Your brand is your baby. You want to raise it well so that it goes on to become a productive member of society. You want it to be well-liked and accepted in different social circles. Your brand is an extension of you and your business so it has to be “on point” all of the time. However, sometimes perfection is difficult to achieve, especially if it is causing you to inadvertently hurt your brand. In order to avoid doing this, be aware of the following factors:

 

1. A Bad Reputation

The most obvious thing that can hurt your brand is having a bad reputation. Whether it be on social media, the internet, or just word-of-mouth, you do not want to have a negative connotation associated with your business. With technology and transparency the way that it now is in our world, anyone can look up and find a review of many, if not all, businesses out there. Many brands also opt to reach a wider audience through Google, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. While this is usually a good thing, it also allows customers to review your business and this is usually open for all to see. Consumers tend to judge businesses solely on these reviews, therefore, a business with multiple negative comments will be much worse off than one with glowing accolades.  

Furthermore, you want to look after your customers, even the unhappy ones! Failure to do so can have a hugely detrimental impact on your business. Unhappy customers tend to bad-mouth businesses, causing them to potentially lose new, or even existing, customers. Clients are more likely to associate with brands that they like and trust. This also goes with being socially responsible. For example, with the growing concern of the environment, many businesses have opted to be more environmentally friendly, which is more popular for those who share such beliefs. In that sense, your social responsibility is a plus. Overall, your brand’s reputation is important, so you should take care to try and make it as positive as you can.

 

2. No Consideration for Feedback

A good leader knows that in order to be the best, he or she has to be able to listen as well as he or she can talk. A good business also recognises that to be great, you have to take into consideration the wants and needs of your customers. If you do not allow for feedback from your customers, you are losing out on the opportunity to make your brand better and more customer-friendly. It is super easy to connect to your audiences with social media. And, customers are used to having businesses respond to them, so if you do not bother talking to your audience, you may lose out on whole demographics. A good business listens to complaints and takes care of their customers. Turning a blind eye to your customers is terrible for your brand.

 

3. Poor Website Design

Like your brand, your website is an extension of you and your business. Bad websites can turn off customers from your brand. If the website is too convoluted and unusable, that potential client or customer will simply click back and find a brand with a good website. A website that is too complex or busy, lacks navigation aids, has small print, or has too much text, is highly likely to turn off its customers. The website is the first impression in many cases, so make sure it is a positive one. If you want feedback on your website, then allow for opportunities for feedback. It will only make your website, and your brand, better.

4. Low-Quality Product

If you make a bad product, your brand will not be associated with quality. Even if you make one type of product that is bad, that negativity will follow your entire product. While your brand is all the visual aspects of the business, your product is the core of your enterprise. If that core is of sub-par, then the brand is just going to sink. You will be pushed back to the far reaches of google results and your client base will shrivel. Develop high-quality product, and they will come. High-quality products will also invoke loyalty in your customers, and loyalty is the goal. Loyal customers are paying customers and ones that can help bring people to your brand.

 

5. Low-Quality Content

Similar to the low-quality product, low-quality content is also hurtful to your brand. Low-quality video-based content includes poor sound quality, bad lighting, and poor technical production. For text-based content, low quality consists of duplicating your content, stuffing your content with keywords, and making it irrelevant to consumers. Also, make sure all content is grammatically correct. The worst thing that you can do for your professional business image is to be illiterate. Remember, quality is more important than quantity, especially in this content marketing age.

 

6. Lack of Planning

You may be tempted to just let your enterprise grow on its own, but a lack of planning can hurt your brand. Always have some sort of business schedule in mind to stay in control. There are many risks associated with business, so planning ahead will be fruitful. It is a good idea to give some forethought into how you would deal with a recession for instance, or a slow period. Develop an outline of procedures for a brand relaunching. Set weekly goals for yourself. Establish key milestones. Being proactive will only do you good.

If you believe that you’re hurting your brand image and don’t know where you to start, get in touch with the team at Grow Digital Marketing! Our team of experts can help you turn that image around.

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