5 Reasons You Should Invest In Branding Your Handmade Products

No, a brand isn't your logo.

It's everything your business is and stands for.

It's who, what, where, why and how your business functions....branding is oh so much more than just a logo. ⁠

Let me tell you something that irritates me to no end...

Want to hear something that absolutely drives me crazy! So there's this YouTube influencer who is using essentially my name (not quite my name) to sell merchandise of all of the major influencers on YouTube...called Bunker Branding. HAH! Ok, I said it.

Years ago I was about 2 seconds away from securing the domain because of my name...however, my brand is not about war...shooting or anything of the sort. You see why I didn't use it.

Well, sadly his name not only is super similar to mine it totally gives people the wrong idea of what branding actually is.

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Branding is not just slapping a half thought out logo or design on a t-shirt.

Branding is researching and crafting a very careful message that stands out from the competition and hones in on why your brand exists and for whom....Branding is the gut message, the experience that your ideal customers buy into. It's not slapping your logo on a t-shirt and calling it a brand.

I can't tell you how long I have wanted to say that.

I might get some backlash about it too. But I don't care. ;) I hope Matt the owner has a sense of humor.

Branding is one of those things that many small businesses forget to do in the beginning and then put off until business is in trouble or they just aren't getting the sales they expected. They start slapping a logo on t-shirts and sharing on social media without any real strategy...and then they realize nothing is sticking. No one wants to buy anything because the story, the guts are missing.

Branding will seriously enhance the value of your products, allow you to command a bigger and higher price of your products and services, and it helps you connect with your people. Your "people", are always more willing to buy branded products even if they are more expensive. Hence why my husband insists on buying Jif peanut butter over anything else. I prefer an organic variety...but not him.⁠ Not that Jif Is expensive but you get the idea.

Branding shouldn’t be seen as another cost counted against your business...it's an investment. If done properly, it will help your business thrive. When you consider the benefits of a well-positioned brand, there is no argument that rebranding is one of the soundest investments you can make.⁠

So, why invest in branding? ⁠

Here are 5 proven returns that will positively impact your business for years and years and years....well, you get the point:⁠
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1. Attract better customers

If you spend some time branding your company you will discover some amazing things about your ideal customers. Things that will rock your world forever. This is the single most important part of branding your business. You have to know your ideal customers. Like, best friend know them. If you want to sell something to someone you have to know why they buy, what frustrates them, what they are looking for in the product, and where they are coming from. Where do they spend their time on the weekends? What brands do they gravitate towards outside of your own?

Knowing your ideal customers will help you create content and build an engaged audience. It will literally help you attract better customers because they feel connected and you can create an authentic relationship with them.

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2. Command a premium price⁠

When was the last time you were at the supermarket and picked up a jar of jam. You could buy the store brand but if you are craving a true mid-western lunch, you know, an authentic PB&J you are going to go for some homemade local jam. You will probably check out all the competition on the shelf and pick the jar that sells you "grandmas old fashioned jam"...cause you wish she was here to make your sandwich too. It's also likely that that jar of jam is double or triple the price of the store jam.

We choose items because we think they are better. Because they are packaged nicely and give us an idea of what it will be like to use it...they sell us the solution. Having a PB&J that was like the one grandma used to make us after school will definitely win out. You see if you brand your products you can charge more. Much much more and people won't bawk.

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3. Get the sale more easily

You don't have to be a salesman when you say, "Our jam is made the way Grandma used to make it" ...you create a feeling and sell the feeling and people connect with it. If you are authentic and you truly make your jam like Grandma makes it you can totally give people that feeling and consistently get the sale.
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4. Reduce marketing costs⁠

Branding makes it easier for your products to be remembered and sought out the next time your customers need your product. Creating a consistent product, staying consistent in your marketing efforts, the way you talk on social media, your visual identity and all of your brand elements start to paint a really strong picture in the minds of your ideal customers.

Eventually you create such a strong connection with them they always seek out your product. And as long as you can be consistent and give them good customer service it's likely you will keep them as a customer.

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5. Boost the value of your company⁠ 🤑

Big brands know the importance of branding. Big brands know the power of emotions and feelings.

EMOTIONS!

Emotions are essential for influencing purchasing decisions and honestly it plays a really big role in how successful you are as a brand.

Think about it…when you are at the grocery store and you are faced with making a decision of what shampoo to get, you use emotion from previous related experiences to decide which bottle of shampoo to buy, or heck what kind of jam am I right?

You set a preference based on emotion, and that my friend influences your buying decision. 

A Loved brand is more than just a brand that people want and the major brands know it.

And if you are able to leverage that and build a brand your ideal customers are willing to trust, they are willing to spend more on it too.

Remember This:‍

The basic definition of a brand strategy it’ a purposeful plan to define what your brand represents from the inside out. We do this through research and analysis, and the process let’s you determine competitive positioning and define you (your work, your message, your visual identity, etc) and it helps you define the best and most authentic way to reach your ideal customers on an emotional level.

Branding is not getting a tshirt with a logo, it’s not your logo, it’s so much more. The hard part of doing this is using the theoretical questions alongside real life data and being true to yourself.

In order to build a epic brand you have to do each element, each part of this section. Each part is important, from your content, design, photography and you have to keep the big picture in perspective. You have to get each part right.

The approach might change from one business to another, however, you have to go through these different understanding to build a really great brand that connects with your ideal customers.

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If you need help building your handmade brand I would love the chance to chat. Feel free to schedule a 10-minute chat.

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