BUILD YOUR BRAND REPUTATION
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”
Warren Buffett
Thanks as always for support Wow and reading this month’s newsletter. We hope each month you are learning some great branding tips and tricks. If there is anything you would love to learn about please let us know and we would be happy to add it into a future edition.
This month our focus is on building your brand’s reputation. After all, that’s really what branding is all about; Creating a reputation that compels your customers to choose you over your competition.
Branding plays a key role in the success of your business. When you are aware of the narrative your customers are sharing about your business, products and services you hold the key to continuous improvement so its worth investing time into getting right!
So without further ado, let’s get into it!
Warmly, Alysha
Owner, Wow Studios
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Exciting News – Vote for us in the Local Business Awards
Giveaway – We are giving away TWO FREE PASSES to our Target Audience Masterclass
Let’s Talk Branding – How to build your brand reputation
Past Stories – More blogs about branding
Client Spotlight – Meet Ross from Clean Gutter Clean & K4 Roof Cleaner
Feel Inspired – Some of our favourite AI Tools
EXCITING NEWS
WOW STUDIOS IS UP FOR NOMINATION
Last year, Alysha from Wow Studios was incredibly honoured to win the 2023 Outstanding Solo Operator for the Campbelltown region at the Local Business Awards.
We are once again in the running and would love your help to get us into the finals. Voting takes only a moment, so please use the QR code or follow the link below.
Thank you, every vote counts and we greatly appreciate your support.
Wow Studios – We bring your creative ideas to life!
GIVEAWAY
Our first Target Audience Group Masterclass is being held this Thursday at 6pm in North Sydney and to celebrate, we are giving away TWO FREE PASSES!
If you are keen to come along, email your interest to: info@wowstudios.com.au.
Entries close at 5pm Wed 8th May. Winners notified by email Wed night.
LET’S TALK BRANDING
HOW TO BUILD YOUR BRAND REPUTATION
WHY IS YOUR BRANDS REPUTATION IMPORTANT?
Strong and successful brands understand that their brand reputation is the critical component to success. A positive reputation fosters trust and customer loyalty, drives purchasing decisions and gives you a competitive edge over your competitors.
Trust and Loyalty
Brands that are perceived positively by their customers and the marketplace in general foster trust. With so much information out there today including customer reviews, blogs and more, it has never been easier for consumers to find out the truth about the quality of your offering and the customer service your business exemplifies and this can make or break your brand reputation.
Drives Purchasing Decisions
Consumers are substantially more likely to make a purchase from you if you have a great brand reputation, and they are 89% more likely to make a repeat purchase after a positive experience (Salesforce Research). On the flip side, about 50% will switch to a competing product after just one bad experience and 80% if they give you another go, and the experience doesn’t improve (Zendesk).
Creates Advocates
Satisfied customers become great spokespeople for your business. Positive word of mouth marketing generates two times more business and 74% of consumers identify referrals from friends and family as key influences in their decision to make a purchase (Gitnux).
Competitive Edge
Today, there is almost no business, product or service that doesn’t have competition. If your business is known for great customer service and quality offerings, you have a leg up on the competition. And not only do you have a competitive edge, if your brand reputation is high, 68% of consumers will even pay more for your product or service (Hubspot).
Create sales without spend
A positive brand reputation will draw in customers to your business organically through referrals, reviews and positive word of mouth. These not just warm, but hot leads don’t cost you anything and in the majority of cases will result in a purchase.
Create Resilience
When your brand reputation is strong, customers are more likely to forgive you if something goes wrong. In times of crisis, its your reputation that will get you through the storm. But be careful, it doesn’t take many negative experiences to unravel your hard-earned positive reputation.
Ok, so now we know why it matters, let’s talk about how you can build and continuously improve your brands reputation.
BRAND IDENTITY
It all starts with a strong and well-developed Brand Identity! In order to create a positive and long-lasting brand reputation you need to have a clear understanding of your brand and what you stand for. So, step one is to undertake a brand discovery session.
Start with your target audiences. Delve deep and really get to the core of who your customers are and how to reach them. Then, once you know who they are, it’s time to work on the heart of your business brand and develop your Mission, Vision, Values and Purpose.
Armed with this knowledge, you can create an authentic brand. One that keeps at it’s heart your values and mission. We are all out to make a profit, but particularly as a small business, it’s the soul and what you stand for that will really resonate and build loyalty.
BRAND PERSONALITY
One you have all that nailed, you can flesh out your Brand Personality. This includes your tone of voice and the type of messaging you will use when you speak to your audience. You want your brand to be relatable to your key target audience customers. For example; perhaps you’re a surf brand. Your target audience are in their 20’s. They are laid back, love the surf culture and don’t take life too seriously. With this audience, your personality is going to be fun and playful, and your tone of voice will be relaxed, informal and may even include surf slang. Your messaging will be light and cheerful, celebrating everything that makes surf culture great. You need to identify with your audience and speak to them on their level.
IMPLEMENT SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Align your brand with a cause that matches with your Mission and Values. Consumers these days, especially if your target audience are younger, want to see you giving back and contributing to the greater good. This in turn, create a strong and positive public image and brand reputation. The key to getting this right is to make sure its something you actually believe in and care about. People will see straight through you if it isn’t authentic. It could be environmental, or perhaps a women’s cause such as domestic violence. It might be health related or supporting the arts. Whatever it is, it needs to be genuine and link back to your brands mission and values.
ENGAGE WITH YOUR AUDIENCE & COMMUNITY
Staying front of mind and building a connection with your audience requires you to reach out regularly. Connect with your customers through social media, newsletters and special offers. Using platforms that allow you to connect with your audience on a more personal level makes your brand more approachable and gives you a regular touch point that helps keep you on their mind. It’s vital that you keep this connection relevant and frequent to help build your brand reputation. It’s also really important that you actively respond to your audience and keep an eye out for internet reviews. When they reach out with an enquiry, feedback or even a complaint, don’t ignore it. Respond quickly and politely. Engaging with your audience shows that you care and value them. Remember, your audience doesn’t just have to be your customers, find a way to add value to your wider community. For example, going back to the surf brand; you could sponsor a competition or perhaps have a discount for underprivileged kids in the community to help them get their first surfboard. It’s all about building a positive brand image and showing that you care about more than just profits when it comes to building your brand reputation!
ENCOURAGE BRAND ADVOCACY
Word-of-mouth advertising is the best form of advertising. Encourage the customers who have positive interactions to share them with the world. Give your customers easy and quick ways to share their experiences. It could be a referral scheme or a social media campaign. You might reach out and ask them to submit a google review or give them a freebie in exchange for a review or testimonial. There are lots of ways to get your customers talking about your brand and every one of those positive stories is worth its weight in gold when it comes to your brand reputation.
GIVE BACK WITH THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
Becoming a thought leader in your industry can really boost your brand reputation. Sharing what you have learned, tips on how to do things better, writing a blog or speaking at events can really help your brand to stand out amongst the crowd and makes your audience feel appreciated and important. A great relationship is all about give and take. Give them something worthwhile and they will reward you in return.
IMPROVE YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE
Put time and energy into making the experience of engaging with your brand/business one they remember because of how great it was. Make sure your website is easy to navigate, create a welcoming environment with super friendly and efficient customer service, respond to customer enquiries quickly, make processes like refunds, pickups and deliveries simple and just generally make all interactions with your business smooth and friendly.
ASK & ACT ON FEEDBACK
The only way to really know if your doing a great job and where you can improve is to ask for feedback. This should be a continuous and regular process. Whilst its wonderful when our customers give us feedback without prompting, this doesn’t tend to happen all that often. Make it a habit to ask. You will be surprised just how many will be happy to share their thoughts if you simply reach out and ask. Just remember to make it super simple to respond and always keep your responses professional and polite even if what you get back is negative.
TREAT YOUR STAFF WELL
Employees who feel valued and respected are great ambassadors for your brand and your brands reputation. They will sing your praises and go above and beyond to make the business great. Focus your time and energy on creating a positive culture that supports and celebrates staff success. Your staff should be the embodiment of your values and feel proud of the brand they work for.
LIVE YOUR BRAND
Above all else, be authentic and genuine. The only way to build trust and loyalty is to be open, honest and sincere. If a mistake happens, own it. Make sure your actions are aligned with your brand mission and values. Show your human side and take the time to connect with your audience regularly and brand reputation will blossom.
But always remember, whilst you can do a lot to help your brands reputation, you don’t control the narrative. “Your brand is no longer what you tell the consumer it is, it’s what the consumers tell each other.” Scott Orch.
WANT TO LEARN MORE, CHECK OUT SOME OF OUR PAST STORIES
Whether you’re talking about your personal brand or your business, your brand is your reputation. It’s often unspoken and not something your consumers consciously decide on.
While it may feel like a lot of upfront effort and an investment of your precious time, the benefits of proactive marketing & branding will absolutely make it worth it!
When we think of branding as small business owners, many of us often hold the belief that it’s a marketing strategy reserved just for the big boys, however that couldn’t be further from the truth.
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT
PLEASE WELCOME ROSS FROM CLEAN GUTTER CLEAN
Please welcome this month’s customer spotlight, Ross from Clean Gutter Clean. With his amazing K4 Roof Cleaning product about to launch we thought it was the perfect time to have a chat!
Tell us a little about your business?
After going through a divorce, I wasn’t interested in pursuing work as an employee and an idea came up of cleaning gutters and roofs. It turned out that it was very lucrative, and I had good rapport with people and business just seem to flow from there. But cleaning a roof was hard work, expensive for the customer and also quite dangerous work.
What brought about the development of your new product K4 Roof Cleaner?
I was using a range of chemicals to treat Roofs, but found the products out there offered only minimal improvement. Eventually I decided to develop a tried and tested product that wasn’t in Australia hence the development of K4.
Why did you setup your business?
I set up my business because I wanted to work for myself, and I didn’t want to be told what to do by other people that was essentially my main goal and to be the master of my own destiny.
What brought you to Wow?
I had used Alysha before from Wow and was and am always impressed with her dedication to the job and her creative talents. She’s always been fair to me, gets on with the job at a reasonable price, and is always a delight to work with.
What was the collaboration process like?
Working with other people it’s a learning process, but also the opportunity to learn from their experiences and import. I wish there were more people who I could collaborate with like Alysha. It’s always helpful to gain insight from other people and how they think about something that you’re working on.
Any last words?
Working for yourself is exciting because you make all the decisions which becomes a more creative process. Sometimes you win, sometimes you have a failure, but the key is to keep going and not stop until you reach and achieve what you set out to do. After that, the next project becomes easier.
FEEL INSPIRED
Useful AI Tools
As AI improves, so too do the fantastic apps that help make some of the tedious processes easier, which of course saves time and money. Here are a few of our favourites!
Get Munch
Create short impactful clips from your long videos.
Rask
Translate your videos, making it easier to go global.
Mokker AI
Create professional product photos with the use of stylish backgrounds.
Cleanup Pictures
Remove objects, people, text and defects from any picture.
CREATE THE UNEXPECTED, DELIVER HAPPINESS!
WOW STUDIOS – WE BRING YOUR CREATIVE IDEAS TO LIFE
