Written by: Sara Royf, Dani Sarusi, and Yael Reinhardt-Matsliah
As a small business owner, your potential clients need to understand four key things:
How you can help them
Why you are the right choice for them
Why you’re qualified to help them
What steps they need to take in order to work with you
Many seasoned business owners don’t have this foundation in place, and as a result, they’re leaving money on the table. This is all part of your brand and is communicated through several channels, such as LinkedIn, and your website. You’ve probably heard experts say:
“You should get active on LinkedIn”
“You need a website”
“You should invest in brand photos”
Each of these investments will help you get your best-fit client’s attention, but it’s hard to know the value of each one.
That’s why we pulled together this resource - so you can make informed decisions and make the best investment for your business.
Do I really need to spend money on my branding?
First of all, we’d like to clarify one thing. Branding is not just logos, colors, and fonts. Think of branding as an emotional outcome that results from creating a cohesive and consistent message that resonates with your audience and builds trust and loyalty over time.
Brand positioning, identity, and messaging should always be one of the first investments a small business owner makes. But, because it’s so easy to have a business without investing a dime in your online presence, many business owners never consult with a professional on their brand.
You can take a selfie, update your LinkedIn profile, write posts and send direct messages, and even build and maintain a website on your own. However, the DIY approach doesn’t typically look or feel professional.
For example:
When your headshot isn’t clear and zoomed in, your clients struggle to build trust with you.
When your messaging is unclear, your audience doesn’t realize you’re the perfect person to solve their problem.
When your website is a mess, your potential clients aren’t sure how to get in touch with you.
If you’ve been DIY-ing your small business and you’re ready to grow, this would be the point to get professional help so you can attract and convert more clients more easily.
What’s the impact of having these services?
When your brand and messaging match the professional you are, the following often happens:
Customers “get” what you do and how you can help them
You feel more clarity in explaining what you do
You close sales calls easier
OK, I’m convinced I need to invest in my branding. What should I do next?
There are three foundational elements we recommend you start with. Each one works together to support the others.
An optimized LinkedIn profile:
Your ideal clients are hanging out on LinkedIn and coming to your profile. But once they land on your profile, they aren’t booking calls or joining your email list.
You don’t have to struggle through updating your profile alone.
When you hire a professional to optimize your profile, you get improved messaging and a clear profile that works hard for you.
This service works best for small business owner who already have more than 500 connections and a completed profile.
You can learn more about optimizing your LinkedIn profile with Sara Royf here.
A well-designed website:
You’re building connections, sharing valuable content, and (hopefully) generating leads from LinkedIn, but are you giving those potential clients the professional experience they deserve?
Multiple links for scheduling, portfolios, and services can create a disjointed and confusing experience for your potential customers.
A custom, one-page website can be the perfect extension of your LinkedIn profile, giving you:
A central hub for your brand, where you consolidate all your offerings under one roof, making it easy for leads to find what they need.
Enhanced credibility, so you establish yourself as a trusted expert with a professional website that presents you as the expert you are.
A seamless client journey that guides potential clients through a clear path to working with you - and encourages them to take action.
And as your business evolves, your website can too. Unlike static one-page sites, your WordPress site is built for limitless growth.
You can learn more about a custom-built one-page website with Yael Reinhardt-Matsliah here.
Strategic brand photos:
Your ideal clients are checking out your LinkedIn profile and looking at your website. But, stock photos, selfies and outdated headshots aren’t going to be able to build the trust and credibility you need to convert lurkers into buyers.
When you hire a professional brand photographer you’ll have a variety of on-brand images that represent the professional work you do, build trust, and help your audience to connect more deeply with you because your images will exude your personality.
Professional brand photography works best for small business owners who have a solid understanding of what they need the photos for (eg. website design, LinkedIn posts, and LinkedIn bio photo).
You can learn more about getting strategic photos with Dani Sarusi here.
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