Angela runs an up-and-coming events production company and wants to increase revenues. Like many business owners, she knows she has to invest her marketing budget wisely to get the most return.

Create a “hook” to set you apart Before spending a cent on marketing, Angela needs create a “hook” that tells prospects why they should choose her services instead of other event production companies. This hook – or brand message – can then be used in all her marketing – including advertisements, a web site and brochures – to distinguish her business from her competitors.

Tracy Hubbard, Principal and Creative Director of Alchemy Consulting & Design, Warren, NJ, asks her clients, “What would you tell a 5-year old that you do?” as a starting place to create the visuals for their brand message.

The idea here is that you must communicate your brand message in a clear and specific way that makes it easy for prospects to understand what you do and what value you can bring to them.

“Always assume the world is utterly indifferent to your business, no matter how good you are,” says marketing author Peter Montoya in The Brand Called You. “Your task is to grab customers by the hand and make them care.” Your prospects will have a greater sense of comfort and confidence in working with you when they sense that:

You are different. If you aren’t seen as different, then you’ll likely be seen as a follower and have difficulty capturing more business.

You are superior. Being seen as the leader in your field is critical to gaining the confidence of people who don’t know you personally.

You are authentic. Your company’s brand must be built on the truth of who you are, and what your strength is, and it must communicate this to your market.

Angela, for example, could create a brand message around the fact that hotels recommend her event production company to their corporate clients. Her company is also known for its detail-oriented event planning and execution which allows her clients’ meeting planners to enjoy their own events. These messages can help her company be seen as a leader and expert in corporate event planning.

Test your brand message
Let’s say you’ve drafted a brand message that you think is clear, meaningful, and will influence prospects to do business with you. Now you must ask your customers if what you’re saying rings true to them. You may find it hard to ask for this feedback, but if you don’t, you risk misreading the market and wasting your time and money.

Customers are usually not shy about telling you what they think. Recently, I asked for such feedback for a draft of a client’s brand message. Those I asked did not hesitate to tell me which parts of the message they thought were believable, and which sounded too much like hype. Most importantly, we confirmed that his background and experience as a past CEO of a global communications agency helped set him apart as an expert in leadership communication. We were able to revise the brand message to emphasize those parts most meaningful to the intended audience.

Follow through on your message.
The bank at which my husband and I have all our accounts uses the brand slogan, “Where the right relationship is everything.” Yet time and again, the employees at the local branch falter on the brand promise by pestering us with offers of services we’ve told them we don’t need, while the bank repeatedly charges us service fees despite our exceeding minimum balances.

What’s clear is that this bank and its employees don’t see that I’m not experiencing “the right relationship” when I go in monthly to complain about fees. The lesson here for small businesses is that every experience your customers have with your company has to match the promise you are making in your brand message. Otherwise, you lose credibility and ultimately customers.

Do it now
Here are three ways you can start setting yourself apart from the crowd:

1. Create a clear and specific brand message that differentiates you.
2. Test your brand message with your customers for authenticity.
3. Follow through on your brand message with customer service.

Ms. Kasprzak, principal of Advantage Marketing & Associates, is a certified management consultant who specializes in helping B2B clients connect with their customers to achieve greater sales revenues. She can be reached at LKasprzak@advantage-marketing.com or 908.233.6265. This edition of “The Marketing Advantage” appeared in the October 2004 Union County Voice magazine.

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