With the proliferation of the internet and social media, the business climate has changed for entrepreneurs starting their own company. With the emergence of various brands across a number of industries, the competition is fierce! No doubt you’ve witnessed the number of pet food and apparel brands that have emerged in the last fifteen years.
Image credit: Entrepreneur.com
It makes logical sense — a small business doesn’t have to depend on the local market anymore to sustain itself. The internet has opened a worldwide audience for its products or services. The internet has not only changed how small businesses do business, but also how it communicates its brand with its customers. With that said, there is a new set of challenges for these small businesses: how can they differentiate their brand in a competitive market?
Branding Isn’t Just for the Big Boys
It’s the quandary many owners of small brands find themselves in. After all, most small brands don’t have the large marketing budget of their big brand counterparts. With the resources of these large brands, spending money on major ad campaigns and public relations efforts go miles in creating brand awareness for the big boys. When you think of major beverage brands like Coca-Cola, you think of everything associated with the company — things such as their logo, national commercial spots, sponsorship efforts during big events like the Olympics, and the like. Those identifiers create an image in your mind that makes you remember their brand promise and position.
While major brands like Coca-Cola can execute major brand awareness campaigns, it doesn’t mean small brands can’t set themselves apart in their own market. In fact, the one thing that can help a small brand is its small size! After all, small brands have the distinct advantage of being in tuned with their customer. This is precisely what keeps customers coming back.
And yes, while we may see and hear about the big brands everywhere, it’s small business that’s growing our jobs. As stated by James Noe, an analyst with financial information company Sageworks:
“While the largest, publicly traded companies often dominate the news headlines, it’s small, privately held companies that drive the bulk of GDP and job creation in the U.S.”
Small brands cannot rely on economies of scale or operational efficiencies to do what the big boys do. However, by thinking big, and focusing on the customer, small brands can do big things.
Learn about EDK’s small business branding services.