Conducting an Internal Brand Review

Step back and take a fresh look at your brand strategy and ask yourself these questions

Hello friends,?

Recently, I had a conversation with a friend who owns a company that has seen tremendous growth over the last few years. They’ve been expanding into new markets, adding new products and sales are up. But lately, he has noticed an emerging trend where sales are leveling off and they are not getting the traffic they used to get. He asked me what I thought and I suggested he revisit his brand strategy. In my opinion, every two years, companies should take a step back and take a fresh look at their brand strategy.

Ask yourself the following questions:

1. Is my target audience still the same people that are my best customers?
2. Is my value proposition still relevant to my audience and something I can defend in the marketplace?
3. Is my brand messaging resonating with my customers?

If it's been a few years since you developed your brand strategy, set aside some time before the new year starts to review it. Check out this Scale with Strategy LinkedIn show, where we talked about tips to create an effective brand strategy. Give it a listen for a quick refresher on what a brand strategy should include before you complete your internal brand review.

In this week’s newsletter, check out some of our favorites from Novella Studio’s recent photo shoot with Whole Harvest,? plus how to reach rural customers and our 28 days of marketing + branding tips.? Enjoy!

Whole Harvest Image Library

Our client Whole Harvest kicked off 2023 with a photo shoot to expand and update their image library. Whole Harvest is a plant-based meal prep company. Their chefs prepare delicious, 100% whole food plant-based meals, then ship them fast to your door. Our recent photo shoot was designed to refresh the photos for their website, social media, and marketing as they update their menu. In addition to shooting the photos, Novella Studio took care of casting the talent and styling. To see more of our photography and other creative work, check out our full portfolio on our website.

How do you reach rural customers with advertising?

According to the USDA, in 2020, 46 million residents were living in rural areas. This makes up about 14 percent of the U.S. population. A typical rural county contained less than 10 percent of the population of a typical urban county in 2020—23,000 people compared with 245,000.

For many advertisers, focusing marketing efforts in urban areas is the main objective. But what if your customers are located in rural areas? Or, what if your company is located in a rural community? Just like in urban and suburban areas, traditional advertising options are not as plentiful as they once were. So what advertising and promotional opportunities exist and which ones are worth the cost???

First on our list are outdoor billboards. Believe it or not, outdoor advertising has been around since 1850. Exterior advertising was first used on street railways. In a rural community where it's likely your geographic area is quite large and your target audience must use an automobile for transportation, outdoor advertising is both cost effective and readily available.?

Newspapers, radio stations and magazines cover local news, schools and community events. Residents and business owners turn to these media outlets for information. Advertising can be targeted by county or town(s).

Rural communities tend to have strong community ties and local partnerships are an excellent way to build awareness. By sponsoring local sports teams, school booster clubs and other community groups, you can get your company’s brand in front of your audience. Look for marketing opportunities before, during and after an event.

If you are targeting a specific audience based on behaviors and you know they can be found in rural areas, streaming platforms and social media ads can be an effective tool. These ads will be based on interests and age.

Lagniappe (a little something extra!) - Our 28 Branding + Marketing Tips from February?

ICYMI – February, with its 28 days, was begging for us to do something special. So, we curated a list of 28 branding + marketing tips and shared them every day for the month of February on our social media channels. Check out the entire list here and make it your goal to put a few of these into action for your brand.

Brand Messaging Framework

A messaging and positioning framework is developed based on a company’s unique-solve for the ideal customer’s pain points. Then, we refine with numerous whiteboard sessions and multiple rounds of reviews. Feeling like your brand messaging is out-of-sync with where your organization has scaled to? Let’s talk!

Work With Us!

"Hi, we're Novella Brandhouse."

Novella Brandhouse is a brand strategy focused, full service ad agency. Our belief is that your brand strategy drives everything! We provide brand strategy, ad campaign development, social media content and marketing strategy to established businesses and second stage businesses that are scaling to 7, 8 and 9 figures. As a WBE-certified firm, we also work with government and higher education organizations to develop brand and marketing campaigns.

Grab a spot on our calendar to schedule a free 30 minute consultation and let’s see how we can work together.