Brand awareness is defined as: “the extent to which consumers are familiar with the distinctive qualities or images of a particular brand of goods or services.” It is a key factor in advertising and brand management. For example, when someone mentions the word car insurance, you probably first think of state farm or the gieco gecko – that is brand awareness of those two brands. Brand awareness is something everyone needs and once you develop it, you must do everything you can to keep the wave going and keep it positive.
There are essentially two angles to growing brand awareness that encompass all efforts: 1. Re-engaging existing/previous customers with your brand and 2. Acquisition of new customers through brand appeal. If you have very little brand awareness, we recommend you start with #1.
How to increase brand awareness with re-engagement
If a consumer has previously done business with you, they at least have heard of who you are and should be able to recognize your name when they hear or see it. Focusing on your existing customer base is an excellent way to cultivate brand awareness into how you want it to be perceived. Finding ways to re-engage them with your brand will keep you at top of mind when they are in need of your services again. It also contributes to #2 (Acquisition) based on the satisfaction they had with your previous engagement through reviews, referrals, and word of mouth advertising which are also means of spreading brand awareness. Below are some digital strategies to increase brand awareness with previous customers.
- Social Media – Encourage your customers to follow you on social media and utilize the platform to constantly re-engage with them. Offer a variety of content that both builds the relationship and promotes your brand. Some good examples of content for social media include testimonials, giveaways, informative information on your industry, etc.
- Rewards Programs – from basic punch cards that offer a free service or item after so many visits to full on programs that give away trips and winnings based on level of customer loyalty, there are many options that can be utilized to keep customers coming back for repeat business. Get creative in what you offer and utilize other efforts such as email marketing to remind customers to take advantage of the program.
- Email Marketing – this is an excellent way to keep customers in the loop about what is new with you, featured products, or even to promote events you are involved with in the community. Be sure to utilize tracking codes (UTM codes) to see how your efforts convert into customers. If you don’t have a list of email addresses, start collecting them now!
- Giveaways – let’s face it, people love free stuff! A simple t-shirt you give each customer after the sale that continues to promote your business with each wear can have a powerful impact on increasing brand awareness. Associating yourself with positive things within the community such as supporting local non profits or other local businesses is something consumers will appreciate. Consider partnering with other companies or organizations and offering gift cards or giveaways for each other.
Increasing brand awareness with new customer acquisition
Customer acquisition is a focus for any small business as it is essential to overall growth. There are many means of marketing to those who have never done business with you or never heard of you before. Some examples include but are not limited to:
- Paid Ads – paid advertising platforms such as Google and Facebook provide the opportunity to push your messaging and brand out to a much larger audience than your current following. These platforms have evolved to allow for precise targeting so your defined target customer is who is seeing your ad. Pay per click ads even trigger your ad at the exact moment someone is seeking out your services driving more qualified traffic to your website. Display ads are an excellent way to get your brand in front of eyes with visual aids that help consumers remember who you are.
- Referral programs – This one requires a mixture of both new acquisition and existing customer re-engagement. Offering an incentive to both the person referring customers as well as the one being referred is an excellent way to get customers to share your brand with others and bring new customers in the door.
- Valuable consistent messaging – When trying to acquire new customers, it is important to first build the relationship and push who you are and why instead of solely pushing products and services. Message consistency is important to reinforce the brand image you are seeking to be known for. If part of your company brand is to be perceived as “funny” for example, then all of your messaging should reflect that.
While these are only a few of the many ways to increase brand awareness with digital marketing strategies, they are a great start. Create a solid brand image that portrays who you are as a company and what you stand for and build everything else around that – both internally with employees and what you push out to the public. If you need help with branding or pushing your existing brand out to the right audience, Klout 9 would be happy to help! We offer brand consulting, social media marketing, email marketing, and Paid ad platform services. Contact Klout 9 for your free consultation today!