Brand management opportunities that are often overlooked
Entrepreneurs and business professionals of all types are sometimes so focused on what they do best, there are opportunities that can be overlooked to improve your branding and better connect with customers.
Susan Jacobs, Director of Marketing & Client Services at ALL-STATE LEGAL offers below what she says are the seven most overlooked brand management opportunities:
Printed material
Since buyer-level decisions are often made on the strength of an individual’s expertise, professional services marketers must balance individual and firm branding efforts to sell services effectively. They can do so by creating a digital bridge from an individual’s proposal, brochure, business card, etc. – embedding a QR code that directs users to a site that showcases enterprise depth to achieve branding balance.
Email is still the communication workhorse in the professional services world, but many organizations overlook it as a marketing tool. Instead of just embedding a logo into an email signature line, it’s a good idea to provide a link to a digital repository containing more in-depth information about the individual professional and the professional services firm.
Social media
Prospective clients are likely to look up individual professionals on social media sites like LinkedIn, and firms can leverage this as an opportunity to brand their professionals’ LinkedIn entries more broadly to generate business for the firm. Professionals are generally happy to include firm marketing elements in exchange for an opportunity to have marketing experts revamp their personal LinkedIn entry.
Professionals and staff members
A firm’s own staff, associates and partners are often in the best position to cross-sell services and bolster the organization’s reputation during the course of conducting business, but many lack the training to do so effectively. Marketers can remedy that with in-house training and materials that showcase the firm’s broad expertise.
Business cards
The venerable business card is still the front-line ambassador that creates a prospect’s first impression of both the professional and the enterprise. Marketers can make sure it delivers the best impression with careful branding and by including elements like QR codes to give prospects a way to wirelessly access a firm directory and much more.
Branded note cards
These days, most people expect to receive communication electronically, so if they receive a note on a printed, branded notecard, it stands out from the crowd. A handwritten thank-you note or follow-up letter offering additional information is a sign that the individual and the firm are truly client-centric.
Customized search results
Virtually everyone who considers doing business with a professional or firm Googles the name to find out more, and often the results returned are irrelevant while the links that showcase expertise are buried. A solution that allows firms to create a link that leads to handpicked search results can be an excellent marketing tool.
