an email follow-up, once a week. They finally decide to buy. But in a few weeks down the road, you email them about, say, another part to go with the same car!
In other words, you can get them to buy again and again! They bought from you once, so trust is already established... Your client acquisition costs are virtually non-existent!
How to Structure Your Follow-up Sequence
In addition to sending email to an address, autoresponders can be triggered from a form on your website, where the visitor will enter his information and receive an instant reply.
But now you want to set up a sequence of "autoresponses," so you can send further messages to your prospects at intervals you specify (such as two, five or seven days later).
Here is an example of an initial autoresponse message...
> Dear John Doe,
> Thank you for requesting more information on our
> products earlier. I have attached a document to this email
> containing our price listings for
> August's catalogue of products.
> Please read through it at your convenience, John.
> I will get back to you the same time on Wednesday
> with our special offers.
> Feel free to send me an email or call me, toll-
> free at 877-555-1212, if you like to discuss your
> needs in greater detail.
> Thanks again,
> Joe Bloggs
> Bloggs Business Supplies Inc.
By the way, the words in red have been automatically added by the autoresponder for you. It can capture and add a first name, full name, month, year, a few days ahead, you name it!
Why? Because with GetResponse you can ask for additional pieces of information, such as through a web form, and incorporate them into your email messages!
You can also attach documents!
Then, a series of follow-up messages are sent over time at intervals you choose! Here's one example of a sequence for following up with prospects who have requested information:
1st message is sent immediately
2nd message is sent 2 days later
3rd message is sent 5 days later
4th message is sent 8 days later
5th message is sent 12 days later
6th message is sent 16 days later
7th message is sent 20 days later
(Also, keep in mind that the timeframe may be different, depending on your type of business, product or market.)
An Example of a Follow-up Sequence
Below, I will illustrate how to set up your autoresponder with a sample sequence suitable for following up with people who have, say, requested information on a particular product.
Autoresponse: A "Thanks" for Requesting Information
The aim is to thank your prospect for requesting information and introduce your website or product to them. It's important to outline the major benefits and what's in it for them!
Follow-Up #1: Introduce a Deadline or Time-Limited Offer
After a few days, your prospect can easily forget about you. Don't just remind them of your offer but also make them feel a sense of urgency, like, "I better get this before it's too late".
Use scarcity, such as time-limited or quantity-bound offer. Perhaps there are only a 17 seats left at a seminar you are promoting, or maybe only 200 copies of your book printed.
Follow-Up #2: Reinforce Benefits to Persuade Prospects
Sent 3-5 days after the original request, elaborate on the offer by reinforcing the benefits. Stress the benefits they get from buying your product or doing business with you.
Follow-Up #3: Pile on the Bonuses to Get Them Excited
Stress the bonuses or premiums (many people buy products just for the bonuses). Remind them that bonuses are limited and guaranteed for a number of days. Again, use scarcity!
Follow-Up #4: Build Value by Comparing Your Product
Demonstrate the value by comparing "apples to oranges." If you're selling a report on how to create websites, compare it to paying an experienced (and rather costly) web designer!
Follow-Up #5: Boost Desire with Glowing Testimonials
Build trust. You're totally unknown to your prospects. But they will trust you far more if you give examples of what other people have said about your company and product.
Follow-Up #6: Demand Action and Remind of Deadline
This final step of your sequence is what makes or breaks the sale. Remind your prospect of the benefits of your product, and especially the urgency and scarcity, like a deadline.
(Potential) Follow-Up #7: Do Market Research
Remember that even when the follow-up sequence is complete your prospects are still very valuable to you, whether they bought or not. First, you can contact them for research.
Ask them why they haven't bought from you. The information they provide may help you change your offer or even rewrite (or add something to) your autoresponder sequence.
Second, contact them on a regular basis thereafter (using your autoresponder's "broadcast" feature) to let them know of website updates, new products, special offers, etc.
Now, it's Your Turn...
If you want to try it out at no cost to you, then sign up for GetResponse FREE. You'll be set up in no time and start using it like the example, above.
BUT, if you want to unlock all of the powerful features and use it to its fullest potential, then I highly recommend you try the all-new, full-featured GetResponse PRO.
"Power up your follow-up" right now! See... http://www.GetResponse.com/
Lesson #3 on its Way in Three Days!
I hope this lesson has been informative for you. Don't forget... More lessons are on on their way. Plus, there are tons of free resources at your disposal if you ever need any help!
We're here to help! Thanks again for visiting GetResponse.com.
I look forward to serving you soon.
Sincerely,
Simon Grabowski CEO, GetResponse.com
P.S. If you know of anyone who might benefit from these lessons, please forward it. Or, they can get their own copy by sending a blank email to popuptip@getresponse.com.
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