If your like me, an independent designer trying to grow your brand and your fan base, it can seem like some what of an impossible task. So I have research the internet and have come up with several sure fire ways that you can market your brand and yield results.
1. Create and Utilize a Brand Website
A central website where you can base all your activities around and build your brand image. Time and time again, many brands start selling on a marketplace and believe that’s enough. Many use Shopify and Etsy which is good if your making sales. But having your own branded website give your brand notoriety and also gives customers a more personal touch. It also gives the access to your branding such as social media and blogs. Now you have “Multichannel Selling”.
2. Be Active On Social Media
That doesn’t mean just promoting your brand. Be personal, talk about your day, interact with people and post. Be seen as a person first.
- When you’re seen by more people, you grow your following.
- When that following sees interesting content, they trust.
- When they trust, they visit your site.
- When they like what they see on your site, they buy.
You have less than 7 seconds to capture someone’s attention when they first land on your web store. Make sure people will remember your brand after only being on your web page for 10 seconds.
Make sure you use creative yet witty copywriting, custom packaging, professional quality photos and always have an “About Us” section.
3. Blog
By providing an educational and informative blog, you’re building trust with your blog visitors. Be sure to include industry related topics and tips along with information on your brand and brand related events.
“Blogs provide visibility for any website by being easier to find on Google. The more high-quality blog posts you drop, the better your organic SEO will be.“
“Once you add keyword research in to find hot topics – you can really supercharge your traffic for the exact type of people you want.“
-Kiran from Sydney-based streetwear label.-
4. Sell A Look And Be A Stylist Of Your Brand
Looks show off your outfit in a natural environment. Looks invoke an emotional response from buyers. They convey a ‘feel’ or a ‘vibe’ by putting the products in an environment where they take centre stage. A well-designed look excites a viewer and can gently usher them toward the checkout.
Never use overtly sexualized photos of men or women in your brand. The only thing that should be on display is your clothing. Avoid plain backgrounds, use natural environments where people would go in your design. Photos as I mentioned should be high quality. View some high fashion mags to get an idea of what the photos should be.
5. Email Campaigns
Email marketing is a direct path into the face of people who have expressed and interest in your brand.
“Email marketing gives fashion brands a tremendous opportunity to create personalised customer experiences focused on the needs of individual customers. The email format facilitates fostering relationships with subscribers that drives conversion and sales.”
-Maria Wachal From Freshmail-
Build your email list. Have a discount for those who enter their email on your site before purchase and gather business cards and emails when you are a vendor or attend events.
6. Track Your Data
These numbers give you an insight into what’s working and what’s not.
“Using data in the running of your business means you’re no longer relying on instinct to make decisions about your business, and it can reveal insights about your business that you might never have considered before,” says Sarah from Neatly.io.
Facebook and Google and Instagram offer Analytics. Here are some ways to use your numbers.
- Content: Which blogs or pages have had the most traffic.
- Source: Did that traffic come from social media, and an external blog post or organically from Google?
- Medium: If from social media, was it a scheduled tweet, a direct message or an influencers post? If it was from Google, what was the search term?
- Country: Being a European company, a lot of traffic comes to us from non-English countries. Do we need to translate our products or content into other languages?
Look at your data. If it points to Facebook being your main driver of traffic, you clearly know where to invest your energy.
7. Press and PR
Good media coverage starts by figuring out where your ideal customers spend their time online. What blogs and magazines they read, which social media networks they frequent and who influences their decision making.
Another big step is figuring out your Unique Selling Point, or USP. This is essentially the reason that someone should buy something from your brand, rather than your competitors.
One all these things have been established, Kristin from Creative Development Agency says it’s time to reach out to outlets with a well-crafted pitch.
Once you know who your core customer is and what makes your brand newsworthy, then you’ll be able to draft a pitch that resonates with a specific magazine or blog’s readership. Keep your pitch limited to fewer than 400 words, including five to seven benefit-based bullet points, a short bio, and a link to a look-book. Never send attachments.
Kristen has gone so far as creating a free course on how designers can get media coverage for free. The Squash the Competition with PR. The FemFounder.coChief Blogger put this together to see smaller brands take advantage of opportunities that usually go unseen.
Good PR can help produce more leads, website traffic, email subscribers, and sales. Additionally, it can help position someone as an expert to help book speaking engagements, land larger media opportunities, and more.
Lastly remember nothing happens overnight. Be consistent and don’t aim too high. Slowly grow your brand and your marketing campaign and you will do just fine.
Blue Candies 
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