Tips for Building a Brand

A brand is just more than a logo and a tagline. Building a brand is the way of defining your business and communicating with the external and internal audience. You need to be analytical and patient during the branding process. In this article, we will discuss certain tips that will help you create a robust brand.

Define your brand

Before starting, review the product or service you are offering and find out the space it occupies in the market. Research on the needs of customers and see how you can stand out in the competition. You must identify the message you want to convey and deliver it in a concise way.

Planning

Planning is highly important to create a brand. Ask yourself these questions:

What is your goal?

What is the USP of your product?

Who is your target audience?

What image do you want to invoke in the customer's mind?

Answering the above questions will help in proper planning.

Know the demographics of customers

Identifying the demographics of customers is vital to build a successful brand. The information will affect pricing, promotion and packaging of your product. The demographic profile of the target audience will help you identify their choices and tailor your product accordingly.

Recognize your strengths and weaknesses

It is essential to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. Knowing them will help you strengthen your business in the long run. Work on your weaknesses and find out ways to overcome them. Also, you need to maintain transparency in your business and be honest to your employees and investors.

Engage with your customers

Your customers hold the key to your success. To create brand awareness and spread your vision, interact with your customers. Use the power of social media to reach a range of audience. Join your niche communities and create a contact base.

Know the market and competitors

It is important to know the market and the competitors. Research on the products and services of your rivals. Find out how you can do things differently from them. Understanding your competitors will help you distinguish yourself in the market and create a unique brand identity.

Be consistent

Be consistent with your brand across all platforms. Inconsistency can dent the image of your business in the market and put off customers. Only when you are consistent, you can build a strong image in the market.The longer you are consistent, the more likely it is for customers to recognize your brand.

A 360-Degree approach involving Brand Design, Protection & Communication helps your brand to achieve the success it deserves. We at Goldfinn Technologies aim to help our clients achieve a greater ROI for every rupee spent. For more click http://www.goldfinn.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sayed_Nas

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Creating Brand Strategy and Awareness Using Social Media

Branding in the Virtual Universe

Every business today needs a hot and sticky brand.

Today is different than any time in our history when speaking on the topic of branding a business. In the virtual universe, it is very important to have a professional social presence.

To do business online in this changing landscape, it is going to be required of us to know how to use social media for branding. Branding is the concept behind all you do in business and even in your personal life. It is the element which people remember.

Remember the days of "cold calling"?

Cold-Calling is the process of calling a list of people to get them to say yes to what you are doing. It is a process which may be going away with the dawn of virtual marketing. There are a few things your business can start to do to increase brand awareness.

Use referencing material such as hashtags when making social posts. A hashtag is the number sign and the word beside it will be what you would use. Simply do a search for the word and see what you come up with.

Have a complete social media profile. Using one over the other is perfectly fine, but a successful business will be branded everywhere a prospect resides.

Create a mission. Having a business is one of the greatest assets someone can possess, but often the business does not have a mission. What are your core values as a business owner?

Recruit a team. Using some of the group features found on many social networks is a great way to build your tribe. Once loyal, a consumer will return again and again. Within the groups, talk about your brand, products and outreach goals.

Be visible. Don't worry about being seen. Business that aren't seen, aren't in business very long. Use your social media to create a virtual fame factor.

Write a book. Writing a book establishes you as the expert in your chosen field. It is easier than ever to produce, publish and promote your book.

Be a testimonial junkie. Everywhere your business goes, be sure to collect testimonials. Even one sentence praise reports from someone famous can result in your business exploding with interested clients.

Be humble and authentic. In a virtual arena, retaining authenticity is key to attracting high-paying prospects who demand more of the "real deal".

Have a strategy. Having an outlined strategy for virtual branding goes a long way toward peace. Lay out each week what you are going to put out there and who will see it.

Finally, embrace change. Social media is a virtual Goliath in the world of branding. Your new "hot and sticky" brand will go with you through all of the change, but know, there will be changes.

It has been a pleasure to talk to you today about branding on social media. Stay cool and write your book.

#hotpinkattitude with Carla Wynn
Create your Brand - Then write a book!
http://www.hotpinkpublishing.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Carla_Wynn_Hall

If Opportunity Doesn't Knock, Build A Door

The title I used for this article can be originally attributed to Milton Berle. It's as accurate today as it was when he first said it.

In 2012, a young boy named Kelvin Doe became the youngest person in the history of the program to be invited to the "Visiting Practitioners Forum" at MIT. He was 15. Check out what 8 million people found incredible about this young boy in this inspirational YouTube video.

 Kelvin grew up in Sierra Leone and his family was impoverished. He became a self-taught engineer. And in the midst of poverty, he was able to build his own community radio station where he features news and music. He created ways for his rural community to have light. He built a generator because he needed it-all with the resources he found in his home or in the trash. When he did finally appear in the United States after news of his genius spread, he impressed the minds of the engineers and inventors at MIT.

Kelvin built a door.

So, how do you find opportunity and create the door if nothing is coming your way?

One of the things I have found is that you need to be prepared to take the initiative and maybe even trail-blaze. I am an entrepreneur and the founder of a nonprofit, a social enterprise and several businesses. I firmly believe if I spent my life waiting for something to come my way, I probably would have been waiting a long time.

"Building a door", by definition, means constructing something. If you are looking to start something new, you have to be ready to create.

Do you always have to be the leader?

I don't think so. If you are looking to create opportunity in developing a new social enterprise, nonprofit or business, you can be the person who has the idea. If you then bring that concept to others who are comfortable being in leadership roles, you can work together as a team.

Opportunities and the ideas that create them can be found almost anywhere. Historically, you have people who take an existing product or service and improve upon it. A simple tweak or subtle change here or there may make something more successful. These types of opportunities can be found simply by looking at what others may be overlooking. Oftentimes, success can be found by being a bit more observant and creative.

Other times, you have individuals who are able to create something and solve a problem in a way that has not previously been done. Let's take Elon Musk, the chief product architect of Tesla Motors, inventor and entrepreneur. He's been all over the news lately, and for good reason.

Elon Musk is a great example of someone who is seeing opportunity everywhere. In a nut shell, since NASA mothballed its space shuttle program, he has been working with other global leaders in privatizing what was once a government-only endeavor to have people travel to space. He is the co-founder of PayPal, which helped revolutionize how people send and receive money in a much more cost effective and seamless transaction on the Internet.

Recently, Elon Musk has been all over the news for two reasons: 1) He stated that self-driving cars was a problem that had been "solved". In his remarks last month, he said that engineers and designers essentially knew how to get an automobile to drive itself and it would be only a matter of time until they perfected it and rolled it out systematically; and, 2) on March 30th, he sent out a single tweet that he would be unveiling a new invention, which was not a car, on April 30th.

That single tweet created an enormous buzz on the Internet and, remarkably, as was noted in this article, Tesla Motors stock jumped by $900 million or nearly 4 percent in 10 minutes following that tweet.

As of this writing, we don't know what Elon Musk will be presenting, but this is opportunity. Just like Kevin, Elon Musk is a great example of someone who is thinking outside of the proverbial box and seeing opportunities abounding in different areas. Either inventor could have been limited by circumstance or "reality", but that's not the path they chose.

They are creating solutions. They are creating opportunity.

There may not be immediate pay-offs, but one of the messages you should internalize is that both Kevin Doe and Elon Musk are building doors where they might not have previously existed.

We all have the capacity and ability to do this. It is not special to a favored few. We just have to believe in ourselves and then do the work.


© 2015 Not Your Father's Charity. All Rights Reserved.

Author of the book, "The Rise and Fail of Charities In the 21st Century: How The Nonprofit World Is Changing And What You Can Do To Be Ready" available on Amazon. Please visit my website at http://wayneelsey.com/.

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The Deceptive World We've Created!

"But I'll wear my heart upon my sleeve. For daws to peck at: I am not what I am." - William Shakespeare (from the Othello play)

"I am not what I am", is a clear-cut pointer to what this post is about. The world isn't smooth!

Like those dudes in the pot, we think we've outsmarted nature, when in reality we are destroying what we've built.

It is quite unfortunate that deceit have helped most *shmucks* go on with life.

-Fools are elected into public offices.
-Idiots inherits or own big empires.
-Ambitious and devouring beasts run companies.
- Criminals walk around freely.
- The innocent are either in jail, hospital, or probably dead!
- The poor(who can't afford medical care) fall sick more often.
- Most rich men (who made money legitimately) are seen as evil.
-Illiterates teach brilliant students.
- ......perhaps you can continue the list.

Who or what is to blame? I guess we can find the answer in history. But why does the world suck?

Oh! before you continue. There's something you should know about me:
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It's not a perfect world and I'm no perfect writer; it'll be stupid I claim to be the best writer, when in fact I make mistakes like its a mistake-party--- Not too much though!
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Look around you and you'll see lies everywhere. This can be seen mostly amongst politicians, executives, religious leaders and businessmen. No doubt, the common man, unfortunately, who's more affected, stupidly lives like that too.

I'm glad the air isn't commercialized because it would had being devastating to witness 'creative' lies; I guess we would had probably heard things like: "eerh...due to global warming, the world's air is at a critical level. Thanks to our scientific breakthrough we've been able to create 'purified air' for about X dollars per year". Believe me! most businessmen and government will do anything to retain their power.

Our ambition and pride makes us adorn ourselves with transient values, which has contributed to our current global. (economic and natural) crisis.

Organizations flood us with exaggerated advertisement and publicity stunts in a bid to persuade us to kill ourselves while they have increased profits.
We're destroying humanity and this planet by most of our actions. I believe honesty will go a long way in helping us stand firm, for a start.

Tobacco isn't good for the health, yet it sells like crazy! Coke(not cocaine) is just carbonated water and sugar; however, branding has made it a holy grail.

At times I see people and wonder, "are they nuts?" Go to seminars, symposium, church services and any social gathering, you'll know what I'm talking about.

Have you ever seen a gorgeous chick who tells you she's damn good at singing and the next thing you hear is a frog-like voice? Why do we elect fools as leaders?

In my field(Computer Programming) I've come across a lot of people like that. They pride themselves as genius in their locality(or neighborhood) but in reality can only 'pass data to a variable'.
It's awful when this falsely-branded people fail when called to solve a problem or join a conversation.

Below are just a few reasons why you shouldn't lie or make a fool out of yourself :

- What goes around comes around: The world sucks at making anybody feel bad, therefore don't look for the world's trouble by fooling people.

- You wouldn't know your actual level of professionalism.

- People wouldn't trust as you will most times look too good to be true.

If you aren't cut out for something leave it! Don't force yourself to play-along.
Its your life for ***** sake! Come on!

When you make a fool out of yourself you're making a fool out of your world, and you'll be branded a fool.

The question is, what can you do to make your 'little' world a safe-haven for future generation?

Seven Simple Reasons [Tech] Startups aren't Flourishing in Nigeria

Success does not come as easy for the average Nigerian, as it does for the average man from the Western world. The word, "hustle" is now the maxim of the youth. Startups (new business) and venture-capitalists are buzzing worldwide, but this is not the case in Nigeria.

Are startups in Nigeria finding it enjoyable? No, I wouldn't agree. Currently in Nigeria, ideas are abound, but fund raising and monetizing are often walloped by poor startup 'ecosystem'.
It is commendable that some Nigerians where able to establish Co-Creation Hub (CCHUB) to curb these challenges. However, it's just the beginning, because the stronger challenge is the impulsive mindset of the populace.
I've put together certain mindsets which are responsible for the deterioration of technological business in Nigeria.

The 'Survive Now' Mentality:
In the name of survival, people engage in 'buying and selling' – a business that barely improves the brain. It's until we dare to do greater things that we will improve the country.

Most people would be expecting to see power supply as one reason. For me, I believe it starts with the state-of-mind. Let's forget all those excuse for things beyond our control, control what you can:YOUR MIND!

Unhealthy Taste for Power:
In Africa, power is the ability to get what you want when you want it; hence most people yearn for it. This "power" is gratifying because it doesn't come easy, and for this, people use it to intimidate and oppress others. Opportunities are usually lost as a result.


Too much emphasis on physical appearance:
The delusion that good-looks are good-skills has been to the detriment of skillful servicemen. The way you dress determines how you are addressed is no doubt true, but good-labour isn't gotten this way. Lanre, my friend, who happens to be a very skillful programmer, failed a job interview because he wore a T-shirt on a pair of jeans – sad! In most cases, if you don't dress corporate nobody takes you serious. Quite a number of geeks don't appear well nor speak good English. So why do we look at outward appearance? Check out Steve Jobs.
At Orangeville Systems, one of our best programmers feels more comfortable on casual wears. I advise my fellow Nigerian youth to seek knowledge than physical appearance.


Hustle(short-term runs) as a preferred means to income amongst our youth:
Due to the harsh economic environment and the huge gap in economic class, money and good-looks are what the youth crave for, and they want it now; hence they are stirred to a life of hustling (conning), and with this mindset it's impossible to build a lasting business and a thriving society.


Mental Laziness:
Mediocrity can be seen everywhere, from government to individuals. Even at schools, students prefer cheating.


Wearisome Business Environment:
From business registration to liquidation, this can be seen.
Honesty and peace are expensive for the corrupt. The corrupt will always want wealth-acquisition to be a rough road so they can have more power (or money). What they fail to see is that they are making the society uncomfortable for their unborn children and grandchildren.


Wrong Educational Perception:
Most people worsen issues by painting the picture that a white-collar job is the sure way to prosperity. They make others believe that without a university degree they have NO FUTURE. Education (not university degree) is the key to transformation, and most African universities are filled with archaic syllabus. We shouldn't forget that vocational skills are strong societal driving force and most youth will excel at it.
I have had several final-year students come to me (when I just came out of secondary school) to do their programming based projects, and when you ask why they wouldn't do it on their own, you get responses like: "we were taught only theories", "the hand-outs weren't comprehensive", or "we weren't taught this damn programming language".
Education is meant to be of essence afterwards.

Oh!...and another problem is that almost every youth wants to be a WizKid(musician).


CONCLUSION: (WHAT I LOVE ABOUT NIGERIA)
-Any business that can succeed in Nigeria can succeed in the moon.
-Anybody that can drive a car in Lagos can drive a car anywhere in the world, because most motorists in Lagos are rough.
-Nigerians are good at inventing diverse survival tactics.
I love the Nigerian spirit which doesn't give-up but goes beyond colossal challenges to excel. The rush and hard-work in Lagos is so invigorating.
Challenges are stepping stones.
Someday, Nigerians will be the best at maneuvering and transformations amidst challenges (ONLY if we start seeing things the right way).
I BELIEVE NIGERIA CAN BE AT THE TOP!


Software Developer | Techpreneur
___Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device