3 Myths Busted About Consistent Content Creation

Consistency is one of my love languages and is one of the fundamentals of a successful business no matter how you create content or where you post that content when promoting your business. 

And it’s not just about social media and promotion, but also consistency in your habits. 

So today I wanted to bust three myths around consistency to really give you the power back in planning out your day, in planning out your content and feeling good about how you're showing up and building your community.

But, we’ve got to start at the core of it all and that’s the Importance of Consistency in Business.

Consistency in Business

I really believe in the power of consistency to grow your community and ultimately grow your business. 

From a community standpoint, consistency is so important because it builds trust. So it's not really about you just pushing out a bunch of content. 

It's about you being there. 

It's about your brand being there and showing up for your community, delivering value to your community, and ultimately building that trust.

When you're consistently showing up and they're following you on that platform, or they're subscribing to your email list, they know who you are. They really start to get a sense of who you are as a person, who you are as a brand, what you stand for, and ultimately your expertise, which is huge. 

This is where the relationship with your brand starts to form and brand affinity can start to happen.

Another element of consistency is the role it plays in messaging. Consistent messaging also builds trust with your audience because you're showing up and you're delivering value and you’re doing it in a way that builds authority.

Your goal is to become an expert in a specific niche, so you’re consistently creating content and resources around that area. And that makes you the expert. It elevates you, it elevates your brand.

But, if your messaging is all over the place and not consistent, then your audience is going to have a hard time understanding what it is you do and how you can support them. 

I've been saying the same thing since 2016, my core concepts haven't changed.

Recently, we found my very first YouTube video. I’m not going to lie, it's kind of embarrassing, but what it did was reaffirm the concept of consistent messaging and the impact it can have on a business. I've been saying the same thing about branding, about storytelling, about emotional branding since the beginning.

And that is one of the reasons that I have now been able to get featured on podcasts and in articles and more as an expert on this topic.

You might not know exactly what you're talking about out of the gate, and that's fine. You're going to have to experiment. 

But when you really realize what it is you want to own and why people come to you and what differentiates you from others, consistently honoring that and creating messaging and content around that can help you grow your business substantially.

Then there's the other element, and that’s consistency in business overall - this looks like workflows and systems that save you so much time and energy.

I have very clear workflows in my business and I teach these content workflows inside of my programs, including The Consistency Guide.

Every single week, we are repeating the same content strategy over and over and over again. And as I've added team members, it's been really beautiful in being able to outsource different projects in a seamless way.

And while, the teamwork is amazon, the reason I do this is so that I can have consistency on my end so that every week I'm super clear on the fundamental things that I need to do in order to get content out there, to be able to grow my community, to build trust, to make sales. 

And then it frees up so much time for me to be creative and focus on creating new things or showing up for my audience, or if you're in any of my coaching programs, you know I'm really active inside of those communities. 

These systems give you the time to create, explore and grow your business without constantly feeling bogged down, trying to come up with content ideas and creating new content.

Myth #1: Consistency is Posting Daily

Myth number one about consistency is that you have to post daily. 

I had to start with this because I’ve got some beef with this topic. Consistently showing up online does not mean posting every single day.

I did this, we've all done this. Some of you are maybe posting twice a day. If that works for you, go for it. But if it’s a belief that you have, thinking it’s the standard and if you’re not posting daily you aren’t consistent, well that’s just not true.

We need to stop this one please because showing up and posting daily is just more emphasis on growing through social media, which is one of the things that I don't teach. 

I teach other avenues like Pinterest, SEO, Google, the things that you guys have heard me talk about all year as a way to grow your community.

And using Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, even maybe Twitter, as ways to just continue to show up for the existing community. 

Using these platforms allows you to step back from the hustle of posting daily.

So rather than looking at consistency as posting daily content, start to think about how many times you want to show up each week and honor that. 

And I think this is where people get really hung up and where they struggle is, maybe it's really fun and exciting and you do it for two weeks. And you're like, “Yes, yes, yes.” 

And then suddenly a week happens and you're like, “Oh my gosh, I can't post this week” or “I'm not feeling inspired.” And then you're like, “Aw, crap. My whole entire consistency plan is out the window.” 

It doesn't have to be like that.

Start thinking about more sustainable consistency, not something that you just feel like, “Oh, I have to do this. I have to post every single day.” 

That's one of the reasons that I encourage people to really look at platforms that expand their reach and that allow content to live longer, like blogging. 

You don't need to blog every single day. You can blog once a week and optimize that blog. Same thing with Pinterest, where the content ultimately lives longer. 

People ask me all the time, "Michelle, you're getting all this traffic from Pinterest." I'm getting anywhere between 13,000-20,000 views a month on my blog, about 90% are from Pinterest. People are like, "How many times a week do you blog?" 

Once a week, but I'm consistent with my once a week - and that’s what consistency is really about.

Think about what works for you and what is sustainable, because I’m going to bet that posting daily is not sustainable for most of you.

Myth #2: Consistency is Hard or Difficult

The second myth is that consistency is hard or difficult to keep up with. 

We shy away from this conversation around consistency because having to consistently create content every single day or weekly feels like it is overly complicated and hard to stay up to date with. 

Sometimes they say that you don't plan because you're afraid to fail, right? Many people don’t shoot for consistency because we just don't think that it's attainable for us. 

But I promise you that it is.

I promise when you have your systems in place, it 100% is possible for you. 

I've worked with enough entrepreneurs, with enough personality types and different backgrounds to say that this method works, and really simplifies your marketing overall.

This method is the art of repurposing.

The idea is that you have a core piece of content and you're repurposing that content through additional means.

You're not creating a bunch of new topics and new things every single day of the week. 

Here's an example: I do a Mondays With Michelle video on the three myths of consistency. 

This video will then be transcribed. 

That transcription will go on my blog. 

That blog might have a different title just depending on SEO, but probably not (if you haven’t caught on it’s this blog). 

And then that blog gets pushed out to Pinterest where our content lives longer and drives most of the traffic to our website.

The same core piece of content. I didn't come up with something new. 

Then, we take that transcript and create three to four social media posts, every single week. 

I have a graphic designer that I work with that I absolutely love. And she takes the transcript and creates the graphics. Those graphics then get pushed out over the next week. Sometimes we'll even save some of them and use them down the line. 

So again, same video, the same piece of content, a bunch of graphics. And if you don't work with a designer, you just create some templates in Canva and just start to really practice your flow.

In the beginning, it might feel a little shaky. 

It might feel a little like you're piecing it together; it always does. You're figuring out what works best for you, but I promise you, when you get into that rhythm, your entire mind will be blown and it just makes your life so much easier. 

You can build your repurposing workflow and more with The Consistency Guide.

In addition, it’s very important you understand why you’re showing up with your content and that comes back to understanding and feeling grounded in your purpose. 

So many entrepreneurs just create content to create content. 

It becomes a dumping ground to put stuff out there. 

And yes, of course, in that first year or so, you're experimenting with things. You're wanting to see what people resonate with. Absolutely, there's always experimentation that comes with marketing your business.

But if you don't have a clear purpose, which is both the end goal, the action you want people to take, the product or the service or the offer that you want them to purchase, as well as the overall purpose and mission behind your business, then it’s really hard to show up.

It's really hard to just create consistent content, especially when you're working extra hard in the beginning to grow your audience. 

But when you have that purpose, very, very clearly defined in the back of your mind of “What is the overall purpose for my business? What am I working towards? And what is the purpose? What am I ultimately leading people to?” 

It makes content creation and consistency so much more effective.

So if you haven't already identified your mission of your business, you definitely want to do that. 

And if you don't already have a signature product or service or an offer, that you're leading people to, think about that because that's really going to help you decide what type of content to create. 

One of the core pillars of my branding process is your Signature Offer. If you’re just starting out, or don’t feel clear on this end goal, be sure to watch my free class on The Build a Better Brand Method: brandmerry.com/brandmasterclass

Myth #3: Consistency is Hard or Difficult

The third myth is that it has to be new content. 

I think you can already pick up on what I'm putting down when it comes to repurposing and therefore you do not need to create new content every single day in your business. 

I mean how exhausting. 

But, when you’re only focused on building your community with Facebook or Instagram, it can feel like you need to create new stuff all the time and that’s because content on those platforms doesn’t live as long as these evergreen options.

I'm sorry, but if I'm taking all this time and energy to create this video and then it’s gone in 24 hours. No thank you!

It’s one of the reasons I created Brandmerry Academy, because I see too many entrepreneurs struggling to build their audience without spending all their time on social media.

This is why people have trouble with consistency. 

This is why people have trouble with content creation because they're like, “Well, shoot, I got to create something new tomorrow because that one's all gone.” 

But if you really change your thinking from new content daily to extending the life of your content, you're reusing the same thing over and over again. 

And I promise you, your audience does not get tired of it. 

Your audience will thank you for posting it again because they probably missed it. 

So when you're thinking of creating your content calendar for the year, even just for the month, I want you to break it down to one core topic every week. 

What would your life be like if you had one weekly piece of content that you then pushed out and repurposed and manipulated in different ways, and shifted the messaging so that it actually lasted longer?

What would happen? 

Would that completely change your life? Because it did mine.

I stopped focusing on creating new stuff every single day for Instagram and really went to this repurposing web. It’s one of the things I teach inside of both The Consistency Guide and Brandmerry Academy.

So it's less about creating a quantity of content and more about the quality of content. 

Now that doesn't mean that you post one thing and you're like, fingers crossed, hope it works. 

It's about then having these repurposing strategies in place so then you can make sure your content is being seen by your ideal customer.

Remember, people like to consume content in different ways.

They want to be able to read something, watch something, listen to something, consume it very quickly. And the more that we can really show up on multiple platforms and think about ways that you can show up for your audience and be there for them and they can consume your content in the way that's best for them. Again, building trust.

CONCLUSION

Let’s recap the three myths, shall we?

Number one is posting daily, you don't need to do it. Just be more strategic with your content and the high-quality content that you're putting out there. Consistency doesn't mean daily. It means figuring out how you're going to share your message and consistently sticking to that, honoring yourself, honoring your commitment to your audience. 

Number two is that it has to be hard or difficult. It doesn't have to be that way. Repurposing is going to be your best friend. If you guys want my top tips, plus build out your own repurposing web, then get your hands on The Consistency Guide.

And also understanding the purpose, what's the purpose behind the content that you're creating? 

And then finally, remove the idea that it has to be brand new content all of the time. 

Look at ways to extend the life of your content. Look at ways to repurpose your content, not just in one week, but maybe even recycling content that does well. 

These are all ways to consistently show up that don't require you to just create, create, create, write, write, write, write post, post, post, post, graphic, graphic, graphic every single day.

I also wanted to share with you that one of the things that I created this year because I saw a need. So many women were coming to me to say consistency was their main pain point in business, so I created The Consistency Guide. 

This 40-page workbook breaks down my entire process into an 8-part framework to help you master consistency in your business. Learn more at brandmerry.com/consistent.

P.S. Want to watch the full training? This video was recorded as part of Mondays With Michelle which airs every Monday at 4 pm CST.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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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.

5 Ninja Skills to Improve Your Email List Building Efforts

5 Ninja Skills to Improve Your Email List Building Efforts

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

If you don't have a community, if you don't have an email list, if you don't have people who are going to ultimately buy from you, you have nothing.

We get right into building our businesses and our brands and we get  focused on what we’re going to offer and what’s on the website, when we need to be focusing on our community growth.

That's why one of the core foundations, I teach inside of all of my programs, is ideal client work.

Without knowing who you're speaking to and without putting the energy and attention into building and attracting those ideal customers, you're going to have a  hard time selling.

And with this emphasis on community building it’s important to share 5 Ninja Skills to improve your list building efforts.

If you want to watch the video, rather than read, scroll down!

Email List Building Tip #1
Your Lead Magnet

The first tips, and something you need with all of your email list and community growth, is the lead magnet!

This is what  starts it all. 

Remember, like 12 years ago, when you would land on a blog or a website and it would say, “Join our newsletter?” And it was like, "Okay, cool. I like your newsletter. This seems fun."

I still see this from time to time and it makes me cringe because the person on the receiving end of that is not attracting their ideal customer. They're not specific enough and saying, "Are you interested in these things? You're the right fit for our program. Please opt into my email list." 

When we just have that very general newsletter approach to it, then we often find ourselves with an email list or a community that is not full of our ideal customer. And we don't want that. 

So a lead magnet is what  sets the tone for everyone joining your email list or joining your community.

What you want to  think about is a core lead magnet for your brand as a whole. One of the core lead magnets I have for my business is my Brand Roadmap. I teach you the steps of my personal brand roadmap so you know those and you understand the three mistakes of branding. 

This free gift works into all of my programs and all of my offers. 

So when you're thinking about growing your community, please focus on growing the right community.

I'd rather you have an email list of 100 people that were 100 ideal customers than an email list of 2,000 people that may or may not actually be interested in what you offer.

Your lead magnet is what  allows you to create a clean and targeted email list and community. This is the ninja skill that everyone misses, I think. 

There's not enough strategic thought process that goes into a lead magnet and what I'm  going to encourage you to do is think about your offer and reverse engineer. 

Think about what you want them to actually do, purchase from you.

Then think about what lead magnet you can use to bring in the right person for that offer.

You'll find that you are bringing in the right people and you're repelling the wrong ones. And that's exactly what we want to do with all of our branding, with all of our messaging, with all of our marketing, with all of our freebies.

Email List Building Tip #2
Make Your Lead Magnet Evergreen

The second thing I want you to keep in mind when it comes to list building ninja skills is that you want this to be evergreen. 

Evergreen content basically means that someone can grab it at any time. There's no time limit on it. It's not a live workshop or challenge happening on a specific date.

While these types of list builders are great and they're great to coincide with a big launch or a promotion or just a big push to build your email list, you always want to have an evergreen lead magnet in the background.

I’ve already shared with you that my evergreen lead magnet is my personal brand roadmap where you give me your name and your email address, and I give you the personal brand roadmap.

I've created a lot of lead magnets in my business long before I actually knew how to strategically create a lead magnet. 

I would create them all the time - so I'm telling you this because I understand that you want to create a new lead magnet every week or you want to create a new one every month. 

The best thing you can do is create a core lead magnet that someone can opt in at any time that's leading them to your core offer. 

Then create these other fun periodic, live lead magnets to boost your list. It can be easy to get 200 people to sign up for a challenge in two weeks because it's exciting and timely. But what happens when that challenge is over?

Make it evergreen!!

Email List Building Tip #3
Passive and Active Promotion

Make sure that once you have your lead magnet created, you have your opt-in, you're promoting it both actively and passively. 

So one of the easiest things to get set up, and something that I think every entrepreneur should do as soon as they have their lead magnet, is the passive side. 

The passive side is the opt-in on your home page, sidebar of your blog, footer of your blog, social media links on your Instagram, in your TikTok, on your YouTube bio.

These different approaches are passive. You get to set it and then it's cool. You get to set it and then you kind of just get to leave it there. 

Then you have the active piece of it. Now, sometimes people will go right into active and forget passive, or what typically happens is they go passive and they forget active. 

Active is actively promoting your freebie, your lead magnet. Some of the ways to do that are obviously social media. I don't want you to put all your eggs in a social media basket, but I know that's the first thing that comes to mind and I encourage you to be creative with it if you're going the social media route. 

Think about incorporating it on your feed, but also think about creating some templates for Insta Stories and saving it as a highlight.

Think about creating a Reel that leads to your evergreen opt-in. So people can see that video at any time and then go to the landing page and grab it. 

You can do live video and share your lead magnet as an opt in.

If you're blogging, create blogs that directly lead people to the lead magnet. 

If I'm promoting my lead magnet, my personal branding roadmap, then I might have a blog that's all about branding yourself in 2021. And I'm teaching them things that they need to do and telling them to grab the freebie as an extension of that.

So make sure that you have this combination of the passive pieces that are always there, always in play, and then the active pieces.

Email List Building Tip #4
Make It Timely and Seasonal

Think about ways that you can reframe that lead magnet based on things that are happening during that time of the year.

For instance, we always have the personal brand roadmap available, but one of the things we do is create new pin graphics on Pinterest that say, “Ready to build your brand in 2021?” or “Branding in the new year”

It’s timely so more people are searching for it which will give us a boost for sign ups.

You don't have to change the lead magnet, at all, you’re just modifying how you promote it and making it exciting, timely, and seasonal. 

It’s all about reframing your messaging around your core lead magnet, rather than creating a new one every season to keep it interesting for your audience. 

Adjusting the messaging or graphics can make a big difference, especially if you’re running advertisements which work so well when they are based on what’s happening in the world.

For example, during Summer 2020 I repositioned my ad copy for the Personal Brand Roadmap to meet the messaging and needs we were seeing online.

I created ad copy that read, "Hey, I know this is on top of your mind. I know you're wanting to scale your business and grow your business quickly because of everything that's going on. Here's a brand roadmap for you." 

It worked really well, because it reframed the messaging and we saw an increase in sign ups and a lower cost per ad.

When you make it timely, it feels like fresh content and they absolutely love it.

Email List Building Tip #5
Consistent Traffic to Your Website

In my program Brandmerry Academy, we focus on consistent traffic and consistently creating traffic to your website and to your lead magnet, so that you can consistently grow your email list, and you always have people coming in the top of the funnel, funneling down into a paid offer or a service.

Traditionally what we are always taught, when we're starting our business, is social media. Just show up on social media every day or post in Facebook groups every single day, to grow your community.

That doesn't work for me. I don't know if it works for you, but I've got a lot of different things going on in my life. I don't want to be thinking about posting in groups every day. I don't want to think about posting on social media.

What happens if you take a vacation? What happens if you step away for a week and stop promoting? Does your email list stop growing? Yes, it does. Unless you have these consistent streams to create traffic to your website, to your lead magnet. 

Two of our favorites over here at Brandmerry are Pinterest and SEO. 

So many entrepreneurs have websites that are just sitting there. I know y'all took a lot of time to build your website because I did too. If you have this website, or a landing page and a lead magnet for your freebie, you want to make sure you're consistently driving traffic to that. 

Pinterest is an amazing tool to be able to do that.

Your content lives super long on this platform. We have pins from 2017 that still get consistent traffic, and as a result, because of all the traffic, Google loves them so those same blogs get traffic from Google. 

The beautiful thing and what I love so much about Pinterest is it's so visual and so you get to play with creating all these different pin graphics. 

You don't have to write a whole new post every time. You just get to play with the graphics and the messaging and the photos, leading them to the blog that you've already written or the landing page for your lead magnet. It’s way less effort than posting daily on social media.

Then, my other favorite method is making sure your website is optimized for SEO. When people are searching for your industry and services, they turn to Google. Then they find you, land on your website and opt into your lead magnet. It’s one of my favorite ways to make sure you’re getting consistent traffic to your website!

So start thinking about ways that you can create that consistent stream of sign-ups. Things like Reels are great because they can go viral. They can show up all the time. YouTube is a fantastic option. SEO, as we've talked about with blogging. Pinterest with blogging, those are some of my favorites. Obviously Facebook and Pinterest ads are great as well, but from an organic, not having to pay anything angle,  Pinterest and SEO all the way!

You don't have to pay a dime to get started on those platforms unless you need to learn how to do it and then you can join the academy and learn how to do it there.

CONCLUSION

Let’s recap! 

It’s important to make sure that you have a strong lead magnet. This is what starts the whole entire thing. You want to make sure that your lead magnet is specific to your ideal customer, bringing in the right person to your email list and keeps in mind your end goal. What are you ultimately going to sell them or promote?

Make sure that the lead magnet that you create is evergreen, meaning that they can sign up at any time and then sprinkle in fun, timely live pieces like challenges or limited time offers. 

Adjust your messaging and positioning for the same lead magnet to make it fresh!

And then finally, number five, make sure that you have a strategy to consistently get traffic to your website and into your lead magnet. Two of my favorites are Pinterest and SEO. 

If you’re ready to build your email list without relying on social media, check out Brandmerry Academy! You’ll learn all the ins and outs of SEO, Pinterest, video marketing, advertising and more so you can grow your list consistently without the stress of posting daily.

Learn more at brandmerryacademy.com.

Want to watch the full training? Watch below. This video was recorded as part of Mondays With Michelle which airs every Monday at 4 pm CST.

---

- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

---

- 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.

2 Must-Haves for Brand Messaging that Attracts your Ideal Customer and Increases Revenue

2 Must-Haves for Brand Messaging that Attracts your Ideal Customer and Increases Revenue

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

Back in 2016, when I wasn't making any money in my business, I worked for about eight months to build my business; the website, the backend, the tech, the systems, all the things. And I didn't have any clients. 

That's when I realized that the approach to branding was completely backward and that we really needed to focus on, as entrepreneurs are the different pieces in order to build the foundation of our brand. And then, once the foundation is set we can create things like the website, the offers, and sign clients.

It’s one of the reasons I created my signature course, You! Branded to encompass all of this.

In my quest to build a better brand, I began to learn more about the power of strong brand messaging.

I quickly discovered it was the missing piece so many entrepreneurs weren’t giving enough attention to. We find ourselves wondering, “Why isn't my stuff converting? Why are people going to my sales page and not buying? Why are people opening my emails and not clicking?" 

And it always comes back to messaging, which of course is part of the branding process.

Understanding how to message is key if you plan on running any sort of business, but especially if you have an online business. Because the content that you're creating, the emails that you're sending, the sales pages, that's how you're communicating. That's kind of it. 

So, you need to make sure that what you're saying is doing what you want it to do. What you're saying is actually leading to the sale.

In this blog, I’m going to clear the air and remove the overwhelm that comes with Brand Messaging and give you my top 2 must-haves when crafting brand messaging that works!

If you prefer to watch the video training, just scroll down to watch!

WHAT IS BRAND MESSAGING

Brand messaging is how you communicate the purpose of your brand, the problem that it solves, what you do, the work that you do, and the products that you have in a magnetic way. 

It's not only about attracting the right people, it's also leading them, and converting them to the offer. It's about bundling it all up in a clear, specific and concise way.

People are always telling me, "I want a better way to communicate what it is I do to my audience so that they want to do it." 

And I'm like, "That is brand messaging." It's all about communication.

The mistake people make with their brand messaging is just focusing on what they do. They craft messages that say, "This is what I do. This is what I create. This is how many modules there are," and they don't focus on why those things are important. 

Their focus is, “Well, this is how I'll help you, and this is what I'll do with x, y and z”, and not focused on why their audience cares about those things in the first place. 

What your audience really wants to know is how what you say you're going to do will benefit them. Because when we're going into buying something, yes, we might be looking for specific things, but we want to know it's going to solve our problem and it's going to help us get to the end result that we want.

I know that might seem like a lot to include, you might be thinking, "How do I communicate all of that?" but it truly is quite simple.

WHERE TO USE BRAND MESSAGING

Brand messaging can be and should be designed for your brand as a whole. This is something that I teach inside of my programs and referred to as Core Brand Messages.

It's this idea that your brand as a whole solves a very specific problem for your ideal customer, and you need to understand why solving that problem is important to your ideal customer. 

But then, you can also create different variations of that or even more specific messages for a particular offer, for a landing page, for a webinar, for a sales page, in an email, etc...

For instance, I have core brand messages for Brandmerry as a whole. But then, my program, Brandmerry Academy, which focuses specifically on marketing and teaching people how to market their business, has very specific messages on marketing. I don't talk about the basics of starting a business because we're focused on marketing. 

I reserve those types of messages for my program Roadmap to Freedom.

Strong messaging is used everywhere and anywhere you want to sell something, and following this brand messaging framework will make your life way easier.

BRAND MESSAGING FRAMEWORK

Excellent messaging always comes back to knowing your audience. So, even though I’m going to share with you a framework for your messages, I want you to remember the language you’ll use will come from what you know about your ideal customer.

We can't craft messages that convert, sales pages that sell, email campaigns that email, we can't do any of that if we don't know how to communicate to our audience.

I think copywriting is such an art. And so many people are like, "Well, I'll just hire a copywriter. I'll just get to a place when I hire a copywriter." But you're never going to get there if you don't know how to do it now yourself. 

There are people who are incredibly skilled at writing copy, and they freaking own that. They're just masters at it. But, everyone at the bare minimum needs to just understand how to communicate to their audience. And that's really what messaging is. And as you can see, so much of your messaging working is reliant on understanding who you're talking to and then letting them tell you what they want and the language that they use and plugging that into your copy.

The framework, once you have the market research, is actually quite simple.

The brand messaging framework includes what you do, the problem you solve and why it’s important.

PART ONE: WHAT YOU PROVIDE

You need to note that it’s not just one thing, otherwise you’d have one brand message. What you do needs to be broken down into pieces. Think about your framework, modules you offer, modalities, techniques or just the flow you lead your client through. 

PART TWO: WHAT PROBLEM DOES IT SOLVE

Taking it back to the ideal client work, understanding the struggles/ pains of your ideal customer is huge. When you know what they want to avoid or what they are working towards you can use that to share how what you do will help them achieve that.

This is the second stage of messaging to say, “This is what I do so you can…”

PART THREE: ADDING THE REAL BENEFIT AND URGENCY

This is all about why your audience should care and why it’s important. This is the sweet spot of brand messaging and the difference between someone working with you and someone not working with you, someone buying your course and not buying your course, someone buying your product and not buying your product. 

If they aren’t clear on how investing in this will serve them, they won’t do it!

BRAND MESSAGING EXAMPLES

These are examples of messages I’ve been using since 2016 when positioning my brand and various products. 

I want you to pay attention to how the framework is presented in each of them.

Example 1: Follow my signature uncover-your-story framework so that you can identify the most impactful stories for your brand as a whole and how to showcase them as part of your brand experience. 

So much of what my audience struggles with is storytelling. I know that that's a pain point, so I'm solving the problem with that. I'm letting them know how they can choose their stories, which is a huge pain point for my audience. Then, I'm telling them that the benefit is that they're going to be able to use storytelling in their branding experience. And of course, they're learning my brand framework.

Example 2: Create your core brand messages by tapping into your story and purpose so that you can remain consistent and build trust, making selling about connection and not being pushy. 

If you're reading my sales page, you're like, "What's a core brand message? I'm so interested in that." I'm going to tell you how you're going to do it. It's all about storytelling and purpose, which is part of my superpower. That's what differentiates me from other people who teach messaging. And specifically, we're going to talk about building trust, which is important to my audience. And the biggest pain point that they want to avoid is sounding sleazy or salesy or pushy when it comes to selling. I know that y'all hate this, and so I'm using that in my marketing.

Example 3: Create a program that delivers on your goal of helping your ideal client reach their desire and learn how to structure and price your offering in a way that speaks directly to your clients so that they are eager to invest again and again. 

They're going to learn how to create a program, specifically in alignment with their desire. A program that helps their ideal customer. My audience, people who buy my products are mission-driven, purpose-driven. So they want not just an offer to sell, but something that's really going to serve their ideal customer. And they struggle with structuring their offer, pricing their offer, and their end goal is to consistently sign clients that invest again and again.

These are three messages that are part of my brand as a whole. Three of them are used on my You! Branded sales page. And I think I have some of them on my Roadmap to Freedom sales page and various places in my business.

BRAND MESSAGING GUIDELINES

2 Must-Haves in Your Brand Messaging

Let’s talk about two brand messaging guidelines.

1. SOLVE A PROBLEM

Every single message that you create has to talk about the problem. It has to address the problem. People pay to eliminate a problem and since you're in business you want to make sure you understand the problem of your ideal customer.  No matter what you sell your customer has a bunch of problems that you solve with your product or service.

Your brand as a whole solves one main problem, and that's your niche, but then you've got all these other problems that your audience is experiencing that you want to address in your messaging. 

Not only are you letting them know that you get them and you know what they're experiencing, but you also are very blatantly like, "Hey, I know you have this problem, and I'm going to help you solve it."

2. THE BENEFIT

The benefit is telling your audience specifically what solving the problem will get them. You'll see a lot of that so-that-you-can messaging in marketing, and the reason is it works like a freaking charm. 

This is the extension to brand messaging that so many people forget. When thinking of this piece you want to consider the end goal for your ideal customer, how solving the problem will benefit them and the desires they are wanting to achieve.

That's what you want to make sure is crystal clear. That is what leads people to actually buying your product, your service, your offer.

Your audience really wants to know what's going to make their life easier, what's going to get them closer to their end goal or their desire, how is fixing this going to manifest itself in their everyday life. 

Let's say you teach meditation and you're like, "You're going to learn my 15-minute meditation to handle any stressful situation that comes up at work." 

Okay, fine. But if they handle that stressful situation at work, what does that give them?
Is it so they can go about their day and not bite their coworker's head off? 
Is it so they don't go home completely stressed out and then take it out on their family? 
Is it so they can be more productive and get more work done? 

What is the end result? It can't just be stress-free. What does stress-free look like in your ideal customer's life?

CONCLUSION

Brand messaging is so important, and you really need to make it a top priority for your business.

Remember, brand messaging is how you communicate what you do, but more specifically, why it's important to your ideal customer and how it's going to benefit them. 

And most importantly, you want to make sure that every single message that you create, one, talks about the problem that they're experiencing so that they know that you're going to help them solve that problem…

...and two, the benefit. 

It's not just, "I'm going to help you solve this problem." It's that by solving this problem, you will be able to...

Really focus on this extension!

P.S. A great place to gain clarity on your Brand Messaging and how to market it is inside of The Brandmerry Academy. Learn more and sign up before the end of 2020 here >>

Want to watch the full training? Watch below. This video was recorded as part of Mondays With Michelle which airs every Monday at 4 pm CST.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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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 2021 Brandmerry Gift Guide

THE 2021 Brandmerry Gift Guide:
Support small businesses this Holiday

**This guide has been updated for the 2021 Giving Season.

If you’re like me this Holiday season you want to support as many small businesses as possible.

Maybe it’s the crazy year we’ve endured.

Maybe it’s the desire to be more meaningful with our gift-giving and impact.

Maybe it’s the fact you don’t want to go to any stores.

Whatever, the reason I’m right there with you and decided to put together the first-ever 2021 Brandmerry Gift Guide.

I’ve hand-selected 10 small businesses to share in this year’s gift guide.

The founders of these businesses are part of the Brandmerry Community and are here to expand their branding and marketing so they can reach more people.

It’s an honor to support them through my work and share their work with you in 2021.

When doing your Holiday shopping please consider buying from a member of the Brandmerry community or supporting a local small business.

Cosmetic + Skin Care

SOUL SAFARI NATURALS

Plant-based all natural moisturizing body butter. Made with happiness and smiles for all humankind.

THEIR STORY. “I was a nurse for 23 years and health and wellness is my passion. I am drawn to nature and natural derived ingredients. I began researching and making my own skin care products with all natural butters and oils as a hobby. I shared my creations with family and friends and they felt like they were getting a gift and it lifted their spirits. Soul Safari Naturals began to spread a little joy and happiness at a time when we truly needed it.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCT: Grapefruit Lime Body Butter

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $20 - $30

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: December 14 (free shipping if on mailing list)

Juniperus Herbals

Juniperus Herbals is a holistic, nature-based skincare brand that integrates modern scientific research with synergistic plant-powered formulations to support your skin goals at each stage of life. 

THEIR STORY. “I was studying herbalism and started making my own remedies. I wanted safe skincare products that are planet, and people-friendly, rooted in the people-plant relationship. I am a mother to a beautiful 4-year-old named Juniper (the inspiration behind the name Juniperus herbals), a teacher by trade, an ecologist at heart, an herbalist by practice, and a business owner to fuel my passions and creativity. Everything I have accomplished so far has been started from the bottom, from self-study learning the power of plants, how to formulate effective natural products, to website design sprinkled with a tad of coding, and now marketing.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCTS: Daily Skincare Ritual

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $10 - $90

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: December 10

Home + Decor

Rosella Woodworks

Rosella Woodworks creates handcrafted wood serving boards, cutting boards, and shelves to bring more warmth and natural beauty into your home from your table to your decor.

THEIR STORY. “My husband began making wood furniture for our home because he wanted to try something new and make things we weren't finding elsewhere at the same quality. Then, this year we were separated for a few months at the beginning of the pandemic as Tyler is a firefighter / paramedic for our local city and we wanted to keep our family as safe as possible since he was transporting patients frequently. During that time, he had space to dream up how to take this woodworking craft, that was also a creative outlet, and make it something more. He started working with large hardwood slabs from local mills and loved the results, making a beautiful artist desk for our house. That quickly turned into more with various cutting and serving boards that showed off the natural grain and beauty of the wood he worked with. We hope these pieces become something special that families can treasure in their homes for quite some time, that inspires them to cook more and sit down for great conversation at their dinner tables with a beautiful meal.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCTS: Live Edge Cutting Board

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $35 - $150

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: December 10 (only available in the U.S.)

FarmHouse Signs & Co.

Handmade wood signs and home decor.
Creating happy homes, one sign at a time!

THEIR STORY. “It all started with a with one sign... Back in 2014, I made a sign as a gift for my nephew. I was proud of it and flattered when people started asking me to make them a sign, but never really thought it would amount too much. But then I started thinking... what if I did start a business? With the support of my husband and family, I decided to take the leap and start Farmhouse Signs. Using my home and garage as my workspace and spent the next four years raising three kids on a crazy little farm and cranking out signs. When an adorable storefront came up for rent in 2018 I went all in and opened Farmhouse Signs & Co. Now, I not only feature my handmade signs, but a variety of home decor and accessories. I'm still surprised and grateful everyday that people want to buy my signs. I put a little piece of my heart in each one just for you!”

SUGGESTED PRODUCTS: Handmade Signs

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $10 - $150

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: Most items ship same day

CCTimmerman Art

CCTimmerman Art aims to spread joy through all things watercolor art and paper goods.

BRAND STORY. “I left my elementary art teaching job to became a stay at home mom after having my second baby in December 2019. Although it’s my favorite thing watching them grow everyday, it left me with a personal and creative void. I had a desire to contribute financially to my family, and also continue to create. I started my business CCTimmerman Art in July 2020 combining my love for painting and design. My mission is to provide women with unique, beautiful, and colorful stationery allowing them to spread joy and cheer.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCTS: Heart Note Card Set

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $3 - $20

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: Standard Shipping

Pritchard & Market

Wooden wick candles with cocoa apricot creme wax for the candle lover who wants something different; a relaxing crackling experience with wonderful luxury fragrances for a reasonable price.

BRAND STORY. “I began P&M as just a returning hobby because I was terminated from my job. I needed something to take my mind off of finding work but relaxed me. I love chemistry and i loved the idea of the different fragrances and products I could develop. I knew I had a great product when I made some for my mother for Christmas and she thought I purchased them from the store. That was a beautiful feeling. I want to share my joy and happiness with others.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCTS: Egyptian Linen and Lavender Buds candle

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $22 +

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: December 15

Books

Macario's Scepter

Macario's Scepter is a fast-paced pirate fantasy story featuring an unlikely Chosen One, an infamous pirate captain, and a treasure-hunting nun in a world of magic and monsters. We all need to escape the craziness of the world (and the cold!) so there's no better way than to dive into a page-turning read.

THEIR STORY. “I'm a single-mom, die-hard Marvel fan, and a woman who gets to tell stories for a living. I wrote my first story when I was in a 3rd grade and writing has been my passion ever since. Now I want to help women find their escape, their strength, and their sense of humor through storytelling.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCT: Macario’s Scepter

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $4.99 for the ebook; $9.99 for the paperback

SHIPPING DEADLINE: no deadline

Positively Creative
Book and AFFIRMATION CARD DECK

Harness the magic of a positive mindset for joyful creative living, tap into your forces of strength, courage, and self-belief so you can formulate a positive creativity mindset. This book and affirmation deck will inspire you to release your limiting stories and pivot out of your negative thinking so you can climb your way toward joyful creative living.

BRAND STORY. “I am a writing coach and editor who works with writers invested in their creative journeys but struggle with issues such as imposter syndrome, lack of focus, and writer's block. I teach story development as well as mindset techniques so they can pursue their writing journeys with joy and confidence, and transform their dreams to reality.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCT: Positively Creative Card Deck

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $8.99 - $28.99

SHIPPING DEADLINE: Digital download or 1 week for deck

Accessories

LACONIC

Minimalist statement jewelry to express your true self everyday. Embrace the true nature and power of jewelry; express yourself and tell your story through the act of wearing jewels. Laconic; to express using few or little words.

BRAND STORY. “Laconic was born from my desire to express myself creatively through the craft of Goldsmithing. My journey to jewellery design has been instinctive; I’ve always had an enthusiasm for design and enjoyed drawing from a young age. This led me to studying at Grays School of Art where I discovered the 3 Dimensional Design course, which encompassed ceramics, glass and jewellery. I felt like I’d found the perfect fit as this combined my love of drawing with my interest in design. Experimenting with the materials and bringing ideas to life —plus using my hands as the tools for creation — was such an exciting experience. It still is! Choosing to specialise in jewellery, I moved to Belgium and spent 6 months studying their Jewellery Design course. This is where my eyes were opened to the world of contemporary jewellery and also how I became struck with wanderlust! Arriving back to the UK, I graduated in 2010, going on to spend 10 years in the jewellery industry, including experience in retail and as a bench jeweller, repairing jewellery. This experience in the commercial industry gave me a lightbulb moment. With my background in design, I knew there was an opportunity for you to have something more original and well-crafted, with a story to tell. I always feel that jewellery is an easy way to instantly update any outfit. And for me, this is so much easier than playing around with fashion styles to express myself more freely. I've never been a fan of overly feminine jewellery and aim to create pieces which are bold and minimal but with maximum impact.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCT: Valley Half Hoops

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: £25 - £320

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: Last Orders for UK December 18 and International December 4

Snickerdoodle Knits

Snickerdoodle Knits provides cozy, practical, and trendy hand knit winter accessories for women and children. I keep your family warm and cozy (without looking old-fashioned) in the chilly months and seasons.

BRAND STORY. “Just six months after graduating with high standing in an engineering degree, I found myself jobless in a small college town with minimal career opportunities. I was also unenthusiastic about my line of work and desperate for a creative outlet. That’s when I decided to turn my newly rediscovered passion for knitting into my new career. What started as knitting for craft fairs out of our tiny on-campus apartment in Wyoming has evolved into knitting and designing full-time from our home in North Carolina. My greatest joy is found in creating products that you LOVE and love to wear. What makes Snickerdoodle Knits special is the passion & enthusiasm that's kindled in my cozy knitter's heart and transferred to you in the form of warm, cozy knitwear for your family.”

SUGGESTED PRODUCT: Mittens and Fringe Cowls

PRODUCT PRICE RANGE: $7.50 - $60

HOLIDAY SHIPPING DEADLINE: December 14th. Gift wrapping options are available, and all products ship for free.

P.S. Please consider sharing this guide with your friends and family and help support small businesses this Holiday Season.

Are we connected on Instagram? No? Well lady what’s happening here we’ve got to fix that. Come hang out with me on my favorite social media platform. Follow for inspiration and send me a DM to know we’re connected.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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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.

What is Emotional Branding and How to Use It Effectively in 2021

What is Emotional Branding and How to Use It Effectively in 2021

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

INTRO

I stumbled upon emotional branding when I started my business back in 2016. 

I started my business with zero knowledge of building an online business. I had a background in public relations and communications, so you could say I knew a little bit about marketing, I knew a little bit about blogging, but I in no way knew how to actually brand myself online. 

So I dove into the whole process, did it all wrong for months and then did it again. And it was during the do-it-again part, I discovered more about emotional branding and the power of storytelling.

I fell in love and watched over the next few months as it completely transformed my business. In just one year I went from $0 to a 6-figure cash business.

And everything I teach today through my programs is rooted in storytelling and emotional branding, two elements that fit hand in hand.

Because when we come from the place of, “I want my audience to feel X, Y, and Z,” it allows us to choose all of the things that we use in our marketing and our promotion in alignment with those feelings. 

On today’s blog, I’m going to give you the tools to build a business around this same concept - emotional branding!

If you prefer to watch the content of this blog, you can scroll down and watch the full video.

What is Emotional Branding?

Emotional Branding is the art of communicating with your audience on a deeper, more personal level. It amplifies this idea of building relationships, which is what marketing truly is. 

The end goal when marketing your business (which is just the art of amplifying your brand and attracting the right people) is relationship building.

And how do you know what types of content to create to build those relationships, if you don’t fully understand your audience?

This is why an integral piece of emotional branding and relationship marketing is knowing your audience.

By understanding your audience you can make decisions that connect deeply with their struggles, challenges and obstacles they’re facing and the goals and desires they are working towards and use that in your marketing.

And one more note on relationship marketing. 

As consumers, we are bombarded with messages every day and we know as consumers that we're going to resonate with the ones that make us feel something, that stir something inside of us, that motivate us and make us feel a sense of belonging. This is the art of great branding.

Understanding how you want your audience to feel impacts the aesthetics of your brand; your logo, your font, your colors, your copy, the language that you're using in your copy, in your content, the stories that you're choosing, the messaging that you're using when you're on a live video, your website and even your products and services.

Emotional branding impacts every single aspect of your business.

The Benefits of Emotional Branding

A study from Harvard found that 90% of purchase decisions are made subconsciously. 

This proves that the reason we buy is based not on the logistics we know about a product, but rather the interactions we’ve had that lead us to that brand and product/service. It comes down to the know, like and trust factor of a brand and how we feel the brand will solve our problem.

And as I mentioned in last week’s blog, when it comes to selling we always focus our energy on the sales conversation or the moment someone says, "I would like to buy your product," but that's not actually the buying process. The buying process is happening long before they decide to purchase or they put their credit card down, it's happening in those interactions with your brand.

So if the reason we invest in someone or something comes down to how that person, that product, that business, that brand ultimately makes us feel, wouldn’t you want to make sure you’re connecting on this level with your potential client?

I bet you do!

And it doesn’t stop there with the purchase. In fact, an area that many small business owners neglect is thinking about how they are continuing the art of emotional branding throughout the customer journey.

Yes, we need to start having real conversations about the customer journey and customer lifetime value.

When we start our businesses, it’s all about making money and with good reason. However, this mindset can keep us playing small as we continue to grow our business. Once we get those initial clients in the door what happens? How do we keep them engaged?

This is where emotional branding comes in because emotional branding has been proven to increase customer lifetime value and retention. When you build a deep connection with your audience from the start and continue to deliver on your mission, values and promise, you’re creating a fan for life.

And this is how you build a sustainable business!

Emotional Branding in Your Aesthetics

One of the first things we think of when it comes to branding is aesthetics. I get it, it’s so fun to think about your colors, fonts, logo, elements and more as a way to share your vision with the world.

But, the truth is small business owners and entrepreneurs are going about this completely backward!

One of the pieces in my signature branding course You! Branded, is determining the base of your brand through emotion and then using that to choose the aesthetics of your brand.

Visuals are some of the first parts of our brand that our audience sees and can be the difference between someone stopping mid scroll or not. We process visuals faster than text so understanding your brand and how to share that visually is essential.

How much more of an advantage would you have in your industry if these visuals were chosen with intention and focused on building an emotional connection with your audience? LIGHT YEARS ahead of others in your industry!

But, small business owners jump into their aesthetics too soon and without this groundwork. When you jump into the logo, color, those different things right away, you're going to sit there and you're gonna spin your wheels and it's gonna be really challenging, it's gonna take a lot of time, or you’re going to hire a designer that doesn’t fully grasp your vision.

But, when you start with understanding the emotional side of your brand and then choose those pieces, it happens way faster.

Choosing your fonts: Certain fonts really play up different emotions. Here’s a graphic sharing the different emotions associated with various types of fonts.

Let's say you’re a wedding photographer and you’re selecting a script font. If your ideal customer is an elegant bride and your package is for a high-end wedding with a price tag to match, you’re going to choose a completely different font and feel than a photographer who wants to attract a bohemian bride who wants to elope in the mountains.

Choosing fonts is a great way to make people feel something instantly without you having to say anything. 

Choosing your colors. Color psychology is one of my favorite things to study and has been used in branding for decades. 

Selecting your brand colors has to be about more than just, “I like this color, it’s my favorite color,” it has to be about your audience and how you want them to feel.

For instance, red is a power color, it signifies power, bold, and taking a stance.
Blue is very calming and yellow is joy. 

You want to take this into consideration when choosing the colors of your brand!

Your elements. Things like your logo and photos are also heavily impacted by emotion. One of my favorite things to invest in is brand photography, in my opinion, it’s one of the best investments.

And when you go to a photographer and say, "These are my brand emotions, this is how I want someone to feel when they stumble on my social media feed, when they land on my website. Can you help me do that?"  they are going to be so excited!

Having that information before hiring support will make sure that the end product is on brand and in alignment with what you want your audience to feel.

Choosing Your Emotions

When you're choosing your emotions I want you to think about aspirational branding.

It’s not about where your audience is now, but rather where your audience wants to be.

How does your audience want to feel? 
What does your audience want to experience? 

You can connect with them and where they are now through your copy and content, but that initial reaction, the visuals of your brand NEED to be what they are working towards, their desires.

Emotional Branding in Your Content

The aesthetics of your brand won’t change weekly, but your content will.

Once you set a strong foundation and choose your design elements you can rest easy knowing you don’t need to update those often. A refresh every once in a while is nice, but an overhaul is not necessary, especially when you follow my Build a Better Brand Method.

But that weekly content you’re creating will be ongoing and should also be rooted in the emotions of your brand. When it comes to writing content, I call this method emotionally-charged copy.

Emotionally-charged copy is the idea that you are connecting with your audience on a deep emotional level through your content, through your copy, and using language specifically for the.

This is why it’s crucial that you take the time to do the ideal client work.

When you are doing the ideal client work, you want to identify:

• the current pain or struggles your audience is facing

• the obstacles standing in their way

• the pleasures they want to experience

• their desires and goals that they have, both short-term and long-term

• understanding what makes them excited and what they look forward to

• what makes them frustrated and sad

Knowing these pieces and more will help you create copy that speaks clearly and emotionally to your audience.

At the end of the day, humans want to be seen, heard and understood and speaking to those pain and pleasure points through your content will do just that.

An example of emotionally-charged copy would be, "Have you ever felt like you worked all freaking day, staring at your to-do list, slowly checking off the boxes, but at the end of the day, you realize that you were no further along in building your business?" 

This type of copy is much more specific and emotionally motivating than just saying, "Does it feel like you're constantly growing your business?" 

When you can understand your audience and then speak to them on an emotional level, using language that is emotionally charged, it makes a difference, it could be the difference in an ad converting, it could be the difference in attracting the right person to your offer, it could be the difference between no money and $6,000 in your business.

COPY AND MESSAGING MATTER!

Brand Storytelling and Emotional Branding

Okay, let us wrap this up by talking about one final thing, my favorite thing, and that is storytelling and emotional branding.

These two things are like peanut butter and jelly, they're branding best friends.

This is what I’m obsessed with and teach all of my clients.

When we hear or read a story, we feel something inside, even if we haven't lived that exact same story, it's in the language, it's in the art of storytelling, and it’s happening inside our brains with the release of dopamine. This release makes stories 22x more memorable than content without storytelling aspects.

In addition to this awesome release of dopamine, storytelling helps with persuasion.

Aristotle stated that the three keys to persuasion are Ethos, Pathos and Logos. Take me back to college, am I right?!

And each of these pieces helps with persuading someone to take action, aka buy your product. Logos is the logistical side, which is important, but as we chatted above it’s not the reason people make a purchase.

Ethos and Pathos are where the money is at. Ethos is about showcasing your credibility and authority and Pathos is about empathy - both of these elements can be communicated beautifully through storytelling.

Through storytelling, you showcase authority by giving value to your audience. Understanding your audience, understanding what they need, giving them value through your storytelling, through your content, is important as a business owner. 

By understanding your audience you can also use storytelling to show empathy, connecting to their pain, pleasures and desires. These can be stories from your life and journey, fictional stories that paint a picture of what is possible, and/or your client’s stories.

CONCLUSION

To recap, when it comes to emotional branding the first thing you need to do is understand how you want your audience to feel, then you need to choose the aesthetics that showcase that.

Then you use those key emotions and information from your ideal client research to build the visual representation of your brand, i.e. the aesthetics.

From there you begin to create the copy, those really, really emotionally charged messages on social media, via email, on Pinterest, on your blog, on video, wherever it is that you're showing up, you create that content for your audience.

And that’s the secret, if there’s a secret when it comes to being a business owner I’m convinced it’s the power of emotional branding. Yet, it’s underutilized by so many online small business owners. 

As you head into 2021 and beyond, I encourage you to activate this emotional branding component, activate these storytelling pieces so that you can build your business and a thriving community of ideal customers.

A great place to start is by watching my free Build a Better Brand class here.

P.S. You’re invited to watch the Build a Better Brand Method class to learn how to build a brand built on an emotion that connects deeply with your audience. Sign up here.

Watch the full video training below. This video is part of my weekly show Mondays With Michelle at 4 pm CST on Facebook and Instagram.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

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LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

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MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

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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.