You started your business to make a positive difference in the lives of others, to do something that you feel will genuinely make the world a better place and because you want to fulfill your soul’s purpose.  Am I right?

That’s great!  But why isn’t anyone paying attention?

Why?  Because you haven’t spent enough time developing your brand.

If you want your audience to be able to connect with you on a deep, soulful level so that you can build a strong relationship, earn their trust and ultimately turn them into paying customers, then it’s absolutely essential to develop the foundation of your business – your brand.

A great brand is how to get your business to stand out from what others in your industry are doing.  You’ll no longer have to stress out about the competition or even worry about comparing yourself anymore.  Doesn’t that sound amazing!

Here are 8 tips on building a brand your audience will completely fall in love with.

#1  Clearly define your brand’s mission and vision.

The mission is why and how your business is going to serve your customers.  The vision is where you see the business going in the future.  Make sure you’re very clear on what your business stands for.  Your vision and mission are the heart, soul and pulse of your brand.  Your audience will feed off that energy.  And an audience that believes what you believe will want nothing more than to attach themselves to your brand.

#2 Position your brand to align with your values.

Knowing how to position your brand helps your audience identify with it.  Make sure that you are highlighting  your shared beliefs between you and your audience.  This gives your audience a reason to stand with you on something that feels aligned with their values and beliefs.

#3 Infuse your values into the essence of your brand.

Your audience should be utterly clear on your values, and more important that you be consistent on how you communicate them in every aspect of your business.  From how you show up on your different social platforms, to your customer experience and even how you interact with your partners – like bookkeepers, accountants, staff, etc.  It all matters.  The minute you veer away from your brand’s core values is when you begin to lose trust and loyalty from your audience.

#4  Develop your brand voice.

Be clear on how you want to deliver your message and make sure the tone is consistent with your overall branding.  Ask yourself if you want to speak to your audience as an expert or as a friend, professionally or casually.  Your brand voice sets the stage for how your audience will identify with you because of how your tone makes them feel.

#5  Get clear on who your target audience is.

Don’t make the mistake many entrepreneurs make and build a brand based on your own personal preference.  Your brand is not for you.  Your brand is for your audience.  Everything you do, say, create, and design has to be for them.  They’re the ones that need to resonate with it, feel it, believe in it.  When you know who your audience is and only do things you know they will love, you’re helping them feel like they’re being seen.  And that’s all any of us really want, isn’t it?  To be seen?

#7  Get clear on your brand message.

Your message should be consistent and easy to understand.  Don’t over complicate it.  When you know what you stand for, what problems you solve and for whom, you will know exactly how to deliver your message in a way that resonates most with your audience.

#8  Create a consistent brand design.

Remember – this brand is not for you, it’s for your audience.  So, make sure that whatever you create is consistent and feels like something your audience will resonate with.  Your visuals should be something that flows with your messaging to lift and elevate your vision, mission and values.  Everything about your visuals should feel the same across all platforms.  This is how your audience will begin to recognize and remember your brand.

Here’s the most important takeaway from this post –

A business without a brand is almost like having a body without a soul.  A body walks, talks, eats, and sleeps.  It has a head, arms and legs.  And even though bodies come in all different shapes, sizes and colors, what makes your body truly different from mine is what’s on the inside.  What you feel, think, and believe.  Your soul.

What makes my business different from other businesses that do what I do?  My brand.  My brand is the soul of my business.  People either want to work with me because they like what I have to say or they don’t.  And the people that don’t are not meant for me.

And like it or not, this is literally the same story for everyone single business out there.

Now, get to work on building your brand.  I promise, your audience will love you for it!

I wanna know, what makes your brand stand out from other’s in your industry?  I’d love for you to share in the comments below.