Five,Ways,Promote,Your,Unique, marketing Five Ways to Promote Your Unique Business Identity

Awhile ago, I got an email from one of the "gurus" I follow and it shocked me. The gist of it was this person wanted to trade services for a household item.To say it floored me would be an understatement.What was worse was a few days later t Automation technologies represent a fundamental aspect of any modern industry. The major types of industrial automation solutions, such as DCS, PLC, SCADA, and MES, are used on a large-scale in process and discrete industries.DCS technologie

Where's the Beef?These words became a national catch phrase in the mid1980's and catapulted the Wendy's hamburger chain into thelimelight as a major player in fast food sales.Wendy's credits the "Where's the Beef" ad campaign with a31% jump in sales and a 24% boost in year-end profits.Not bad for a campaign built on a three-word ad slogan.Granted, you may not have the budget to build a brandawareness campaign as Wendy's did, but you certainly shouldpractice advertising strategies that are built around yourown unique business identity.Identify Your UniquenessIf you haven't yet put a finger on the distinct qualitythat sets your business apart from your competition, thenyou need to get busy. You only need one quality. Just one. This unique quality that sets you apart from the herd isyour brand. It is the essence - the fabric - that runsthrough your operation. It speaks to consumers instantlyabout the nature of your service or product, yourreputation, your commitment, your uniqueness.Once identified, you must be able to clearly communicateyour brand to consumers. There are two easily recognizableways to do this: with your logo and tagline.A branded business has a memorable logo. A straight-forward example is Ford's blue oval, while a more abstractexample is the Nike checkmark. Your logo is the visualcomponent of your brand. The next component is a written or verbal one. It isreferred to as your tagline, and it reflects the exactposition you are assuming in relation to your customer,your product, and your competitors. Specifically, itclearly defines the quality which differentiates yourbusiness from competitors while extolling the benefit yourcustomer will enjoy.Coca Cola's statement of being 'The Real Thing' is aclassic example of positioning in relation to a competitor.Clearly, if they're the real thing - the original - thenthe other guy isn't. But does this mean anything toconsumers? The benefit to the customer is kind of murky.For the small business owner it's better to go with a morenarrowly defined tagline that clearly denotes uniqueness.The sandwich shop Quizno's exemplifies this with theirtagline 'Oven Toasted Tastes Better'.Five Ways to Promote Your Unique IdentityYour logo and tagline are valuable property. Make them avisible thread that runs through all your promotions. Hereare five great ways to get your brand name out there infront of consumers:1. Give Away Something People Will Expose To OthersInstead of just giving away a freebie that has a one-timeuse, provide a valuable service or product that will getused or seen by other people. I use this strategy byproviding free newsletter templates. At the bottom of thetemplates you'll find my brand. It's great exposure and awonderful traffic-generating tool.Free eBooks, free email, free websites, free pens, free t-shirts, free baseball caps... all these are great examplesof things people use and expose to others. Take a good lookat your own products and services. What can you give away?2. Encourage Interactivity We are social creatures. Everyone likes to be included -tohave the opportunity to put in their 2 cents worth.Encourage people to get involved with your business. Invitequestions, ask for feedback, run a contest, sponsorteleclasses or chat sessions, or moderate a discussionboard. For every person you make a connection with, youhave created the opportunity to ignite a word-of-mouthcampaign that stretches through everyone they know. Take a peek at Pepsi.com for a look at brand marketingthrough interactivity. On their home page they are activelyrecruiting every carbonated beverage drinker on the planetto "make a difference" and become a Pepsi Advisor. Strawberry/Kiwi Pepsi. What do you think? Pssst... tellyour friends!3. Brand Your Digital and Print CommunicationsIf you type it, write it, or touch it... brand it. Ifyou're within breathing distance of it - try to brand it.Leave evidence of your unique business identity everywhereyou can. Your website, all your outgoing postal mail, andall electronic mail should include your business name orlogo, your tagline, email address, website URL, phonenumber, and mailing address. And a handy supply of businesscards is a must any time you leave the office. 4. Give Away Your KnowledgeWriting articles and making them available for reprint isan especially powerful method of spreading your name.Published articles often remain in the public eye foryears. I have dozens of articles on numerous sites, all ofthem tirelessly promoting my business without any effort onmy part. One article in particular that was published inSuccess Digest over 3 years ago still brings in traffic tothis day. 5. Make it Easy For Others To Toot Your HornWord-of-mouth referrals are the best kind of exposure youcan get. There's nothing more powerful than a personalendorsement from a satisfied customer. Make it easy forpeople to tell their friends and family about your productor service. Rarely a day goes by on my site that someonehasn't emailed a friend using my handy online referralform. This is a branding tool that every business shouldemploy.In the end, the name of the game is repeatedly exposingconsumers to your unique business identity - your brand.The above strategies are viral marketing tools in that theyare far-reaching and long-lasting, and that's a greatcombination for long term business success. Article Tags: Unique Business Identity, Unique Business, Business Identity