Sunday, October 25, 2009

Marketing 101: Just what's in a Brand?

Just What's in a Brand? Introduction

By demand and an earnest desire to help the many people who appear lost when it comes to the most effective way to brand or market themselves, I thought I would offer some tips for consideration when working to develop a place for your business, organization or art--outside of the actual product. This is what's called brand-building.

http://inotauthor.blogspot.com/2009/10/marketing-publishing-brand-building.html



A vast majority of my work involves authorship, but these tips can be applied to any business venture. If you wish to sale a product, then you have to learn to think beyond the product. It's not good enough to say (using books as an example) [that] "I wrote a book and now everyone should buy it." Like any successful business, you have to first consider the consumer. People spend money everyday, on something or many things--some of which are true desires to possess (needs) and others are simply purchases based on a good sale to their desire to own something else (wants).

Here are some things to consider when establishing a brand or marketability within your respective field. I use book publishing or authorship as an example here, but you should truly consider aspects of these examples when working to sell your product, contrary to what that may be.

1.  Develop Your Web Presence--What does your website signify and is it created and written (and re-worked on a continual basis) to help search engines (potential customers) find you? How much time do you spend learning about the best ways to optimize (SEO) your website and online presence?

2.  Marketability--How are you trying to sell your work and have you determined your actual market? Trying to sell book products to people who don't read or (let's say) other authors who are competing against you? Are you working to establish an online presence that is catchy (building on wants) of those who fall into your customer base?

3.  Credibility--Do you write articles, teach classes, offer lectures, that solidify your expertise within your market? Are you available to help others learn how to do what you are (working) to accomplish? To help others with a serving spirit, doesn't hinder your ability to make money, but rather opens more doors for opportunity by helping others along the way.


4. Consistency--How often are you working online to develop a TOM (top of mind) marketing presence. As an example, when people think car company, do they think Chevy or Ford? When they think (for example) of your product line, art, book genre, etc., do they think of you or your works title? What have you done to help establish that want, based on your businesses product. Your product is not only your item for sale, but YOU!


5. Time--If you are writing a book or trying to sale a book to make money only, people can see right through that. And that, makes you no different than the hundreds of thousands of other authors on the market. What makes you (YOUR BUSINESS) different than the next? What do you offer a community, a market, consumers, etc that truly makes your business worth investing in--and ultimately--buying your product? I read once that anything you do for five years [you] become the expert at. All of this work takes TIME, but if you believe in your product, if you believe in your passion, etc., then time is in your favor, not working against you.

These are a few of the various points to consider when working to write your marketing plan, develop a marketing model and lastly, create your web model (links to) your various websites.


...supporting the independent arts...


~Bobby Ozuna
Literacy. Creativity. Learning.
Co-Founder, READ3Zero Foundation



You can connect with me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, join my Facebook group, the Facebook group for READ3Zero, or subscribe to my blog. You can learn from other authors on my archive page for The Bobby Ozuna Show on Artist First Radio Network. For information on how you can help the fight against childhood illiteracy and even help a child get published, check out the READ3Zero homepage.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I have started working on the credibility aspect more, publishing editorials on mental health awareness. I am a natural expert on the subject, having a psychiatric illness myself. ;-)

Bobby Ozuna said...

@Lily:

When you work to establish your credibility, by publishing material online on a continual basis--articles, videos, audio commentary, etc.--you work beyond a book selling aspect and instead, sell a product (ideal) which is what people want. By establishing your marketability and credibility with a wide consumer base, this (in time) will lead to a purchase of the condensed information, which is sold (for you) in a book.

Keep up the good work and let me know if there is anything I can do to help.

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