Do you have a compelling story to tell? Why should someone become your client and why would that client stay loyal to you?
Do you have a strong service and support team in place? Can you deliver what you promise?
What are your service standards? Do your clients feel well looked after?
Do you have a sound contact and relationship management strategy in place?
Can your clients count on you?
Are you referable?
Are you getting enough of the right type of client?
You can have a great brand but without a solid foundation, you are telling your clients that you can’t deliver on what you promise. Remember, people tell 20 others about the poor experience they have. So by developing a strong foundation and an effective brand strategy, you can enhance business growth. Your clients will want to refer others to you and will be able to tell a story about the great value they receive as a result of working with you.
What’s your personality?
Learning about you is an essential step in the branding process. Start off by making a list of why you think clients like to deal with you. In other words, why did they choose you and why do they stay with you? Examples could be your listening skills, patience or resourcefulness.
Let’s consider Peter Seligman’s situation. Peter owns an independent insurance practice in Toronto, has two assistants and another advisor working with him. Although his business has been successful for many years, Peter decided it was time to take the business to the next level by developing a solid brand. Peter reviewed his personality and what his clients valued and from this exercise, he found three words best summarized his brand personality — knowledge, guidance and caring. Now, those three words have become his slogan.
Brand freebies
Consider developing a mission statement. Make sure your team knows what you promise your clients, and how you deliver that promise. Everyone in your office should present themselves, your business and your promise the same way.
What’s your telephone mannerism like? The phone is often the first level of contact with your clients, and your brand should be communicated from the get go. Whoever answers your phone may not state that your company is about listening, patience and being resourceful, for example, but your receptionist, or whoever answers the phone, must show these brand personalities when dealing with clients.
Next, listen to your voicemail. If your brand personality is about listening, patience and resourcefulness, then you need to set the pace for how you talk. In this case, you would need to be clear (listen), talk slowly (patient) and sound helpful (resourceful).
With your e-mail correspondence, how often is your contact information (signature) included after your message? E-mails are used and seen more than any other touch point with clients these days, so you want to ensure every email you and your team send contains a signature. It makes it easy for your clients to connect with you and it also makes it easy for your clients to forward your contact info to a potential client.
Corporate identity
Ask yourself this question: “Do you want to brand yourself or brand your company?” Either way, the branding must have a distinct corporate identity. If you’re an advisor who has trained clients to talk only to you, your focus may be on branding you. But if your team works closely with your clients, then you may want to brand the business as a whole, under a specific company name.
Branding requires action and consistency. When it’s done right, it’s a great investment. An effective brand takes time, patience and can be done without high costs. The sooner you get started, the more successful you will be in the long term.
What do your best clients value about you and your business?
Do you have a compelling story to tell? Why should someone become your client and why would that client stay loyal to you?
Do you have a strong service and support team in place? Can you deliver what you promise?
What are your service standards? Do your clients feel well looked after?
Do you have a sound contact and relationship management strategy in place?
Can your clients count on you?
Are you referable?
Are you getting enough of the right type of client?
You can have a great brand but without a solid foundation, you are telling your clients that you can’t deliver on what you promise. Remember, people tell 20 others about the poor experience they have. So by developing a strong foundation and an effective brand strategy, you can enhance business growth. Your clients will want to refer others to you and will be able to tell a story about the great value they receive as a result of working with you.
What’s your personality?
Learning about you is an essential step in the branding process. Start off by making a list of why you think clients like to deal with you. In other words, why did they choose you and why do they stay with you? Examples could be your listening skills, patience or resourcefulness.
Let’s consider Peter Seligman’s situation. Peter owns an independent insurance practice in Toronto, has two assistants and another advisor working with him. Although his business has been successful for many years, Peter decided it was time to take the business to the next level by developing a solid brand. Peter reviewed his personality and what his clients valued and from this exercise, he found three words best summarized his brand personality — knowledge, guidance and caring. Now, those three words have become his slogan.
Brand freebies
Consider developing a mission statement. Make sure your team knows what you promise your clients, and how you deliver that promise. Everyone in your office should present themselves, your business and your promise the same way.
What’s your telephone mannerism like? The phone is often the first level of contact with your clients, and your brand should be communicated from the get go. Whoever answers your phone may not state that your company is about listening, patience and being resourceful, for example, but your receptionist, or whoever answers the phone, must show these brand personalities when dealing with clients.
Next, listen to your voicemail. If your brand personality is about listening, patience and resourcefulness, then you need to set the pace for how you talk. In this case, you would need to be clear (listen), talk slowly (patient) and sound helpful (resourceful).
With your e-mail correspondence, how often is your contact information (signature) included after your message? E-mails are used and seen more than any other touch point with clients these days, so you want to ensure every email you and your team send contains a signature. It makes it easy for your clients to connect with you and it also makes it easy for your clients to forward your contact info to a potential client.
Corporate identity
Ask yourself this question: “Do you want to brand yourself or brand your company?” Either way, the branding must have a distinct corporate identity. If you’re an advisor who has trained clients to talk only to you, your focus may be on branding you. But if your team works closely with your clients, then you may want to brand the business as a whole, under a specific company name.
Branding requires action and consistency. When it’s done right, it’s a great investment. An effective brand takes time, patience and can be done without high costs. The sooner you get started, the more successful you will be in the long term.
What do your best clients value about you and your business?
Do you have a compelling story to tell? Why should someone become your client and why would that client stay loyal to you?
Do you have a strong service and support team in place? Can you deliver what you promise?
What are your service standards? Do your clients feel well looked after?
Do you have a sound contact and relationship management strategy in place?
Can your clients count on you?
Are you referable?
Are you getting enough of the right type of client?
You can have a great brand but without a solid foundation, you are telling your clients that you can’t deliver on what you promise. Remember, people tell 20 others about the poor experience they have. So by developing a strong foundation and an effective brand strategy, you can enhance business growth. Your clients will want to refer others to you and will be able to tell a story about the great value they receive as a result of working with you.
What’s your personality?
Learning about you is an essential step in the branding process. Start off by making a list of why you think clients like to deal with you. In other words, why did they choose you and why do they stay with you? Examples could be your listening skills, patience or resourcefulness.
Let’s consider Peter Seligman’s situation. Peter owns an independent insurance practice in Toronto, has two assistants and another advisor working with him. Although his business has been successful for many years, Peter decided it was time to take the business to the next level by developing a solid brand. Peter reviewed his personality and what his clients valued and from this exercise, he found three words best summarized his brand personality — knowledge, guidance and caring. Now, those three words have become his slogan.
Brand freebies
Consider developing a mission statement. Make sure your team knows what you promise your clients, and how you deliver that promise. Everyone in your office should present themselves, your business and your promise the same way.
What’s your telephone mannerism like? The phone is often the first level of contact with your clients, and your brand should be communicated from the get go. Whoever answers your phone may not state that your company is about listening, patience and being resourceful, for example, but your receptionist, or whoever answers the phone, must show these brand personalities when dealing with clients.
Next, listen to your voicemail. If your brand personality is about listening, patience and resourcefulness, then you need to set the pace for how you talk. In this case, you would need to be clear (listen), talk slowly (patient) and sound helpful (resourceful).
With your e-mail correspondence, how often is your contact information (signature) included after your message? E-mails are used and seen more than any other touch point with clients these days, so you want to ensure every email you and your team send contains a signature. It makes it easy for your clients to connect with you and it also makes it easy for your clients to forward your contact info to a potential client.
Corporate identity
Ask yourself this question: “Do you want to brand yourself or brand your company?” Either way, the branding must have a distinct corporate identity. If you’re an advisor who has trained clients to talk only to you, your focus may be on branding you. But if your team works closely with your clients, then you may want to brand the business as a whole, under a specific company name.
Branding requires action and consistency. When it’s done right, it’s a great investment. An effective brand takes time, patience and can be done without high costs. The sooner you get started, the more successful you will be in the long term.
Have you defined your ideal client profile — those clients you do your best work with?
Do you understand your best clients?
What do your best clients value about you and your business?
Do you have a compelling story to tell? Why should someone become your client and why would that client stay loyal to you?
Do you have a strong service and support team in place? Can you deliver what you promise?
What are your service standards? Do your clients feel well looked after?
Do you have a sound contact and relationship management strategy in place?
Can your clients count on you?
Are you referable?
Are you getting enough of the right type of client?
You can have a great brand but without a solid foundation, you are telling your clients that you can’t deliver on what you promise. Remember, people tell 20 others about the poor experience they have. So by developing a strong foundation and an effective brand strategy, you can enhance business growth. Your clients will want to refer others to you and will be able to tell a story about the great value they receive as a result of working with you.
What’s your personality?
Learning about you is an essential step in the branding process. Start off by making a list of why you think clients like to deal with you. In other words, why did they choose you and why do they stay with you? Examples could be your listening skills, patience or resourcefulness.
Let’s consider Peter Seligman’s situation. Peter owns an independent insurance practice in Toronto, has two assistants and another advisor working with him. Although his business has been successful for many years, Peter decided it was time to take the business to the next level by developing a solid brand. Peter reviewed his personality and what his clients valued and from this exercise, he found three words best summarized his brand personality — knowledge, guidance and caring. Now, those three words have become his slogan.
Brand freebies
Consider developing a mission statement. Make sure your team knows what you promise your clients, and how you deliver that promise. Everyone in your office should present themselves, your business and your promise the same way.
What’s your telephone mannerism like? The phone is often the first level of contact with your clients, and your brand should be communicated from the get go. Whoever answers your phone may not state that your company is about listening, patience and being resourceful, for example, but your receptionist, or whoever answers the phone, must show these brand personalities when dealing with clients.
Next, listen to your voicemail. If your brand personality is about listening, patience and resourcefulness, then you need to set the pace for how you talk. In this case, you would need to be clear (listen), talk slowly (patient) and sound helpful (resourceful).
With your e-mail correspondence, how often is your contact information (signature) included after your message? E-mails are used and seen more than any other touch point with clients these days, so you want to ensure every email you and your team send contains a signature. It makes it easy for your clients to connect with you and it also makes it easy for your clients to forward your contact info to a potential client.
Corporate identity
Ask yourself this question: “Do you want to brand yourself or brand your company?” Either way, the branding must have a distinct corporate identity. If you’re an advisor who has trained clients to talk only to you, your focus may be on branding you. But if your team works closely with your clients, then you may want to brand the business as a whole, under a specific company name.
Branding requires action and consistency. When it’s done right, it’s a great investment. An effective brand takes time, patience and can be done without high costs. The sooner you get started, the more successful you will be in the long term.
(April 2008) Whether you are a one-person operation or manage a team of five, you cannot afford to ignore branding your practice. Here are some ideas to brand successfully — and affordably.
The first step is to take a look at how your business is currently designed and see if you have the following in place.
Have you defined your ideal client profile — those clients you do your best work with?
Do you understand your best clients?
What do your best clients value about you and your business?
Do you have a compelling story to tell? Why should someone become your client and why would that client stay loyal to you?
Do you have a strong service and support team in place? Can you deliver what you promise?
What are your service standards? Do your clients feel well looked after?
Do you have a sound contact and relationship management strategy in place?
Can your clients count on you?
Are you referable?
Are you getting enough of the right type of client?
You can have a great brand but without a solid foundation, you are telling your clients that you can’t deliver on what you promise. Remember, people tell 20 others about the poor experience they have. So by developing a strong foundation and an effective brand strategy, you can enhance business growth. Your clients will want to refer others to you and will be able to tell a story about the great value they receive as a result of working with you.
What’s your personality?
Learning about you is an essential step in the branding process. Start off by making a list of why you think clients like to deal with you. In other words, why did they choose you and why do they stay with you? Examples could be your listening skills, patience or resourcefulness.
Let’s consider Peter Seligman’s situation. Peter owns an independent insurance practice in Toronto, has two assistants and another advisor working with him. Although his business has been successful for many years, Peter decided it was time to take the business to the next level by developing a solid brand. Peter reviewed his personality and what his clients valued and from this exercise, he found three words best summarized his brand personality — knowledge, guidance and caring. Now, those three words have become his slogan.
Brand freebies
Consider developing a mission statement. Make sure your team knows what you promise your clients, and how you deliver that promise. Everyone in your office should present themselves, your business and your promise the same way.
What’s your telephone mannerism like? The phone is often the first level of contact with your clients, and your brand should be communicated from the get go. Whoever answers your phone may not state that your company is about listening, patience and being resourceful, for example, but your receptionist, or whoever answers the phone, must show these brand personalities when dealing with clients.
Next, listen to your voicemail. If your brand personality is about listening, patience and resourcefulness, then you need to set the pace for how you talk. In this case, you would need to be clear (listen), talk slowly (patient) and sound helpful (resourceful).
With your e-mail correspondence, how often is your contact information (signature) included after your message? E-mails are used and seen more than any other touch point with clients these days, so you want to ensure every email you and your team send contains a signature. It makes it easy for your clients to connect with you and it also makes it easy for your clients to forward your contact info to a potential client.
Corporate identity
Ask yourself this question: “Do you want to brand yourself or brand your company?” Either way, the branding must have a distinct corporate identity. If you’re an advisor who has trained clients to talk only to you, your focus may be on branding you. But if your team works closely with your clients, then you may want to brand the business as a whole, under a specific company name.
Branding requires action and consistency. When it’s done right, it’s a great investment. An effective brand takes time, patience and can be done without high costs. The sooner you get started, the more successful you will be in the long term.
(April 2008) Whether you are a one-person operation or manage a team of five, you cannot afford to ignore branding your practice. Here are some ideas to brand successfully — and affordably.
The first step is to take a look at how your business is currently designed and see if you have the following in place.
Have you defined your ideal client profile — those clients you do your best work with?
Do you understand your best clients?
What do your best clients value about you and your business?
Do you have a compelling story to tell? Why should someone become your client and why would that client stay loyal to you?
Do you have a strong service and support team in place? Can you deliver what you promise?
What are your service standards? Do your clients feel well looked after?
Do you have a sound contact and relationship management strategy in place?
Can your clients count on you?
Are you referable?
Are you getting enough of the right type of client?
You can have a great brand but without a solid foundation, you are telling your clients that you can’t deliver on what you promise. Remember, people tell 20 others about the poor experience they have. So by developing a strong foundation and an effective brand strategy, you can enhance business growth. Your clients will want to refer others to you and will be able to tell a story about the great value they receive as a result of working with you.
What’s your personality?
Learning about you is an essential step in the branding process. Start off by making a list of why you think clients like to deal with you. In other words, why did they choose you and why do they stay with you? Examples could be your listening skills, patience or resourcefulness.
Let’s consider Peter Seligman’s situation. Peter owns an independent insurance practice in Toronto, has two assistants and another advisor working with him. Although his business has been successful for many years, Peter decided it was time to take the business to the next level by developing a solid brand. Peter reviewed his personality and what his clients valued and from this exercise, he found three words best summarized his brand personality — knowledge, guidance and caring. Now, those three words have become his slogan.
Brand freebies
Consider developing a mission statement. Make sure your team knows what you promise your clients, and how you deliver that promise. Everyone in your office should present themselves, your business and your promise the same way.
What’s your telephone mannerism like? The phone is often the first level of contact with your clients, and your brand should be communicated from the get go. Whoever answers your phone may not state that your company is about listening, patience and being resourceful, for example, but your receptionist, or whoever answers the phone, must show these brand personalities when dealing with clients.
Next, listen to your voicemail. If your brand personality is about listening, patience and resourcefulness, then you need to set the pace for how you talk. In this case, you would need to be clear (listen), talk slowly (patient) and sound helpful (resourceful).
With your e-mail correspondence, how often is your contact information (signature) included after your message? E-mails are used and seen more than any other touch point with clients these days, so you want to ensure every email you and your team send contains a signature. It makes it easy for your clients to connect with you and it also makes it easy for your clients to forward your contact info to a potential client.
Corporate identity
Ask yourself this question: “Do you want to brand yourself or brand your company?” Either way, the branding must have a distinct corporate identity. If you’re an advisor who has trained clients to talk only to you, your focus may be on branding you. But if your team works closely with your clients, then you may want to brand the business as a whole, under a specific company name.
Branding requires action and consistency. When it’s done right, it’s a great investment. An effective brand takes time, patience and can be done without high costs. The sooner you get started, the more successful you will be in the long term.
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(April 2008) Whether you are a one-person operation or manage a team of five, you cannot afford to ignore branding your practice. Here are some ideas to brand successfully — and affordably.
