You've probably heard the term "branding." It gets thrown around a lot these days. In fact when I typed the word "branding" into Google there were nearly 70,000,000 search results!

It is a popular topic! But is it just for big businesses like Coca-Cola, Microsoft and Nike?

Do solo-professionals and small business owners need to worry about branding?

I believe that in many ways it's even MORE important for solo-professionals and small business owners to brand. But, before we get into why, let's get clear on just what branding is.

Here's a paraphrase of a Wikipedia definition I found that I think sums it up pretty well.

What is a Brand?

A brand is a collection of images and ideas representing a business. More specifically, it refers to the concrete symbols such as a name, logo, tagline and design scheme. Brand recognition is created by the accumulation of experiences a person has with a specific product or service. This includes their experience using the product as well as how they are influenced by the company's advertising, design, and media exposure.

In short, a brand is a symbolic embodiment of ALL of the information connected to a company, product or service.

Why Branding is Important for Solo-Professionals

If you're a coach, consultant or some other type of solo-professional or small business owner, odds are there are many other coaches, consultants or business owners who do what you do.

These other business owners are your competitors because they are people your clients could hire instead of hiring you.

If you don't take the time to create a brand, your services will not stand out. They will not be unique. And you will not be giving people a REASON to hire you or buy from you instead of your competitors.

What Happens When You Don't Have a Brand

If you don't take the time to create a brand, you and your business are generic. They don't stand for anything. So, you will struggle more to get clients and you will be forced to compete on price. And, that's the hard way to market and be successful.

Branding isn't something you need to hire a marketing agency or consultant to do for you. You can do it yourself by taking a few simple steps.

Your Marketing Step

I want you to step back and ask yourself a few questions to determine if you have a brand, or if your business is generic.

1) Does your business stand for something beyond just the services you offer?

For example, 10stepmarketing is a brand because it stands for simple, step-by-step marketing. Everything is built on this foundation. It is what the business is known for. The look of my marketing materials portray this simple, no-nonsense image. And, my products and services are all designed to be simple and step-by-step.

Conversely, a marketing consultant who only markets the service of marketing consulting, without any kind of differentiation, does not have a brand.

2) Do all of your marketing materials and messages consistently portray this brand image?

Look at your website, your business cards, your ads, the articles you write, your newsletter, your press releases and anything you use to market your business. It should all reflect your brand and what it stands for. Anything a prospect or client sees from your business should be easily recognized as being from you - in the way it is written and the way it looks.

This recognition creates trust, which is a key marketing ingredient for solo-professionals and small business owners.

3) When someone purchases your product or service, is their experience consistent with your brand image?

Do you deliver your products and services in a manner that is consistent with your brand? Take a look at the experience your clients have after working with you or buying one of your products. Is that experience consistent with your brand image?

If after taking this short brand quiz, you find that you DON'T have a brand and you are currently marketing and selling a generic service, I encourage you to take steps today to start creating a brand.

Determine what you want your brand to stand for. What you want it to represent. And start incorporating this into EVERYTHING you do.