BRANDING FOR STARTUPS- RAJIVE DHAVAN

INDEX➤ DEFINITIONS

➤ COMMON MYTHS

➤ BASIC HACKS

➤ TIMELINE

➤ KEY MARKETING CHANNELS

➤ TECHNICAL INFORMATION

➤ CONCLUSION

WHAT IS BRANDING?

BRANDING IS THE PROCESS INVOLVED IN CREATING A UNIQUE NAME & IMAGE FOR A

PRODUCT / SERVICE IN THE CUSTOMERS’ MIND, MAINLY THROUGH ADVERTISING.

WHAT IS ADVERTISING?

ADVERTISING IS BRINGING A PRODUCT (OR SERVICE) TO THE ATTENTION OF POTENTIAL AND CURRENT CUSTOMERS. ADVERTISING IS TYPICALLY DONE ONLINE AND OFFLINE.

WHAT IS MARKETING?

MARKETING IS EVERY SINGLE THING THAT YOU DO TO GET OR KEEP A CUSTOMER. THIS

INCLUDES COMMUNICATION, RESEARCH & PRODUCT / SERVICE DEVELOPMENT AS WELL.

WHAT IS MY DEFINITION?

SPREADING AWARENESS ABOUT THIS SESSION IS ADVERTISING. MAKING THIS SESSION

INTERESTING IS BRANDING. SHARING MY BUSINESS CARDS IN THE END IS MARKETING!

GOOD TO KNOW INFORMATION

COMMON MYTHS➤ YOU CAN CUT COSTS BY CHOOSING NOT TO

INVEST IN ADVERTISING OR BRANDING.

➤ ALL THESE INITIATIVES NEED A LOT OF MONEY.

➤ STARTUPS NEED TO FOCUS ON THE PRODUCT & NOT THE ADVERTISING.

➤ PEOPLE DON’T OPT FOR YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE BECAUSE OF BRANDING.

➤ A STARTUP CAN’T REALLY DEFINE ITS BRAND BECAUSE IT IS WORK-IN-PROGRESS.

BASIC HACKS➤ WHATEVER IS YOUR QUESTION, INTERESTING

ORIGINAL CONTENT IS THE ANSWER!

➤ BEING SHAMELESSLY RUTHLESS TO PROMOTE YOUR PRODUCT IS THE KEY.

➤ INVEST LITTLE MONEY BUT A LOT MORE TIME TO CREATE YOUR BRAND.

➤ UNDERSTAND & USE THE POWER OF DIGITAL MEDIA.

➤ EVALUATE & RE-STRATEGISE.

➤ INCONSISTENCY IS WORSE THAN NOT ADVERTISING.

TWO ROUTES1. IDENTIFY A BRANDING PARTNER

(FREELANCER OR AGENCY). BUT LOOK FOR THE ONE WHO CONNECTS WITH YOUR ZEAL.

2. DO-IT-YOURSELF (DIY) TOOLS CAN COME IN HANDY. BUT DON’T APE IT BLINDLY.

LET’S BUILD FROM SCRATCH

TIMELINE➤ ONCE THE IDEA IS THROUGH, WE ALL START WITH THE NAME. BUT WHAT’S

A GOOD NAME?THE ONE THAT DEFINES THE BUSINESS OR THE ONE THAT DOESN’T?

➤ THEN COMES THE BRAND IDENTITY. THIS IS AN AREA WHERE YOU SHOULD NOT CUT CORNERS. A LOGO IS ONE OF YOUR EARLY TOUCH POINTS WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS.

➤ KEEPING YOUR BUSINESS LINE IN MIND, ADD A DASH OF UNIQUENESS HERE AND THERE. THIS WILL REFLECT EFFORTS & CREATIVITY.

➤ NOW IS THE TIME FOR INITIAL COMMUNICATION – ONLINE & PRINT. STATE YOUR OBJECTIVE FIRST. THE FIRST COMMUNICATION OF THE BRAND SHOULD LEAVE SOMETHING FOR IMAGINATION.

➤ SAY ONE SINGLE THING WITH THE POWER OF 10. NOT OTHER WAY AROUND.

➤ ALLOCATE BUDGETS FOR ADVERTISING & INVEST IN CONTENT HENCEFORTH.

➤ KEEP EVALUATING & NOTING RETURNS.

➤ STICK TO YOUR STRENGTHS AND CHOOSE CHANNELS THAT HAVE SHOWN TRACTION.

TIMELINE (CONTD…)

CHANNELS YOU CAN’T IGNORE

➤ E-MAIL MARKETING – EMAIL CONVERSION RATES ARE THREE TIMES HIGHER THAN SOCIAL MEDIA, WITH A 17% HIGHER VALUE IN THE CONVERSION.

➤ BLOGS – USE FREE WORD PRESS BLOG INTEGRATED TO YOUR WEBSITE. GET A PROFESSIONAL TO WRITE THE BLOGS AS PER THE RULES. OR LEARN IT YOURSELF!

➤ GOOGLE ADWORDS – SLIGHTLY MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THE ABOVE-MENTIONED OPTIONS, BUT IT’S STILL CHEAPER AND EFFECTIVE THAN SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING.

➤ FACEBOOK – THOUGH NOTHING IS FREE ON THIS CHANNEL ANYMORE. IF USED SMARTLY, IT CAN BE BENEFICIAL.

➤ GOOGLE PLUS – THIS IS PURELY FOR IMPROVING YOUR WEBSITE’S SEARCH VISIBILITY.

KEY MARKETING CHANNELS

HERE’S YOUR SAVIOUR

➤ TAKE ALL THE .CRD OR .AI FILE FORMATS & NAME OF FONTS USED FOR YOUR LOGO.

➤ ADD GOOGLE ANALYTICS TO YOUR WEBSITE & REVIEW IT REGULARLY.

➤ KEEP ALL THE WEBSITE HOSTING CREDENTIALS WITH YOURSELF.

➤ DO NOT OPT FOR SHORTCUTS OR BLACK-HAT TOOLS.

➤ FOCUS ON ENGAGEMENT. NOT JUST LIKES.

➤ NEVER DELETE ANY CRITICISM ON SOCIAL MEDIA. ALWAYS REPLY TO IT.

➤ DON’T JUST PICKUP ANY IMAGE FROM GOOGLE & USE IT. OPT FOR ROYALTY-FREE IMAGES OR LICENSED IMAGES ONLY.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

BRANDS ARE LIKE HUMANS. UNDERSTAND THEM. DON’T ASSUME THEM!

- RAJIVE DHAVAN

WWW.RAJIVEDHAVAN.COM