Branding Q&A

Good morning Paula from rural Australia,

Steve Osborne is absolutely right.

No one can control what goes viral. It's just something that happens. There's an intangible component that the public finds appealing. And it's time sensitive. What appeals today. May not appeal tomorrow.

Why do you want something to go viral?

If something you put out there does go viral, can you cope with the demand you might create? There's nothing worse for your business than not being able to fulfil! Those customers will never come back to you. And may spread negative word of mouth.

In business, you can't be all things to all people. It's much smarter to focus on your niche. And the customers in it. And by not trying to be clever. But by trying to give value to them. You have a much better chance of attracting the customers who want to do business with you.

Best wishes,

~Carol Jones, Ironing Diva❤

Purveyor of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover And Other Goodies

350,000 customers. In 29 countries.

Personal branding as a form of marketing isn't for every business or person. It takes a lot of diligence and persistence to build a personal brand.. and a knack/enjoyment for social media and public speaking. 

If you don't have the above, use other means to build your business. 

Personally, at SavvySME.. I find it hard to build a personal brand. I'm not great with details and that sort of work really. I much prefer working with systems and processes, and building our team here. 

If you were to speak more generally regarding your reputation.. I think it's super important to have an image that others respect. If not for the greater public, it's important to do with your own team, your customers and suppliers. Can't go far without it!
 

John,

I'll give you some insights from a designer's perspective (I do graphic, branding, web and user experience just to name some). Why is mentioning those disciplines important? They all factor into typography choices and ideas.

First you must think about your format (or media). Fonts that look great on paper do not always translate well to online consumption.

Unless a font is selected for artwork (poster, flyer, or a logo) you want to minimize the strain you are putting on your audience (e.g. would you want to read an entire book printed in cursive or calligraphy? No, the strain would hurt your eyes).

There are literally 1000's of fonts you could choose from, however, you should always keep your audience and the amount of words in mind.

Popular fonts online are Roboto (Android), Ubuntu, Helvetica Neue and San Francisco (iOS) as well as classic Helvetica and Arial.

In my opinion fonts that should always be avoided are (Comic Sans, Papyrus and Stencil). These fonts are typically overused, hard to read and just plain obnoxious.

Good fonts for printed material are Verdana, Univers, Gill Sans and Courier New. These are easier to read printed out than many other fonts.

Again, adapt for your needs, but do try to avoid mixing more than 2 to 3 typefaces (in all applications).

It is like asking how much does it cost to buy a car, well that depends are you buying a Kia, Honda, Lexus,  Cadillac or Rolls Royce?  They are all cars that can get you from point A to point B but the ride will be different.  You can crowdsource a logo online or send out a Zoomerang survey link to conduct market research on the cheap for example.  That does not mean it is a good logo or relevant research though.  We have built successful brands in the low 5 figures up to well into the 6 figures so  it is not a question of how much you spend in my experience.  Find the right team to bring your brand's story to life and if all you can afford is a Kia then the team needs to be scrappy and resourceful to leverage social media and find the right words and pictures to tell your story.  That is also great advice if you have a bigger budget too.  Great brands connect with their target on an emotional level and they become champions and ambassadors for the brand.  Finding those compelling messages and insights takes experience and smarts more than money.  Good luck!

Great answer Steve Osborne!