If you’re wondering, the answer is probably YES.

If you are wondering if your branding strategy could use an update, it probably could. Nowadays, branding is more than just great colors and a catchy slogan,  it’s the way your business strategically meets the needs of your target audience. With an effective marketing strategy, you have the ability to win your audience over by utilizing the right message at just the right time.

When you come to the realization that it is time to overhaul your strategy, you have to start at square one. So, how do you get there? Here are the five steps that you need to get your branding strategy in a position to effectively win new business.

1) Analyze Who Your Actual Target Audience Is

Knowing who you are talking with is a critical factor in branding. You need to know what the commonalities are among your current target audience and what you need to do to be relatable. Sometimes, your ideal audience and your actual customers are two different personas. It is important to determine the similarities and differences in who you want to be associated with. As you look to effectively reach your desired audience, it is critical to analyze demographics and consumer behavior reports  in order to find ways that you can connect.

2) Determine Where You Need To Focus Your Presence On Social Media

Your social media presence requires a focused effort. On associated platforms, you have the ability to position your brand in any light you see fit. While branding is usually associated with traditional marketing efforts (logo, colors, etc), social platforms give you the opportunity to be yourself online and showcase your strengths through your interactions with customers and other businesses. The best part? These platforms are all about building relationships, not just trying to sell a product or service. This opportunity gives you the chance to develop loyalty amongst your fans. In this realm, it is important to know what platform your customers are actually using. For example, baby boomers will not likely be on TikTok.  In addition, Gen Z folks will likely not be on Facebook. If you are unable to determine which platform your targeted audience is using, just be sure that you are active on at least two or three of the most popular ones.

3) Look For Opportunities To Be Remarkable

With branding, it’s important to stand out from your competition in key ways. Find ways to differentiate yourself while keeping your key pieces of information front and center. You want people to take notice of your brand when they hear about you, so focus all efforts on effective strategies that will make it easy for people to remember exactly what makes your company stand out. Keep in mind what sets you apart from others. No matter what industry you are in, your brand has selling points that make it unique. In many cases, being remarkable is about timing. Being able to be quick to respond when a cultural event happens is key to differentiation.

4) Tone Down the Hype

Are you investing large sums in your branding strategy without seeing results? In some situations, your efforts may be too flashy, overstated, or just plain cheesy. Nowadays, many customers appreciate genuine content that is relatable. It will be apparent that your branding needs a refresh when it seems like clients are tuning you out because of all the noise surrounding branding today. This is something that is difficult to grasp for many brands. If you are struggling with this piece of your strategy, it is important to work with an industry expert who understands the trends of the market.

5) Stand for Something

What is your stake in the sand when it comes to marketing? What separates your business from others? Are there things that make it appealing and unique? Make sure that your branding is speaking for itself by being part of a greater purpose.  This branding strategy will speak volumes to people in a meaningful way.

Summary

Asking yourself the question, "Is my brand in need of an overhaul?" is an essential question that all companies must consider. Branding is the foundation of any company. It reflects everything about your business including your reputation, your customer loyalty, and your position in the marketplace.

Are you attempting to have a savvy marketing strategy without any results? Are you investing time and resources into a Brand that is not garnering new business? Unfortunately, many businesses repel new customers as they try to attract them.

We often talk about effective Branding in marketing circles as if it were some sort of magic elixir that draws the very targets you want into your doorway, perhaps accompanied by their sales dollars. However, the process is much more comprehensive than people think.

There are two big Branding mistakes most businesses make. First, they create a marketing strategy just for the sake of having a plan but there is not a clearly articulated metric of success. Secondly, Brands focus efforts in polarizing ways that attract one target audience but repels another.

How Do I Know If My Branding Strategy Is Attracting Customers?

Businesses often throw around words like "innovative" and "cutting edge." Although these concepts are good in theory, they need to be executed flawlessly to compel an audience. If the image that your businesses projects doesn't match the the promise of your Brand, you can expect a disconnect that may lead to consumer confusion or worse, irrelevance. Your Branding is the promise that you make to customers.  It needs to be communicated through every aspect of marketing plan.

If there is a disconnect causing customer distrust, you will repel new customers. With the volume of marketing materials that an individual encounters on a daily basis, it is more likely that they will analyze a message from a business that they are looking to engage with. Make sure your message is concise, clear, and truthful.

Are you using language that is clear, concise and relatable across every touchpoint?

An effective Branding strategy attracts customers by using language that is clear, concise and relatable across every touchpoint. Whatever you are selling, whether it's a product or service, the brand must communicate the core reasons why someone should buy from you instead of your competitors. This means putting yourself in the shoes of potential customers and understanding their psyche while creating a presence that speaks to them on an emotional level without being too pushy.

Tone & Voice Matter More Than Ever Before

Your tone and voice matter more than ever before when attracting new consumers. Individuals are inundated with marketing messages everywhere they turn - social media, television commercials, print ads, etc.

What branding should do is align your strategy with an effective plan of execution targeted at a selected audience. In this way, your promise becomes a clear communication device for attracting and building relationships with the right customers. These individuals may go on to be brand ambassadors or advocates for your company across their own networks.

Your branding can be successful even if a company's products and services are still being perfected.

Summary

The best thing to do when analyzing your marketing strategy is to put yourself in the shoes of the customer.  Before creating your strategy and plan, make sure your team is aligned on the promise that you want to make to your customers. From there, you can help create a streamlined message that can be used in all aspects of the marketing plan.

Take a minute and list all of the things that your Brand provides to clients. If you work for a pediatricians office, you check on wellness of kids, care for sick kids, provide shots, recommend additional services, and much more. As a neurosurgeon, you complete surgeries but you also develop treatment plans, analyze data, and educate individuals. Unfortunately, many specialized facilities are unable to fully communicate the scope of their services. Healthcare Brands can easily become known by just one service or speciality. Because of this, it is common that healthcare brands only reach a portion of their target audience. When you effectively communicate the entirety of your services, you will see a growing number of individuals that are interested in your Brand. 

If you employ an in-house marketing team, they are often only interested in their specific area of expertise. For example, the rehabilitation department is responsible for increasing their traffic and appealing to net new audiences. The surgery center wants to increase the number of surgeries that are completed weekly. Because different departments have different strategies and goals, there are often discrepancies in language and messaging. When working with an outside agency, you will have access to a group of experts that can develop an overall language and strategy that can be tweaked and innovated to help promote growth in different divisions. When you have a consolidated language, it takes less time and resources to develop campaigns.

In order to determine the effectiveness of your communication, it is important to look at current business trends for your Brand. Is one division thriving while another is faltering? After looking at relevant data, consider completing a survey. Ask a variety of local individuals what comes to mind when they think of your Brand. If all people answer similarly, it is obvious that you are only known for a singular speciality. When you are marketing strategically, you will be able to communicate the full scope of your expertise without compromising the current client base. At RocketDog, we believe that Brands can thrive when they determine an effective way to market the holistic nature of their products and services. In this article, we will share different steps to take to increase the scope of your marketing efforts.

Identify Your Identity

As you begin to reamp your communication strategy, identify the factors that you are currently known for. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, there are a few ways that you can determine what the general population assumes to be true about your Brand. When you employ the services of an agency partner, you can use market reports to track consumer trends. In addition, many agency partners can conduct surveys that help you identify the strengths and weaknesses in your Branding. At RocketDog, we work with clients to develop a foundational Branding strategy that infiltrates a wide range of people in the target audience. Before every project, we look at consumer trends and behaviors to ensure that the collateral that is created is effective and compelling. After you identify your identity in the marketplace, you can begin to create a messaging technique that works for you.

Developing a Technique

Once you identify specific areas of growth, you can recreate your Branding strategy. You will not be able to reach net new people while using old techniques and messaging. In order to grow into new areas, you must strategically place your message on different platforms. In addition, you must renovate your communication strategy to showcase the full spectrum of your offerings.

At RocketDog, we know that healthcare Brands must market their expertise to people of all different ages and backgrounds. Because of this, healthcare Brands need to be present on all forms of social media and online platforms. When you work with RocketDog, you can create a language and messaging technique that can be translated across many different channels.

In the last few months, many healthcare Brands have tacked “telehealth conferences” onto their list of services. In reality, this service is very beneficial. Not only is it affordable, it allows people to have 1:1 conversations with their doctor from the comfort and safety of their home. Rather than simply listing your services, communicate their value. Showcase testimonials from beneficiaries and profiles regarding your expert employees. When you show real-life and relatable examples of success, you will be amazed at the interest that is piqued among consumers.

Sticking With The Plan

Developing a new Brand reputation is difficult. If you have been around for an extended period of time, it is likely that individuals have assumptions about your expertise and services. When you are rebranding, you will likely notice that it takes time to develop a rejuvenated reputation. Even when you are fatigued with the changes that are taking place, it is important that you stick through the transition period. Even if you do not gain much traction in the first few weeks, continue creating quality touchpoints with your target audience. 

The customer experience includes every touchpoint you have with a current or prospective customer. From a logo to a billboard, a commercial to an email campaign, these touchpoints impact the perception that people have of your services. Consider creating quality and meaningful touch points until you see results. Once people see that you are passionate about your services, they will develop an interest in your Brand. Unfortunately, many healthcare companies want to see immediate results from every campaign. With this mindset, it's easy to confuse language and compromise strategy.

At RocketDog, we believe that specific campaigns can help support the overall Brand strategy. We work with Brands to develop unique campaigns that are utilized to target specific groups in the marketplace.

Working With The Right Agency Partner

As a healthcare entity, you are constantly fighting to find new patients, experienced doctors, and generous donors. With so many items on the agenda, it can be difficult to invest in an excellent marketing team. Rather than pouring resources and overhead into an in-house committee, develop a relationship with an agency partner. Thankfully, a Branding agency has a full team of employees that specialize in all aspects of the marketing strategy. Because of this expertise, you can utilize the skill sets of some of the most brilliant professionals in the industry. 

When choosing an agency partner, it is important that you find a company that has experience working in the healthcare industry. With this experience, individuals will be well-equipped to notice shifts, trends, and nuances in the market. At RocketDog, we employ a group of specialists that ranges from social media content to digital design. Because of our healthy team, we are able to help clients accomplish a variety of goals.

Summary

As a healthcare brand, it is important that you maximize your reach so that you can assist more people that are in need. Because of the competition in the industry, many Brands can quickly become identified by just one of their many services. If you want to increase revenue and build traffic, market the services you provide in a holistic way. By prioritizing the holistic nature of your work, you will attract net new patients, employees, and donors.

If you are looking to renovate the way that people experience your Brand, contact RocketDog today.