brand experience©2018, Colleen Eakins Design

The Brand Experience?

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One of the newer buzzword phrases introduced to the advertising and marketing vernacular is “Brand Experience.” What is the Brand Experience, you ask? In plain language, the Brand Experience is the sensory response to stimuli when consumers see a brand. These reactions include emotions, sensations, and behavioral activity. It is not uncommon for stimuli to be embedded in the brand logo, brand story and messaging, design, packaging, and supporting digital assets.

Color Psychology and the Brand Experience

When choosing color palettes for your brand, don’t overlook the importance of color psychology when establishing your brand elements. Not surprisingly, and somewhat controversially, colors give rise to specific emotions when used in marketing.

Yellow – The use of the color yellow is good for optimism. Yellow evokes feelings of warmth and clarity. Brands that use yellow in their branding include Subway, McDonald’s, Pennzoil, Sprint, Hertz, and Denny’s.

Orange – Orange is a welcoming and friendly color. It conjures up feelings of warmth, sunshine, and safety. Name brands that utilize the color orange in their branding elements include Payless Shoesource, Hooters, Amazon, Harley-Davidson Motorcycles, and Boost Mobile.

Red – Red is a color that imbues excitement! It’s bold, bright, and bursting with passion. You can find red as a leading color in branding from Target, Ace Hardware, Kentucky Fried Chicken, YouTube, Virgin, Coca-Cola, and Frito-Lay.

Purple – Purple is a color resonates creativity, imagination, wisdom, and luxury. Examples of companies that have implemented purple into their logos and branding elements include Purple Carrot, Cadbury, Yahoo, Hallmark, Astrazeneca, Taco Bell, and Curves.

Blue – Blue is an ideal color to select when you want your brand to get trusted. It represents strength and dependability. A sampling of companies with blue logos and branding include Facebook, Blue Nile, Ford, Blue Bunny, United States Postal Service, Walmart, IBM, and Intel.

Green – Green is a perfect hue when you want to instill feelings of growth, good health, vitality, and positivity. Companies that use green in their branding include John Deere, Tropicana, BP, Starbucks, Holiday Inn, Whole Foods Market, and TD Ameritrade.

Black and White – There is nothing more clear and concise than the use of black, white, and shades of gray for simplicity sake. Companies that use Grayscale (or Black and White) imagery include Apple, Honda, Puma, Adidas, and Nike.

The ultimate goal of the brand experience is to build lasting and meaningful relationships with your target audience. When people see your logo, you want them to recognize it. When they choose to do business with you, your customer service is an extension of your brand. Every interaction that you have with a customer helps define your level of excellence as an organization and contributes to your customer’s brand experience with your company.

Optimize Your Brand Online

The internet remains one of the biggest arenas for businesses of all sizes to connect with their ideal customer. Digital marketing that includes precision website development, social media marketing, email, SMS messaging, and search engine optimization all work together to build visibility and awareness.

Depending on your business and industry, your website may serve as a hub for your audience’s overall brand experience, so precision website development is essential to support marketing and sales initiatives. Investing in website development assures that no technical-oriented detail – of which there are tons – inadvertently gets forgotten or neglected. Fine points to consider include tracking pixel installation, sitemap submission, search engine webmaster tools, analytics, email opt-ins, and a mobile first responsive design.

Email is highly effective at connecting with your customers directly in their inboxes. Depending on the nature of your business, you might also find SMS messaging to be quite useful in communicating with your clients. According to statistics, it takes an average of 90 seconds for people to respond to text messages, as compared to hours or even days waiting for an email response.

An on-point social media strategy is helpful for connecting and engaging with your audience of followers, thought leaders, and peers, raise awareness and interest in your products, services, and events. Regular updates to your status lines combined with an advertising budget for display ads is a cost-effective way to extend your business network.

While most ad networks are relatively easy to use, always be sure to refresh yourself on best practices first. For instance, you’ll want to be sure you have installed a Facebook Pixel on your site before running paid ad campaigns to measure conversions and sales results accurately. Failure to do so could result in inaccurate or incomplete statistics, as well as make it more difficult for retargeting ads to work.

By employing white-hat search engine optimization tactics, you can take steps to align your company with success in Organic search engine results by carefully selecting relevant keywords and keyword combinations. The more visibility and coverage your brand capture in top search results, in conjunction with the right offer, the better your overall conversions and results are likely to be.

Think of your brand’s identity and experience as a big puzzle. It’s made up of many individual pieces. Each piece is essential to complete the whole. When all the parts snap together, you have a perfect picture. One missing piece throws everything off!

If you would like some help in putting the visual pieces of the puzzle together, contact the team at Colleen Eakins Design today! Our team of branding experts are here to help with all aspects of your brand’s identity and experience.

digital branding©2018, Colleen Eakins Design

Why Digital Branding Matters

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In 2018, businesses of all sizes recognized how a brand offers empowerment when competing in consumer markets. Digital branding is key to reaching your target market through both online and offline methods.

With the record expansion in use of mobile phones, tablets, and other personal devices, this offers businesses the opportunity to connect and engage with users or customers in a variety of ways. Mobile apps, SMS messaging, email, social media platforms, and websites all provide a robust mainframe for your digital branding and marketing campaigns. All of these methods are credible ways to communicate your brand message with fans, friends, followers, and subscribers.

Starting Digital Branding from the Ground Up

Pinpointing your target market, as well as establishing cohesiveness in branding and marketing are cornerstones of a successful business plan. When working on your business plan, many factors must be considered to build your digital branding from the ground up.

The Size of Your Target Market – A “Target Market” is defined by a set of demographic information on your ideal customer. Understanding the size of this market, as well as the predicted growth rate of this market can help determine your overreaching marketing plan. Knowing your product and service line and who these goods and services are most likely to be used by is the first step in identifying your target market. For instance, if you sell customized baby products, expectant/new mothers and grandparents are likely to be a sound choice as a broad demographic category. Regardless of whether you decide to cater to a very niche market or you offer goods and services with a more general appeal, the more you know about the person you are selling to, the better.

What’s Your Story – Unless you are planning on launching a product or service in a brand new category, the chances are good that consumers can buy similar products and services from other vendors. Telling the story behind your brand helps differentiate you from others who are selling in the same demographic space. By sharing the inspiration or reason for your business, you are building an emotional connection with your intended audience. This leads to higher sales and conversions with this concentrated audience. It is also helpful to constitute an internal code that applies to incoming and outgoing communications with contacts.

Getting the Competitive Edge – When tackling any market segment, it is always advantageous to have and use as many tools as possible in your entrepreneurial toolbox. A long-term digital branding and marketing strategy is likely to include ongoing content creation (blog content, video, images, white papers, email copy, and other digital assets) to establish authority and build trust with potential clients. These digital assets are valuable materials for sharing your brand messaging creatively and openly.

Logos, Taglines and Copy – Your logo, taglines, and copy serve as a foundation for all marketing and branding efforts that follow. After all, these are the symbols that represent the creative force behind your business. Your logo may be used on social media platforms, print collateral, advertising, merchandise, and more.

Putting Everything Together

It’s worth noting that a successful digital branding and marketing campaign is more of a marathon than a sprint, so entrepreneurs and business owners should be comfortable in assuming the risk, responsibility, and committing to see the project through. Taking the time to develop and integrate all various marketing pieces from the beginning helps leverage your launch, as well as support your ongoing operations.

Newly launched businesses should allow time to build up their digital marketing assets including their SMS messaging contact list, mobile app user base, opt-in email list, as well as adding fans and followers on social media platforms. In many cases, establishing a timeline for your project, as well as assigning milestones for development, are helpful for tracking the progress and results of the project. It can always be adjusted, if needed, to account for unexpected changes.

If you are not meeting the digital branding goals within the stated deadline of this timeframe, you can assess what is causing these delays and make moves to rectify these issues and fix the problems. By using a multifaceted approach, you will connect with your audience using their preferred method of communication.

By taking steps to cater to the preferences of your audience, it is easier to stay in front of them and make offers that appeal to their wants, needs, and desires.

Don’t Be Afraid to Experiment

Depending on the nature of your business, you might find that one form of digital branding and marketing works better for you. Don’t be afraid to experiment with a few different options to see if you get a better return on your investment.

Don’t Overlook the Technical Details

As the saying goes, ‘the devil is in the details.’ Not surprisingly, getting all the technical details done right is also an essential part of your digital branding and marketing efforts. If you are following a general timeline for your project, this should prove helpful for keeping all aspects on track and schedule.

While every marketing asset works independently, they all work together to assist in selling your goods and services. Since your website is most likely to serve as a ‘hub’ for all your marketing materials, you’ll want to be sure that it is search engine friendly and features a responsive mobile first design, so it formats optimally on the screens of all website visitors.

Are you thinking about offering a mobile app as part of your digital branding and marketing efforts? If so, be sure to check that your app meets all of the requirements for acceptance in popular app stores to increase the likelihood of acceptance.

We hope this article is helpful in explaining why digital branding matters in today’s day and age. If you would like to learn more or you’d like help with launching your branding campaign, be sure to contact the professionals at Colleen Eakins Design today!

©2018, Colleen Eakins Design

Have Fun with this Social Media Marketing Challenge

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So, you are excited about the benefits that social media marketing offers your business. Now you’re looking to launch a winning campaign that will help people find your brand. Great. The only thing left to do is to create compelling content that will attract shares and likes. Luckily for you, fantastic content doesn’t take long to construct.

Let’s take a look at a stress-free plan to create two weeks’ worth of lovable sharing ideas to help attract your ideal clientele. This strategy combines using common sense and a small bit of digital effort to help convey your brand message to an online audience.

#1 | Show People Who You Are and How You Work

People love images, especially ones that show people engaged in work that stokes their passions. That means coming up with the perfect share could be as simple as snapping a pic at work. Plainly you see pictures like this all the time, and there’s a logical explanation for that. Consumers need to trust your organization, and one way to help them do that is by showing them who you are and what you do on a daily basis.

#2 | Put a Customer or Vendor in the Spotlight

Interview a vendor or one of your customers to gain their insight and to share online. Adding a fresh, secondary perspective makes your content even more accessible. Communication with key personalities in your brand’s value chain will open doors. A loyal customer will probably love appearing on your profiles and will know that you value their opinion. Vendors bring industry-specific expertise to bear that enhance your corporate image.

#3 | Answer a Pressing Question

Fielding questions and relating comprehensive answers is another beneficial way to spread the word about your business. Potential clients want to know they’re dealing with an expert or experienced professional. Rather than tell them how amazing you are, why not show them instead? You can write a blog post or make a video on Facebook or Instagram that covers a common question for your industry. People who are searching for new vendors will often have these sorts of queries in mind, so you get a chance to introduce yourself to them quickly.

#4 | Introduce New Workers

Do you have any new employees? If so, now would be an ideal time to share the news. A smiling face could help start a conversation on the social networks that assist you in beginning a business relationship. Never forget that it’s always about people, so projecting a warm, friendly persona goes a long way towards brand acceptance.

#5 | Add Your Take to a Trending Topic

Now and then a trending, non-controversial topic will closely relate to your industry or you personally. When it does, share the issue with your audience and add relevant commentary.  Since the subject is fresh in people’s minds, your post will get more attention, which also draws eyes towards your brand.

#6 | Tickle Their Funny Bones

Believe it or not, funny cat images are still incredibly powerful! Occasionally sharing pictures or videos that you find amusing is a quick way to gain popularity.

#7 | Fill-In-The-Blanks Are Fun and Engaging

Making a Fill-In-The-Blank is a fun way to engage your digital audience. Any topic can work, but you may as well relate it to your industry and organization for maximum impact.

#8 | Tell the World Your Story

Tell your brand’s story whenever possible, in the most natural way possible. Explain how your company operates and detail your mission. Help others to become passionate about dealing with your company because they share your values.

#9 | Inspire Your Audience

Who doesn’t benefit from reading or hearing something inspirational? Depending on the nature of your business or organization, this could include progress reports on current projects, charitable work you’re involved in, or looking back on how far you’ve come.

#10 | Broadcast Live Video

Are you hosting an event or just having an awesome day at work? Consider doing a Live Video broadcast on Facebook or other Platforms to connect with your audience with the power of video. Ideas could include product demonstrations, client interviews, or broadcasting your event.

#11 | Recognize Another Business

As they say, ‘sharing is caring!’ If you stop by a local company or business, consider sharing a picture is a great way to recognize other companies and share the love!

#12 | Share an Interesting Fact

Almost everyone will agree that it’s refreshing to learn little-known facts. Infographics are particularly compelling for sharing statistics and other structured data.

#13 | Repurpose Like A Boss

Don’t overlook the body of work you already have at your fingertips. Instead of creating something entirely new from scratch, use a photo or other digital asset differently. (Think image filters, text, etc.)

#14 | Celebrate The Season

Join the crowd and help your followers celebrate the season – whatever the season may be! Commonly celebrated Spring holidays include Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, and Easter. Summer holidays include Memorial Day, July 4th, and Labor Day. Autumn holidays include Halloween and Thanksgiving, followed by Christmas when winter arrives.

#15 | Share Your Newsletter Content in Your Social Circles

The chances are good that not everyone you interact with online gets your email newsletter. These days, most commercial email providers make it easy for you to share your email newsletter to your social media platforms. This feature empowers you to offer your friends and fans access to your newsletters from their favorite platform.

#16 | Do a Poll to Increase Engagement

One of the most fun ways to engage with your fans, and followers is by making a poll. People love to give their opinions and feedback, so this is an ideal way to energize and promote interactions with your audience.

#17 | Join New Platforms and Establish Your Online Presence

These days, there is always a new online platform to explore and establish your online presence. Embrace the opportunity to join and use these platforms to connect with people you may not know!

We hope that you find this post helpful for spicing things up on your social media marketing channels for the next two weeks!

Start Link Building Like a PR Pro [infographic]

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Denese EakinsDenese is a lover of knowledge and puts her research skills and creative eye to good use with her infographics. When she’s not researching and designing visuals to present data, she spends time volunteering in her other passion–health education.

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Let Log File Analysis Be Your Guide

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The ultimate goal of every successful online business owner is to extract as much value as possible from their website and other digital assets. However, this result usually isn’t something that happens by accident. In fact, it takes quite a bit of skill, knowledge, and time to put all of the pieces of the puzzle together in just the right way for the desired result to occur.

The most significant tool in demystifying what actions people are doing at your website is your log file. If you are unsure what a log file is, here is a simple explanation. It is a simple file output that originates from the web server. This file contains a record of all requests (or ‘hits’) that get sent to the server.

All data that’s received gets stored anonymously. The data file may include the time and date the request was made, the IP address the query was sent from, the URL or content that was requested, as well as the user-agent, browser type, and device information. These files usually are used for technical site audits and basic troubleshooting. Additionally, these log files are extremely helpful for auditing your web results and fine-tuning your pages to improve your metrics and your results.

Why is it essential to conduct log file analysis? There are a number of reasons. Since all requests to the host server are recorded, you get an extensive overview of precisely what type of activity is taking place on the site. Visits from search engine crawlers, robots, and human visitors are recorded every time they visit a page. For more precise information on website activity, operators can filter the user-agent and client IP range to see grouped actions. Using this information, you can get a better understanding of how your site behaves when crawlers or robots visit.

By analyzing your log file, you can pinpoint if website visitors, crawlers, or robots encountered any “bottlenecks” or “obstacles” on your site. The earlier that you detect these barriers in your website navigation, the better! You always want to provide a stellar user experience, so being proactive about fixing potential leaks on your sales and marketing funnel, the better.

If you notice low to no search engine crawlers on your website, this could signify a more significant issue that’s holding your site back from regular crawl activity. Low crawl activity could indicate that your site has thin or low-quality content, poor site speed and/or performance, lack of a Secure Transport Layer (TLS/SSL) connection, duplicate content, or a temporary or permanent penalty.

Another factor to consider is your crawl budget. If you aren’t familiar with what a crawl budget is, here is a brief explanation and some information on how this budget is calculated.

The first thing to recognize is that your crawl budget shouldn’t be confused with your ‘crawl rate.’ They are not one in the same. Your crawl rate refers to the speed that search engines request your pages. Whereas your ‘crawl budget’ refers to the maximum number of pages or documents a search engine crawls when it visits your site.

It’s believed that the crawl budget/allocation is determined based on domain authority. In days past, domain authority was decided by page rank or PR, as part of Google’s ranking algorithm. The higher the site PR, the more crawler activity the site received, so more pages, links, and URL’s were crawled regularly. In many cases, this meant that having a link – preferably one that utilized a keyword rich anchor text – could be the difference between getting first page rankings and not getting found in results at all. Another tactic was to amass many links from sites with lower PR to stimulate crawl activity and influence search engine results.

It’s worth noting that having a sizeable crawl budget should be treated with respect. If possible, you want to eliminate the need for valuable search engines crawlers to traverse thousands of irrelevant, links, especially if they lead to thin, outdated, or absent resources. By keeping your website and funnel content tight and error-free, you help build more authority and trust in your preferred niche. You’re also taking proactive action to prevent penalties or other ranking infractions that can negatively affect your website rankings, as well as free organic website traffic to your site.

Many people find it difficult to decipher the data that raw log files contain, so this is a time when using an internal statistics program is helpful for sorting and identifying areas in your funnel that can be improved for better results. For instance, if your Internal stat program shows that 50% of website visitors on your checkout page are clicking on a different link than the “pay now” button, this is enough evidence to warrant further investigation and the removal of the non-relevant link which blew out your sales funnel in one swoop! Once this leak is “fixed” so to speak – you can test and observe to ensure that the funnel is working as it’s expected.

You can also use a tool like Google Analytics and Google’s Webmaster Tools for further insights into the behavior and performance of your website as well. Setting these tools up takes some time and a bit of technical savviness, but once established, they offer a wealth of information about the activities, click paths, demographics, conversions, keyword rankings, and even live time website traffic data! Further, they collect log file information including where the visitor was referred from, so you can track the number of website visitors you get from social platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter – just to name a few.

The devil is always in the details, so making sure that you get everything set up right in the first place is helpful in laying a solid foundation for online success. While this can be a painstaking process, having access to all of this beneficial information gives you a competitive edge in improving your website pages and sales funnels for more conversions and revenue!