BRAND YOURSELF

You don't have to be a Fortune 500 corporation to have a 'brand'--sure, we associate the branding process with products/services such as "Brillo" , "Subaru" , "Apple" or "H.&R. Block", but we can all create and market ourselves and our small businesses with a Personal Brand.

Your brand is your identity. Build your brand based on who you are, and what you want your company to say, to mean, to represent.

What message do you want your company to convey? This is part of the branding process. You can create a logo that ties-in with the message you want to send to your clients and potential customers.

For example, if you run a small kiosk that sells coffee in a busy office complex, you might want to convey "speedy service" with "quality" coffee. Maybe the coffee cup in your logo is flying quickly through the sky? Or, maybe to suggest that fresh brewed aroma, you create a bag of coffee beans that looks professional, but fun.

Everything you do in your small business should be all about your brand. If someone approaches you and wants to pitch a product to you to sell in your store, make sure it is appropriate to your brand. Your brand--in the case of the coffee kiosk--is all about fresh taste, rich brew in a speedy setting--selling fountain pens or fresh baked bread from your kiosk is not in keeping with your brand. Deliciously prepared fresh sandwiches to go, however, might be.

Who are you? What do you represent? Make a list of five words or concepts that best tell who you are and/or what your small business is, and you are on your way to creating your own brand.

Subaru is all about creating an automobile for the rebel, the non-conformist, the person who doesn't mind quietly standing out in the crowd. Every car they design and manufacture, their showrooms, their salespeople, speaks to this emphasis on individuality. What do you want your company to convey?