Decluttering Your Advertising

We have reached a tipping point after being constantly bombarded with emails, texts, news, and information buzzing our phones, computers, and TVs. We, as consumers, are spread as thin as ever when it comes to paying attention. It is hard for one to concentrate with all this visual and audible clutter. In the era of the Marie Kondo method of decluttering our homes, we also need to declutter our advertising so that the viewer pays attention.

As a designer, it is my job to coach clients to be part of the decluttering solution. A consumer can be dissuaded to do business with a company based upon their advertising. When a message is too loud, wordy, busy, and confusing, a potential customer will walk away. People don’t have time to figure out what you’re trying to say, so it needs to be concise.

Step 1: Clear Content

Consumers want to know information fast. You are competing for their time, battling against all the other noise. Tell them who you are, what you stand for, and how you can you make their lives easier. Your messaging must have direction to entice the potential buyer.

Step 2: Less Talk

I find a lot of clients feel compelled to over-explain. Hiring a copywriter can help you create clear and concise messaging. Consumers don’t want to get into the minutia of your product; they want the basics and will seek out more information if it applies to them. Simplify your message by presenting the problem and the solution as briefly as possible. You want to give the consumer direction to gather more information from your website. Clients and potential buyers today are resourceful—they will find you if they’re interested.

Step 3: Bold Design

Fortunately for advertisers, good design doesn’t always mean expensive design. Marketers don’t need to break the bank on photography. All it means is that your advertising needs to be visually interesting. If a photo is applicable and striking, by all means, use it. But, do not underestimate the strength of simple typography and the importance of white space, as it can provide the break in the noise that consumers need. With graphic use of color, line, text, and shape, you can create a stunning design that is more than affordable.

When you tie clear messaging together with bold design, you present your customer the most concise, decluttered version of your company. It will attract and keep clientele, which is the big goal for any advertising campaign.

Addie Mirabella is the owner of Mirabella Design Studio.

The Digital Intersection of Personal and Professional Brands

Recently, the topic I’ve been asked to speak on most is the intersection of professional and personal brand in social media spaces. I believe I’m uniquely equipped to discuss this topic as I straddle two generations: depending on what year is used to define the break, I’m either the youngest Gen Xer out there or the oldest Millennial in existence. And what a blessing to identify with both! 

My Gen X brethren were the last generation taught not to mix business with personal. This generation was told “don’t be friends with the people you work with,” “don’t share too much of your personal life,” and my very favorite, “leave home at the door when you walk into the office.”

When it comes to social media, Gen Xers tend to share all work or all personal, but not often both. Some go so far as to have separate accounts for their personal connections and professional networks. However, in today’s world, our networks have blended. The person we connect with on Instagram because we share a passion for yoga might lead to that next professional opportunity. By trying to keep these aspects of ourselves separate, we’re likely missing out on valuable, meaningful connections.

Speaking from my Millennial perspective, many Millennials don’t even see a distinction between personal and professional brand. As the ‘YOLO’ generation, they question everything and want people to accept them exactly how they are. Millennials gravitate to those people, communities, and businesses who embrace the diversity and ‘live life for today’ ethos that defines them. Millennials have been known to overshare, over-post, and over-expose themselves on social channels.

So how do we, no matter our generational alignment, embrace our professional and personal brands, while not exposing every aspect of our life in the digital sphere? It takes thought, intention, and practice.

I’m going to be honest, up until about three years ago, I was one of those people who thought I could separate work and personal. By day I’m an administrator for executive education programming at a state university’s business school. In my free time, I am a competitive ballroom dancer, foodie, and global traveler. How in the world could these two sides of my brand ever align online? 

At first, I decided to keep my Facebook page as a personal space, only accepting friend requests from people who were somehow related to my personal brand. LinkedIn was my space for professional connections. But what happened when my professional connections wanted to connect on Facebook? Ignore them? I knew that couldn’t possibly be good for business. I scrapped the personal page and started a new one, only posting about business and higher education…no one really needed to know about that other stuff anyway. That lasted about a year. I found little value personally from my digital connections, and by the lack of meaningful interactions on my page, my connections weren’t seeing much value from me either.

It was only when I stopped trying to separate myself in digital spaces that I saw a boost in both my personal and professional brands. First, I put thought into what I was trying to accomplish with my digital channels. My first goal was to stay connected and cultivate professional and personal relationships. In many cases, there was an overlap—and that was perfectly acceptable! I didn’t have to leave “home at the door” when I entered a digital space. My second goal was to share about my dancing, travels, and food experiences with anyone who was interested.    

I considered the social channels that would best help me accomplish these goals and created profiles that would further define my purpose for being on that channel. (Think mini-mission statements for social channels.) 

LinkedIn: A purely business/education-focused channel. This is the space I dedicate to my career and conversations that are valuable in that area of my life.

Profile:  “As an education and business professional with many years of experience in offering thoughtful and effective contributions across diverse industries, my goal is to create opportunities to support the growth and achievement of all individuals that I have the pleasure of working with.”

Instagram: My passion-driven platform. It is a public account; as I stated, I want to share and connect with anyone who's interested.

Profile:  “I dance. I travel. I eat. Passions are everything.”

Facebook: A space where the overlap happens. I share highlights about higher education, business, dance, travel, and food.

Profile: “Higher-ed enthusiast. Ballroom dancer. Foodie. Full of wanderlust and zeal for experiencing life.”

Now that I had put some thought into my social platforms, I was ready for the second step in my process, intention. When I have something to share, I take a step back and think about where it is most appropriate to post. There is intention behind every post I make. For example, I recently won Administrative Staff of the Year for my college. I posted this accolade on LinkedIn and Facebook, but not Instagram. It wouldn’t resonate with my followers on Instagram, many of whom I don’t know personally and who connected with me because we share an affinity for things outside of business.

Finally, practice. In reality, I don’t LOVE social media. I truly want to live in the moment, but I have consciously made a choice to represent myself in various ways with intention, and I must practice it.  Not daily, but regularly. Enough to stay in the conversation. Enough to learn about what’s important to others in my network. Enough to be engaged. 

Once I started implementing thought, intention, and practice into my social channels, I found my conversations both on and offline became richer and more interconnected. People who were part of my “business” network were interested in ballroom dancing, and we were able to have deeper conversations at a networking event; I might have even introduced a few to a dance studio so they could take lessons after a busy day at the office. I also quickly learned that I might be able to support people on my personal side, as many of them aspired to attain additional education at the university. Had I kept these worlds separate, I would never have had these moments of beautiful cross-pollination.  

My method isn’t perfect, but, as a busy professional with a variety of interests, focusing my social conversations through thought, intention, and regular practice has strongly shaped my personal and professional brands and benefited all my relationships, on and offline.

Nikkole Liesse is the Executive Director of UNLV Lee Business School Office of Online and Executive Education.

Brand Story as Differentiation

Cornell University defines brand as “a set of perceptions and images that represent a company, product, or service.“ In a previous blog, we’ve discussed the fact that some people think brand is comprised of a logo. A logo is definitely part of an organization’s brand, but many other factors are also included. This means brand voice, values, differentiators, target audience, positioning, value proposition, and imagery—including logo and typeset.

Bottom line: your brand is your story.

So, how can I make my brand stand out?

Differentiation is how we share our unique value proposition in a way that sets us apart. Leveraging your brand story with potential attributes, benefits, and images that make clients want to buy your product or use your service is important. Your specific value and how your differences bring solutions to your prospective clients will make your offer compelling.

Let’s explore an example of differentiation using Ritz-Carlton. This upscale hotel chain conjures themes of world-class customer service, smartly decorated spaces, and an air of luxury. When discussed at a recent marketing presentation, attendees also used words including “expensive” and “out of my price range.” However, the key differentiation between the Ritz-Carlton and other luxe hotels is the fact that employees are not only allowed—they are encouraged—to do whatever possible to make the guests’ stay the best. This excellent customer experience is what sets the Ritz-Carlton apart globally.

As a boutique marketing firm, we’ve had to further hone in on what our differentiation is. One of our three key offers is something we call “strategic storytelling.” Simply put, this is what we do best. Clients have told us they appreciate how we can quickly understand their businesses and then share their brand stories via the right channels to the target audience.

“We partnered with Shan to revitalize an existing campaign. While I was initially drawn to her branding and knew it would be a great fit for our messaging, I was impressed by her communication skills and quick understanding of my business. I would recommend Shan Bates, LLC to any business with strategic marketing needs.” — Lori Wilkinson, VP, Distinct Benefits and Brown & Brown Insurance of Nevada, Inc.

 
The Old Adage of WIIFM

We know strategic storytelling is a big part of the value we bring our customers. But you can also use it within your business. How can you leverage this if you’re not a storytelling fantastic? You must be absolutely clear about who you are and why that matters to customers. The concept of WIIFM—or “what’s in it for me”—is very important when you’re messaging your brand. What is the story, and why does it matter for your target audience?

When a prospective customer visits your website, he or she must be able to tell immediately what your business offers and why it’s of value to him or her. If your value proposition is “below the fold” or not apparent at first glance, it’s a missed opportunity to share your brand story. If your social media channels don’t educate about your differentiation, it isn’t an ideal part of a cohesive message.

We can help you take your brand story and strategically share it with the right audience in a way that is meaningful to them. This is what sets us apart; let us help you do the same with your business. It’s a win/win.