“I want leads. But I have no online brand presence.”
It’s not at all unusual to hear, “I want quality leads,” when I ask a CMO or VP of Marketing what his or her goal is for an inbound digital program. However, that goal is hard to meet if they don’t have a strong online brand presence to begin with.
Think of it this way, if prospects can’t find you or don’t know you exist, how can they even make the decision to learn more about you. The old adage still remains, decision-makers are much more likely to buy from a familiar company that has earned trust from others.
What is online brand awareness?
Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, has the best definition of brand awareness, “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.” Many people think of branding as your logo, tagline and colors. Your online brand encompasses so much more.
Your online brand is significantly more important than traditional forms of branding. Why? Because your customers, thanks to the Internet, are technologically savvy and rely on a company’s online presence as a validity test of its credibility in the market.
I often hear clients say, “We don’t have any competition, so we don’t need to worry about our online brand.” My answer is, even if you are the only unique provider of your product or service, you still want and need potential new buyers to find you. No growth-driven company ever puts all of their eggs in one basket and rests on their laurels.
Due to the competitive environment, in order for your brand to stand out and be found online, it must be highly recognizable, relatable and authentic; thereby, differentiating itself apart from the competition. High visibility of your brand increases credibility (trust), and prospects will be more willing to take the time to learn more about your product or service in their buyer journey process.
Prospects want to connect with experts and authorities on the product or service they seek. However, they don’t rely on you “touting” about your brand to make this decision. According to a study by Nielsen, 92% of people trust strangers over a brand. This means your online brand awareness strategy needs to be multifaceted.
Take the Online Brand Awareness Test
Developing a brand awareness strategy is about capturing the attention of your targeted audience. Remember, an element of brand awareness is rooted in what and how people are talking about your business in relation to the experience they had interacting with your company. So as you think through the following quiz, be sure to look at it not just through a tactical sense, but through the lens of how your online prospects and customers would answer.
Final Thoughts
You say you want leads and you want to grow your business. However, if you don’t have an online brand awareness strategy that generates results, you can stop talking about lead generation.
Remember, a prospect isn’t making a decision to hire you based upon how pretty your brand looks. They’re deciding whether to hire you based on how you make them feel while during the top of the funnel buyer journey process.
Unless your online brand has established credibility with real consumers and reviewers, you aren’t likely to stand out to your prospects or even your customers for that matter. Achieving great levels of brand awareness is the best way to ultimately get more leads and drive more revenue.
Need to strengthen your brand awareness, but don’t know where to start? Contact Marketing Essentials to set up a free consultation with an inbound marketing expert!
