Branding: Tap resources at hand

A. Building a brand can be overwhelming for small business owners when line items for marketing compete with payroll costs. With strategy and keen execution, businesses of all sizes can build a brand without breaking their budgets.

Enlist your customers as consultants 

To create a unique brand that stands apart from the competition, you have to know what your business does best. Instead of hiring a pricy consultant, enlist your customers. Have an open discussion with them regarding how they feel about your business. Ask them what you do best and why they keep coming back. Ask them what you don't do well and how you could improve.

Focus on the customer experience 

Your brand comes to life through the eyes of your customers. Before designing a fancy logo and catchy tagline, your leadership team should sit down and determine what customer experience your brand is trying to convey. Having a clear understanding of how your brand will translate into customer interactions will lead to results.

Encourage your employees to spread the word

People in your company likely have interests and skills other than sales or tech repair. Have you tapped your employees for marketing? For example, if an employee knows how to shoot and edit a video with their smartphone and upload it to YouTube, you could provide how-to videos for your customers.

Creating an authentic brand isn't about spending a lot of money—it's about offering amazing products and services to your customers and finding strategic ways to express what your business is all about. Having a limited budget provides an opportunity for you to get creative—and take more risks.

Lalaina Rabary is the communications and marketing specialist for People for Quality Care. Reach her at lalaina.rabary @vgm.com.