How to Make Your Brand Stand Out | MP 87

What are the benefits of being bold in your branding? How does consistency build trust and familiarity in your audience? Is there an unforgettable true story from your life that you can incorporate into your branding?

In this podcast episode, Sam Carvalho speaks about how to make your brand stand out.

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Originality

Your brand needs to be original. If you mimic a competitor’s brand, your audience will not have a compelling reason to choose you instead of that competitor.

Try to find an angle that is unique to you, develop an image and a voice that are wholly your own.

This is easier said than done, but it is a necessary step if you want to stand out.

Sincerity

Your brand needs to demonstrate a degree of sincerity. If you respond to all your clients on social media with the same copied and pasted corporate response, people are going to see you as a soulless machine that cares only about turning a profit. (Sam Carvalho)

Instead, show your human side. Invest in creating a unique ‘personality’ for your brand that your audience will come to know and trust.

Understanding

The best and most popular brands are the ones that understand their target audience, and they do this by creating a message that is relevant for one target niche.

This will lead to increased interactions with your brand, which will lead to more traffic and conversions.

Make sure you research your target demographics thoroughly and on an ongoing basis, and adjust your wording and approach as needed.

Boldness

In branding, risk often leads to reward.  If you think about the boldest brands that you know, they aren’t afraid to experiment with new techniques or take a stance on controversial issues within the industry. (Sam Carvalho)

Within mental health, controversiality can be difficult to navigate, but being bold and standing out will call attention to your mission, and an audience to your branding.

Boldness can be polarizing but it also encourages loyalty and respect from the people who stick around.

Consistency

If your brand standards are not clearly defined, or you have multiple people executing those standards to varying degrees, you might end up alienating your audience or fading into the background.

The goal is to get your followers to stick around as long as possible. To do that, you need to give them a sense of familiarity and predictability.

Visibility

Try leveraging different opportunities to diversify your strategy.

Consider posting content on external publications to build your reputation, launch a social media strategy, or invest healthily in advertising and promoted materials. You need some medium to promote your messaging.

Value

Brands can stand out by offering more value than their competitors.

Sam’s ultimate branding checklist:

• Do you have a consistent brand style?
• Is your website design amateur or professional?
• Can you confidently say that your content is the best of its kind?
• Do you have a lead magnet(s) that consists of your best work?
• Have you positioned yourself in a unique way that differentiates yourself?
• Have you incorporated your achievements into your business so that people can know, like, and trust you?
• Is it possible for you to create a loving and supportive community?
• What is your personal story and how can you build your business around an unforgettable, authentic story?
• How are you promoting your content/ products/ services?
• Is your brand organized or a mess?
• Is your product the best or just another in the crowd?

Useful links mentioned in this episode:

• Use promo code ‘JOE’ to get three free months to try out TherapyNotes, no strings attached
• Check out the Practice of the Practice branding services
• How to Create a Brand Style Guide | MP 57

Check out these additional resources: