What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the phrase “brand names”?  I immediately see the golden arches of McDonald’s, the red and silver Coca Cola can, and the Olympic torch.

What do all of these great brands have in common?  They create an impression that you are getting something special or unique, something you can trust when you purchase their brand.

Major corporations know the power of branding, and they invest tons of money to create and maintain their brands.  So how can the little guy compete?

Focus on your target market

The answer comes from something we have already discussed–focusing on your target market or niche.  One way to do that is by positioning yourself as unique, desirable and believable to that ideal customer you envisioned.

Remember, you can’t be everything to everybody.  The more your refine your brand to cater to your niche, the more effective your branding will be.

Emphasize benefits, not features

Once you have a crystal clear vision of the ideal customer in your target market, it is time to write a benefits list.  First, identify what your customers really want. Here are just a few of the possibilities:

• Happiness
• Love
• Success
• Beauty
• Time-saving
• Relief from pain
• Fun
• Safety

Looking at this from the other side, you could also create a list of your customers’ “hot buttons”…their problems, frustrations and concerns.  These will be the most pressing reasons they have for becoming your customers.

If you don’t know what your prospective customers want or what their concerns are, the best way to find out is by doing a survey.  Surveymonkey.com makes it easy to do this with just the press of a button.

Now make a list of how your product or service satisfies their need…provides a benefit to them.  This will save you from one of the biggest mistakes beginning marketers make, focusing on their product’s  features rather than the benefits it offers to the customer.

Refine your competitive advantage

When you have a list of benefits, circle the ones that make your product or service unique from your competitors.  These are your competitive advantages, and should be the focus of your branding and marketing campaign.

This step of the process is crucial. In today’s competitive marketplace, your product or service must be extraordinary. The best way to stand out from the crowd is to solve your ideal customer’s most urgent needs in an exceptional way.

What’s in a name?

What goes into developing a brand?  It all starts with your name.  Your name will be the first thing potential customers see or hear. It should be simple to pronounce and spell, so you will be easy to find.  The best names tell a story or make a promise, like “Lean cuisine.” See how you know exactly what they are selling, and what benefit you will get from it?

Now, you may be wondering, what about brand names like Nike or Coach?  They don’t do any of the things you are suggesting.

The truth of the matter is, if you have a cool name in mind, and tons of money to spend promoting it, you can create a powerful brand.  But if you’re like most small businesses, you need your name to stand on its own.

This I know from personal experience.  When I opened my first retail store, I was very excited about using the name “Hoopla.”  I just thought it sounded fun and unique, and that is what I wanted my shop to be.  The only problem was, nobody knew what it stood for.  So I had to spend lots of time and advertising copy explaining.

If you find yourself in this situation, don’t worry.  Sometimes there is a quick fix.  For example, I ultimately added the phrase “EcoBoutique” to my shop name, giving people a clear picture of what they would find inside.

Develop a slogan or meme

You can also use taglines or slogans…short phrases that typically appear right below the name to explain your products benefits.  At Hoopla, we had a tagline that said “Hand-made, fair trade, eco-friendly.” Or you can try to develop a “meme”…a symbol used to communicate the concept behind your product or service.

Memes are everywhere in our lives.  The most common example is the international traffic symbol.  You can be anywhere in the world and recognize a stop sign.

What makes a meme different from a logo?  Generally, logos communicate and represent your company name, but they don’t necessarily communicate what you have to offer.  For example, everyone recognizes the Nike swoosh, but if you didn’t alreayd know what Nike has to offer, the swoosh wouldn’t add anything to your understanding.

By contrast, consider the Jolly Green Giant, the Energizer Bunny,  or the Michelin Man.  Each communicates an idea that can be understood in seconds without further explanation.

To create your own meme, take a look at your benefits list and focus on those that are visual.  To give you some ideas, here are the best known memes of the 20th century from The Startup Guide to Guerilla Marketing:

• The Marlboro Man
• Ronald McDonald
• The Green Giant
• Betty Crocker
• The Energizer Bunny
• The Pillsbury Doughboy
• Aunt Jemima
• The Michelin Man
• Tony the Tiger
• Elsie the Cow

Not all memes are visual. Sometimes your slogan can also function as a meme. For example, “We try harder” conveys the idea that Avis will work hard to keep customers happy.  Here are a few other examples from our Guerilla Marketing friends:

• Diamonds are forever (DeBeers)
• The pause that refreshes (Coca-Cola)
• Tastes great, less filling (Miller Lite)
• Good to the last drop (Maxwell House)
• Breakfast of champions (Wheaties)
• Does she…or doesn’t she? (Clairol)
• When it rains it pours (Morton salt)

By now, your head should be swimming with ideas. So grab a pen and a nice cool drink, and start creating your brand.  Aim it directly at your niche, come up with a clever name and meme, and you will be able to gain a competitive advantage without spending a dime.

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