Today, when running a small business, an online marketing strategy is an absolute must. The explanation for it is simple – this is the fastest way to build up your online brand from scratch.
Your customers want to see your business as a well-rounded brand. Moreover, if you keep investing in online branding, it can bring up to a 23% increase in revenue. However, this result can only be achieved if your online branding efforts are consistent and offer something new.
All the investment in your online branding efforts will eventually pay off if you choose them correctly. Here are three effective tips on online branding for a small business using examples of three successful companies.
1. Make your social media strategy resonate with consumers
Sometimes it seems that internet users have seen everything. You can hardly surprise them with even the most creative content, and it doesn’t matter how much money you pour into it.
The same is with social media – all available content types on these platforms have already been overused by brands so many times that it’s hard to come up with something new. However, social media users will always have a weak spot for user-generated content.
Content from your customers and followers can give your online branding strategy a great boost. Reportedly, consumers find user-generated content almost 10 times more effective than influencer content and say it greatly impacts their purchase decisions.
You can incorporate a temporary user-generated content campaign as a part of a contest or a giveaway, or it can appear on your social media accounts on a regular basis.
Raycon, a company that produces earbuds, chose the second option as they dedicate their Instagram account almost entirely to user-generated content:
If you also want to give this strategy a try, make sure you pair it with a branded hashtag and ask your followers to share their content under this hashtag. This way, you’ll be able to not only collect all the content in one place but also increase brand awareness.
2. Partner with an influencer
Influencer marketing is another great strategy that can help you grow your online brand. Reportedly, 89% of marketers say that influencer marketing is comparable to or better than other well-known marketing strategies.
Why do so many brands believe in influencer marketing so much?
The most important reason for the popularity of this strategy is that consumers overwhelmingly trust the influencers they follow. In their turn, the majority of influencers don’t usually agree to any partnership because they want to recommend the products they’ve tried and liked themselves.
Besides, influencer marketing is one of the most flexible strategies. Regardless of what your product is, you will always find an influencer for your niche. Even if your small business is an online foreign language school that helps people learn Spanish, you will be able to find someone who will be ready to promote your product.
How to choose an influencer for a partnership?
The best option is to look for someone who has tried your product before. This is how MeUndies, an e-commerce underwear shop, has partnered with Jenna Marbles and Julien Solomita, famous YouTubers, who often featured the MeUndies brand on their podcast:
If you cannot find someone who is already a fan of your product, try contacting an influencer who already has experience in your niche and can help you build up your brand by sharing a recommendation with their subscribers.
3. Give new media a try
Besides the traditional platforms, you can also give new social media a try. One of these new platforms is TikTok, and it has recently been growing in popularity in terms of digital marketing.
The content on TikTok is very engaging and easy to share, not to mention that it has great viral potential. It’s quite easy to get good publicity on this platform, that’s why it’s becoming increasingly popular among brands, and small businesses are not an exception.
One of such small businesses that use TikTok as a part of their branding strategy is Vessi, an online footwear company. On its TikTok account, Vessi uploads videos featuring their newest products and partners with famous TikTok influencers:
A consistent TikTok branding strategy requires considerable investment. So, don’t go for it if you don’t have a business budget and financial stability yet.
However, if you want to give a boost to your online branding strategy, this platform is worth a try, especially if your target audience is millennials and Gen Z-ers, who are the most frequent TikTok users.
Wrapping up
Building an online brand is not easy, especially if you’re a small business. It will take you some time to figure out what works for you.
However, in the end, all your efforts will certainly pay off, but you need to make these efforts consistent. So, no matter whether you’re going to boost your online brand with user-generated content, influencer marketing, or new social media platforms, make sure you commit to these strategies in full if you want to see positive online branding results.
About the Author
Kate is a passionate writer who likes sharing her thoughts and experience with the readers. Currently, she works on online business branding, you can check her website. She likes everything related to traveling and new countries.
