When starting a business, especially in the equine industry there are so many things to think about! Your services or products offered are usually in the forethought of your mind and sometimes there are other really important elements that will directly equate to your businesses success that are forgotten about. In this blog I am going to touch on some of the topics around how to make your business look more professional and reach the clients you actually want to serve.
When you first start a business, it's easy to get overwhelmed and just try to get as much information out there as quickly as possible, without thinking about who is your target audience, and is your content pushed on them, or directed and aimed to them? The content you put out is vital as this is one of the first points that a potential client will see from you and they should start being able to build an understanding of your business and if they want to convert to being a client.
How do we create a target audience?
Set your target audience, who is your perfect client? What is their age range? What type of life do they live? Try to be realistic, yet optimistic with your services and ability to serve these clients. Once you have defined your audience, it’s much easier to imagine a marketing persona that you are talking to when posting your content and to make sure the contents aesthetics would appeal to that person – and by default the rest of your target audience! It’s also just as important to think of who you don’t want to be working with. This can also reflect into your content by avoiding certain hashtags, specific photos, and the wording or key words you use.
For example, if you’re marketing persona is Wendy, 37, female equestrian and dressage enthusiast with a high-end job & lives in a ‘Mrs Hinch’ perfect house with no kids, but has a dog called Archibald - don’t be using clip art and photos of ponies with children. Try think what Wendy would like to see while scrolling though Facebook at 8pm after a long day at work with a glass of red wine in hand on her white couch!
Core values within your company
Think about your company's core values, these are to be considered carefully and refined as it becomes your company's personality. It’s important to think about the ethics and morals that you would like the company to portray and the energy that you would like your customers to feel from you. This directly converts into the branding and content you put out and once again, the elements you shouldn’t put out. If you’re focusing on an equine wellbeing and health service, it would be very contradictive to be posting photos with poorly fitted saddles or harsh training aids (unless as for examples for what not to do/use!). It would contradict your brands ethics and could in result end up with a client losing respect and trust for your brand.
Creating your branding
Make a name for yourself. When creating a business, a strong yet memorable name is vital! You don’t want anything too generic as you could end up lost with the 100’s of other businesses using the same key words, or anything to long and wordy as its far less likely to stick in a potential clients’ head in the same way. But the business name you choose should appeal to your market audience, relate to what you offer and the essence of your brand. While you’re working through this thought process, it’s also worth checking Companies House (UK) or social media to ensure the names you like are free to use!
Setting your branding identity
This is how your clients will first see you and this is their first impressions of your business. Once again thinking back to your market audience, and your marketing persona what would you like ‘Wendy’ to see? We know now a little bit more about her and what she would like to see, but how do you make sure that she sees, what you want her to see? (Are you still with me here?!) We need her to see us, and our fabulous business, with amazing products or services that are perfect for her and think, 'Wow, that’s exactly what I need' or 'I want to know more’.
The face of your business – Your Logo!
So, start having a think about how your business should look, on social media and in person. Starting off with a logo. This is the face of your business, from social media to work wear and in person advertising on business cards and banners! Your logo is the first thing your clients will see and will start to build their impression of your brand. As we all know, first impressions are vital. But did you know it takes just 7 seconds to set an impression on something! That seems like an impossibly short period of time, but by having a strong and professional logo that clearly states your business name, reflects the energy and essence of your business is a great start as is takes the average mind only 50 milliseconds to send visual information from the retina to the "top" of the brain's visual processing chain and back again in loops that confirm what the eye saw. Leaving you with over 6 seconds left to continue that impression through your branding and content!
When thinking about your logo, you should consider what impression you want it to have. Thinking about what your business offers, the target audience, the values of the brand and the energy it should give the client you’re trying to convert. This is where personally I love making new logos, defining the colours, illustrations and fonts to ensure the logo matches the company's essence and reflects the brand in a strong way to draw a client in.
If you’re unsure on what your logo should look like, I would recommend doing a lot of research both with popular brand and companies in your sector and considering the essence they portray. Researching on a web search engine, or places like Pinterest can also be helpful to find a style you love & fits your brand. If you’re still not sure, come have a chat with me & I'll be able to assist and guide you to the perfect first impression!
How to use brand aesthetics for strong results!
You can now start placing together your brand aesthetics - I create a brand board for every logo I create with colours that work together and fonts that are used or compliment the logo! This makes consistent marketing super easy and gives a fabulous base for my clients to base their aesthetics around. From websites, Facebook covers, Instagram posts on social media to business cards and workwear, it's not only imperative to your company's aesthetic, but also to building your brand familiarity whilst continuing the impression and essence you want your company to portray to your clients. It’s always important to keep branding consistent but with a variety of layouts, images and content. Seeing the same images and templates will lead people to become disinterred in your content and phase out!
The Takeaway
This all might seem like a lot to think about, but it all links into each other and should become a system that helps improve your post consistency, saves time and will help to create branding that is not only effective, and consistent but also ‘Wendy’ approved, and we all want to please our ‘Wendy’ and turn her into our client. Feel free to contact me at The Equine Design Room if you have any further questions or if you would like me to assist you in creating your logo and branding or onward marketing aesthetics.
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Beth Garvey
The Equine Design Room
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