I’m sure you’ve heard the term B2B (Business to Business) and B2C (Business to Consumer) marketing. These terms have been around for quite some time; however, you may have recently heard the term H2H, or Human to Human marketing.
Social media has changed the way that brands are interacting with their clients, as well as the way that they are talking about their products and services. There has been a clear shift away from advertising and selling to a move in genuine communication and building relationships with people via social media.
When you create content, share it, talk about it authentically, and engage with your target audiences, not only are you sharing your knowledge in the marketplace, but you are also building the “know, trust, and like factor” with your ideal clients. In addition, when your brand interacts with others using a human approach, you are able to build lasting connections, future collaborations, and leave a positive impression on those you are interacting with.
A Human Brand is…
- Warm and Friendly
- Vulnerable and Imperfect
- Trustworthy
- Resourceful
- Communicative and Engaging
Much of the work I do with entrepreneurs and small business owners is focused on branding with words. Knowing the right things to say to various people who are coming your way is key to running a successful business.
Another branch of this branding work I have embraced fully and feel very passionate about is helping my clients update their brands, in the five categories above, so that they can connect more authentically to the audiences they are trying to reach.
Today, I’m going to share with you 10 things you can do to update your brand and give it a distinct personality. Using the categories above as our guide, let’s do this!
10 Ways to Update Your Brand and Give it a Distinct Personality
1 – How to convey more warmth and friendliness:
- Use video in your newsletters and on your blog. This gives your audience a quick and easy way to get to know you better.
- When networking in person, ask focused questions. In fact, ask lots of questions and let your prospects do most of the talking.
2 – How to show you are vulnerable and imperfect:
- Do not erase negative feedback/comments on your blog or social media. In fact, leave it there and respond to it, showing that you do care about customer experience.
- Blog about mistakes you’ve made and how you’ve learned from them. People love a good transformational story.
3 – How to build trust with your audience:
- Do what you are going to do, BEFORE the deadline you say you are going to do it. (Hint, in order to actually pull this off, and still provide high-quality service, I’ll give you my insider tip: Know in your mind when the task can be done, then pad it by 24-36 additional hours when you state your deadline to your client.)
- Email people back! As simple as this sounds, so many brands fall short here.
4 – How to be a resource to others:
- Give, give, give! Give away great content on your blog, give away tips when you talk to people on social media, and give advice when you can, and it is appropriate.
- Share, share, share! I do something that I call “front of mind sharing.” Basically, if I get an article or resource in my inbox that I know a client or prospect will be interested in, you better believe I take 2-3 minutes to email that individual with he link, PDF, or another resource. This builds your “biz cred” quickly!
5 – How to communicate and engage with others:
- Crowdsourcing is where it’s at! Ask questions on social media—people love to help and it gives you insight into what kinds of topics your audience is interested in. And, more often than not, your audience will help you solve a problem you might be struggling with.
- Be social! As simple as this sounds, many brands are not social. They share their content, might “like” a post now and then, but the real value is in dropping in comments on other posts and starting dialogue on Twitter.
