Brandmerry Blog Archives
4 Steps to Improve Your Brand Consistency Online
4 STEPS TO IMPROVE YOUR BRAND CONSISTENCY ONLINE
Brand consistency is super important - why? Because it is all about brand recognition and brand recognition my friends is crucial in the online world because it builds trust with your audience and ideal client.
When you are not consistent you are breaking trust with your community and when you are breaking trust your bank account with feel it - just sayin!
So what can you do about brand consistency. The first thing to do is check and see where your personal brand is showing up online. It's important to be aware of what social media accounts you've already created a do a little audit on how on brand they truly are. The second thing to do is to choose two platforms to focus your attention on. Don't try to stretch yourself too thin, instead build your brand and community quickly and then move to another platform.
Alrighty, now on to the 4 Simple Steps to Improve Your Brand Consistency Online
1) Your Images & Colors
Whether you are just starting out or not, it is important to have a database of branded photos to choose from. If you are in a place to hire a photographer then amazing, but if you are like me, when I was starting my biz, and the thought of getting photos taken makes your skin crawl then use my little trick. Go through old photos and collect images that have a similar look and feel. For example in the beginning of my business I went through old travel photos and put together a collection that had a similar look and feel and used them when posting online.
Tie your brand colors into your images for a super consistent flow. Color is important because it is what people see and ultimately what first grabs their attention (especially mid scroll on FB). Choosing colors that not only resonate with you, but also make your audience feel something is going to help you standout and build a following online.
Stock photos are another amazing resource and I've put together a fun blog of my favorite sites here: https://www.brandmerry.com/theblog1/my-top-free-stock-photo-resources-to-match-your-brand
2) Your Hook
Ah your hook is the single best way to tell people what it is you do and who you work with in a simple two sentence intro. Your hook is also a super easy way to make sure your title, etc.. is clear on all platforms. For instance, I share my hook before every live video, at the bottom of my blog posts, on my profiles, etc... And because I REALLY like you, here are the 6 questions needed to create your hook:
What is your name?
What is your title?
Who do you work with?
Where are they in their business/ what are they struggling with?
What is the #1 thing you do or are known for?
What is your ideal clients desire?
*See my hook below for a clear example*
3) Your Engagement
The reality is your audience needs guidance when it comes to engagement. You have to constantly ask your audience questions, give them a call to action or prompt them in some way to consistently engage with your brand. This is the first step, but the second piece of YOUR brand consistency is how you engage back with them. Showing up on a regular basis and commenting on your social media posts, blog posts, answering questions in a live stream, etc... is going to help build consistency and trust with your brand.
4) Your Topics
One thing I get asked a lot is how do I write something different for my email, social media, blog, live streams, etc... and the answer is "You don't!" There is absolutely no reason you need to come up with new content for every platform, every single day (you will burn out fast if you do). In fact, it will improve your brand and your overall voice if you are sharing the same topics and information on multiple platforms. Consistency in your messaging and copy allows you to become an expert in one area, rather than "ok" in a bunch!
Interested in learning more about brand messages, brand colors, fonts and more? The cart is officially open for Your Brand New Adventure, but only until Saturday, September 2.
Michelle Knight is a Branding and Business coach for female entrepreneurs who are struggling to gain visibility and traction to take their business to the next level. She works with her clients to dive deep into their story so they can create a brand and message that positions them as an expert and allows them to create their desired income to free up time in their schedule for what matters most. Learn more >>
Why Pinterest is a Must For Your Business Marketing Plan
WHY PINTEREST IS A MUST FOR YOUR BUSINESS MARKETING PLAN
I'm so excited to have my Pinterest Strategist, Jena Liat, on the blog today to talk about my new favorite platform - Pinterest. Now, I know Pinterest isn't NEW, I mean I've been pinning recipes, cute kids clothes and home decor for years, but in terms of using it to grow my coaching business it has been new territory. In just the past few months, I've seen my organic reach expand and as a result my community and list grow organically (hello saving money) through the power of Pinterest.
**PLEASE NOTE: This post contains affiliate links, but only because I use and love the product myself. If you click on the link I may receive a small commission.
Pinterest is the fastest-growing social media platform in member growth. There are now over 175 million active monthly users. Which means no matter who your ideal audience is, it's a safe bet they are on Pinterest.
Since Pinterest is a search engine that means that your ideal audience is searching for YOU. This is very different than other social media platforms, but it gets better!
Your post on Facebook gets buried under selfies and political posts in less than an hour.
Your Youtube video peaks within the first 24-48 hours of posting.
Your Tweet lasts about 20 minutes.
But your pin, it gets more visibility over time. In fact, it takes an average of 7 months for a pin to really take off! You will keep getting traffic from your pins for YEARS after you first add them to your account!
So how do you use this powerful marketing tool for your business?
create a business account
Start by creating or converting your current account to a business account. Then optimize your account by adding keywords to your board descriptions and pin descriptions. This allows those searching for what you have to offer to find YOU.
Branded images
Make sure your pin images SHOW and TELL viewers what they can expect to get when they click to your website. Stick to your brand colors and fonts, but make sure the text is easy to read since most users are on their mobile device when using Pinterest.
Utilize a SCHEDULER LIKE Tailwind
To gain even more visibility, participate in group boards and TailWind tribes.
Speaking of TailWind, this scheduler gives you advanced analytics and allows you to automate your Pinterest account while pinning at the times when your audience is most engaged. It is a must have!
These tips are a great place to start when using Pinterest to increase your visibility and drive traffic to your website - the home base of your business!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jena, a former educator turned Pinterest Strategist, helps female entrepreneurs gain confidence in using Pinterest to increase their visibility and drive traffic to their website. She and her husband raise their daughters on the beach and riverbanks of Georgia and love to travel.
Learn more at JenaLiat.com
What to Include In the About Me Section of Your Website
Besides the actual services you offer, the About Me or My Story section of your website is hands down the most important piece! Why? Because it's all about the trust factor when selling your services or products, and if people don't know a single thing about you, besides your title, they definitely aren't going to trust you.
The key to an About Me that resonates with your audience is sharing your story (are you surprised I said that? probably not!). While in the past, it might have been a place to copy and paste your professional bio, it is now an excellent platform to share your why, purpose, and the nitty-gritty about your story.
Sharing these details relies on 3 core pieces:
1) Identify the three major transitions or chapters of your life and how they relate to your audience. You can watch a full video walkthrough of How to Uncover Your Story go here >>
2) Identify the connector between your transitions (this is the theme or general message of your About Me). This is what strings it all together and makes it read as a full story as opposed to a few highlights.
3) Identify how you want your audience to feel when reading your About Me (this helps you determine where to add emphasis, reliability, and even what photos and visuals to choose).
The general setup of your About Me page should clearly explain to your audience where you were, where you are now, and how you got here.
It is designed to inspire your audience, relate to them on a very personal level, and show your vulnerability so you can begin to build trust.
I have a complete guide to walk you step-by-step through the process. Grab yours here >>
Length of Your About Me Page
Your About Page should be at minimum 2-3 paragraphs touching on the important points, but I have found a longer, more descriptive story really captivates your audience. If you want to check out an example, go here >> READ MY STORY
Aside from sharing your story, there are additional key pieces to include to make sure that your About Me turns into a high-converting page on your website:
About Me Page Tip #1:
A CAPTIVATING BANNER
This is the first opportunity to grab your audience with a beautiful tagline and photo that clearly represents your personal journey. This first exchange matters and can set the tone for your entire story. Share something that captivates your audience and show your face, please! This makes it more personal, and pictures of people are proven to convert higher than a stock photo.
About Me Page Tip #2:
SHOW YOUR STORY THROUGHOUT
Sharing more personal photos allows you to give a visual representation of your journey and to have your audience connect more deeply with what you’re sharing. The more personal, authentic photos allow your audience to step into your story fully. This is one spot on your website where the photos don't necessarily have to be professional because a more personal and raw photo does better in building a connection.
About Me Page Tip #3:
SHOWCASE THE IMPORTANT PARTS
As I mentioned earlier, it is important to highlight the parts of your story that are VERY important and you want your audience to remember. This is where bold, italicized, or different color fonts can help.
What could you share that would have them clicking for more? Always just assume your audience is spending 15 seconds on your webpage (cause that is the average) and many of them are skimming. You want to tell them a great preview and draw them in with highlighted pieces of your content.
About Me Page Tip #4
YOUR HOOK
An excellent place to add your hook, you know the thing you do, the “elevator pitch” for your business, is near the end of your About Me Page. If you follow the structure of storytelling and paint a picture of where you were, your transitions, and finally where you are now, you set yourself up for an amazing opportunity to share your business. I cover this entire framework inside my free download here >>
About Me Page Tip #5
CALL TO ACTION
Your About Me is an excellent resource to transition people directly to your services or products. Add a simple banner or button to the bottom of your story, giving them the next steps. If they have read this far, they are most likely an excellent candidate to purchase your service or product. Here is an example of mine
About Me Page Tip #6
YOUR FREE OFFER
Don't overlook the amazing opportunity to get people on your list. Remember, you've been sharing your truth, and if they are still reading at this point, they probably already trust you at some level or at the very least, want to learn more.
Not only will you be growing your list with highly targeted ideal customers, but it’s also someone who is already familiar with your story - major win!
Did you love the information in this blog post?
If so, I’ve got a free gift for you all about writing your About Me Page. Click to get your hands on 3 Simple Steps to a Client-Converting About Me Page.
Save this for later!
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
The Three Key Pieces For a High-Converting Sales Funnel
THE THREE KEY PIECES TO A HIGH-CONVERTING SALES FUNNEL
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
So you feel like you have to have a passive income product to have a sales funnel?
Or maybe you don't even have a high-priced offer and feel like you shouldn't waste your time on a free offer and funnel?
So many entrepreneurs allow these two pieces to keep them from building a sales funnel. If this is you I encourage you to change your focus on using a sales funnel as a way to take your new prospect from cold to hot lead!
Use this opportunity now to build community and trust with your audience so when you DO have those offers you have someone to sell them too - see how that works?
If you’re not familiar with an email funnel or using the power of a free offer, be sure check out these blog posts here:
4 Steps to Create Your Next Free Offer
Ok, now on to the good stuff.
3 Key Pieces to Include in Every Email Funnel/ Automation or Sequence
Be sure to do these three things to keep open and click rates HIGH, while keeping unsubscribes LOW.
1: Include Your Story to build trust with your audience
Start thinking of everyone who enters your list as a cold lead.
What does that mean? They don't know anything about you, not even your face. So take this opportunity to introduce yourself, share some vulnerabilities and start to build the trust factor.
This is a golden opportunity for people to start REALLY paying attention to you and what you have to say and connecting with you on a deep level. When people trust you they will buy from you!
ACTIONABLE TIP ↠ I suggest the second email you deliver, after your free gift of course introduces you, your brand and tells a bit of a story. From there, include elements of story in the remaining emails while also giving your tips, tools and value to build trust.
A big part of the storytelling process comes from understanding your brand. Watch this free Build a Better Brand class to learn my 3-step process (hint: one is story)!
2: Write a subject line that gets opened
It's one thing to have a funnel, it's another to have someone read it - which is kind of the point isn't it?
It doesn't matter what you say in the body context of your email, if people don't open your email they will never know any of it. I argue that this step is the most important part of the process.
The reality is your audience is bombarded with emails on a regular basis and you need to grab their attention as quickly as possible. Ask yourself what would make me open this email?
ACTIONABLE TIP ↠ Spend time creating your subject line! One of my recommendations is to write the content of the email first and THEN pull some of the juiciest pieces as the subject line. Using things like numbers, questions and emoji’s can help with open rates. Be sure to keep your subject line lower case (i.e. “7 ways to improve your marketing” vs “7 Ways to Improve Your Marketing).
3: GIVE TREMENDOUS VALUE TO YOUR AUDIENCE
This is an excellent time to not only build trust with your audience through storytelling, but to also position yourself as the expert and guide they need.
People want to know WHY they should listen to you, so tell them! Start giving tips about a topic that interests them, share advice or a life lesson and what it taught you or share an old blog post that gives value.
This is the time to give, give and give so they make your emails a top priority in their inbox and understand why they should invest in you over someone else when the time comes.
ACTIONABLE TIP ↠ This is not just about “How to” content, while that can be super useful to your audience, it’s not the only way to add value. You can add value to your audience by solving a problem for them, giving them inspiration or flipping their mindset. When you think of the end goal of your brand, it should be to solve a problem your ideal customer is experiencing…use this time to start doing that. I recommend anywhere between 3-5 value emails before your subscribers is added to your weekly email list.
If you’re looking for an email platform I recommend, look no further than Convertkit! I’ve been using them for years and they are still my TOP resource for entrepreneurs.
CONCLUSION
Growing your email community is VERY important. I can’t stress enough how important it is to have a way to reach your audience that doesn’t rely on social media. No matter what stage you’re in at your business, having a free gift and email funnel is necessary and a great way to start building community and building trust.
If you’re ready to improve your overall brand to attract ideal customers, increase engagement and build a revenue-generating business, be sure to watch my free branding class: Build a Better Brand Method.
I'M MICHELLE KNIGHT
I was just a new mom with an ambitious dream to start my own business. That dream turned into a multiple 6-figure business and the ability to travel full time. Now, I teach women how to brand and market their authentic voice online and take bold action to create a life better than their dreams.
MAIN CATEGORIES
TOOLS I LOVE
KAJABI
Grab a 30-day trial of Kajabi and test out their website, email, landing page and course platform.
HONEYBOOK
Save $200 off this client management tool! Save hours with streamlined workflows and onboarding.
CONVERTKIT
The ultimate email platform for simplicity and deliverability.
SMARTERQUEUE
Save time by scheduling your social media in one place and extend the life of your content with evergreen scheduling.
EXPLORE THE BLOG
Four Steps to Create Your Next Free Offer (and Grow Your List)
FOUR STEPS TO CREATE YOUR NEXT FREE OFFER (AND GROW YOUR LIST)
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
This is a topic near and dear to my heart because I've been on the journey of free offers from the beginning. I've offered quite a few different options and while each one grew my list by a little none of them really converted well.
Finally, I took a step back and realized I was missing four key steps when creating my free offer that would convert like crazy.
Now I have free offers delivered daily into hundreds of email inboxes, FB ads converting at $2.00 a piece to a cold audience and funnels converting into $4k clients.
Every time I create a free offer I use these four steps and it makes the creation process so much easier. Today on the blog I'm sharing
The Four Steps to Create Your Next Free Offer (and Grow Your List)
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
Meet michelle
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
I'M MICHELLE KNIGHT
I was just a new mom with an ambitious dream to start my own business. That dream turned into a multiple 6-figure business and the ability to travel full time. Now, I teach women how to brand and market their authentic voice online and take bold action to create a life better than their dreams.
MAIN CATEGORIES
TOOLS I LOVE
KAJABI
Grab a 30-day trial of Kajabi and test out their website, email, landing page and course platform.
HONEYBOOK
Save $200 off this client management tool! Save hours with streamlined workflows and onboarding.
CONVERTKIT
The ultimate email platform for simplicity and deliverability.
SMARTERQUEUE
Save time by scheduling your social media in one place and extend the life of your content with evergreen scheduling.