Kick 2023 off with a bang for any brand with these 6 tips to make an impact this year for you and your consumers.
Set clear and achievable goals: Identify specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for your brand. This will help you focus your efforts and track your progress.
Develop a content marketing plan: Content marketing can be a powerful way to reach and engage your target audience. Create a content calendar and plan out the types of content you will produce, who your audience is, and how you will distribute your content.
Revamp your brand image: If your brand image is in need of a refresh, consider updating your logo, website, or marketing materials. A fresh, modern look can help you stand out and attract new customers.
Invest in search engine optimization (SEO): SEO can help you improve your website's visibility in search engine results, which can lead to more organic traffic and sales. Research keywords, optimize your website's content and technical aspects, and track your progress with tools like Google Analytics.
Host an event: Hosting an event, such as a workshop or seminar, can be a great way to connect with your target audience and showcase your brand.
Invest in marketing and advertising: Marketing and advertising can help you reach new customers and drive sales. Consider investing in a variety of marketing tactics, such as email marketing, content marketing, and social media advertising.
Now here's the surprise...
While they’re not bad tips, they were however written by the AI writing tool, ChatGPT.
I know everyone is talking about this crazy tool and what it can do. I spent about 2 hours mucking around with it one afternoon in awe.
I'll say that it's quite impressive and for any topic, especially for those you have no idea about, it really will digest and spit out some pretty decent and fairly accurate responses to prompts you give it, within seconds. Really. Those six tips were replied to me within 15 seconds after putting in the prompt "write me 6 tips for a brand to start off a new year".
Having some experience in branding myself, as I said before, the tips it generated are not bad. But they're also fairly generic as they're likely learned from many blog posts on the web that spout generic tips for content SEO.
SO!
Of course, I had to write 6 tips of my own for you... I’m not that lazy. Not only to show AI who's boss (for now) but also to give a more human touch to steps you could take to make a difference in your brand. Especially in a more human-centric way to connect not only with your consumers but also with your team.
Here we go.
Set your brand strategy and plan for this year: If you’re starting a new financial year this month, make it the time to review your 2022 and what worked or didn’t work. Research any changes in your market or for any new ambitions you have to bring to market in 2023. Then analyse your segmentation, decide who you’re going to target this year, adjust your positioning if it needs it to ensure it helps your brand to be thought of and present in a consumer's mind. Then set clear objectives for the next 12 months so that tactics can be planned and worked on to achieve your goals.
Have a sit-down with each person in your team: Ask them if they feel the team is living up to its purpose, if the team culture is on brand in a positive way and if they feel confidently connected to the brand. Get their input on how it could be done better if needed. If you’re a sole owner, you can still do this assessment too with a friend or family member to help you think objectively.
Do a brand identity refresher with your team (or by yourself): Go over your brand identity to make sure everyone is on the same page- to have the tone of voice, message and visual presentation locked in. Also give all your touchpoints a look over to ensure everything is consistent. Because sometimes we stray a bit from the brand as individuals, so this brings everyone back on brand. *If you're an e-commerce product brand
Include a handwritten note in a handful of delivered packages: Thank your customer for their purchase and ask them, by name, if their experience met or exceeded their expectations. If it did or didn’t, to let you know how it could be improved in a certain way and leave your personal contact details. Alternatively, hand deliver the item to local customers to ask the same thing in person. *If you’re a service based business
Start a podcast and invite each of your clients on: Start a podcast and invite each of your clients on to talk about a topic that isn’t talking shop. For example, it could be about sharing certain life experiences that challenged them or each of you talking about your favourite drink. This may create connections between existing clients or lead to new ones, in addition to a glowing testimonial that’s going to be a given at some point of the conversation.
Book a team photoshoot (or shoot one yourself): Having owned AND current photography (and even video) is often overlooked. Images that put a face to the name of who (in your team) your consumers will engage with and the experiences your consumers can expect, gives your consumers a better first impression of your brand than stock photography ever will in your content and touchpoints like your website... that is if you get a pro to do them or you’re a legend in your own lunchbox at taking photos.
So how was that? Did I do better than ChatGPT? I'd easily take a bet that its grammar is far better than my own, but it wouldn't be my voice and tone of writing if it wasn't 😅.
Either way, I hope one, some or all of these tips might prove to be useful and get you in a productive mood to go out there and kick ass with your brand in 2023!
And of course, say g’day today if you need help to engage in any of those tips for your brand this year!