7 branding tips for small businesses

Branding is crucial to any successful business. Your branding is what gets you noticed and remembered. It’s what links all of the different elements of your business. Your branding promotes professionalism, and as a small business, can be what gets you taken more seriously. So many businesses fail to give their branding enough thought and end up with something convoluted that means nothing.

As a small business, with limited resources and funds, your branding can be even more vital. But it’s important to remember that branding is about far more than your logo and the colors that you use on your website. Your branding is who you are. Yes, your logo matters, but so do your story and your values.

Here are 7 of the most effective branding tips for small businesses.

Get to know your brand

To be able to get your branding right, you first need to get to know your brand. What are your values and core beliefs? What is your story? How did you get to where you are? Your branding should complement your values and never go against any of the core elements of your business. Your story is a big part of your brand, so you must know what it is, and be able to communicate it.

Find your target market

Knowing who your business appeals to is another crucial consideration when it comes to branding. If your products appeal to middle-aged women, you don’t want your branding to speak to teenagers. The two need to align if you want your branding to be effective, otherwise, you risk wasting money on a rebrand down the line.

Keep branding simple

Logos, headers, and websites with lots of different colors, fonts, and themes are hard to look at and even harder to understand. Think of all of your favorite logos, or the ones that come to mind the most easily. They are typically the simplest.

Try to choose a color scheme with two main colors, and perhaps a few different tones. Then choose two fonts that are both easy to read and work well together. Avoid adding too much to your logo or header. They don’t need to tell your whole story, there are other elements of your branding for that.

Prioritize web design

If we try to buy something from a slow website that doesn’t look great, has too many options, or doesn’t work well on mobile screens, we’re likely to click away without making a purchase. Your customers are the same. Make sure your website looks great, but also that it works well on all screens.

Have fun

Whatever your business, your branding is one area where you can have some fun and get creative. You could make your own stickers to share on social media and print to share around in real life. You could use branding in fun social media videos. You can create different versions of your logo for different creatives, and you can push the boundaries with color and style. Stay true to your brand values, but don’t be scared to try new things.

Get offline

You might be tempted to focus your efforts online. Things like social media and email marketing are fantastic ways to reach your audience. But don’t underestimate the power of things like business cards, posters, and TV and radio advertising.

Collaborate

Working with influencers and other small businesses is a great way to get your branding noticed and boost your business.

Branding is something that can take time to get right, and it’s perfectly normal for your branding to evolve, or even pivot, over time, as your business grows and the world changes around it. But it’s still worth taking the time to get it right in the first place.

Story by Jessica Peters