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In our previous essay, we talked about your product as the brand. While this ultimately helps identify your product as yours when seen by itself, the container should complement, if not match, the contents. You could make the best damn baked beans in the world, but if the can is a generic white with the word “BEANS” printed in blue Helvetica, all it will do is force the customer to reach over for that can of Heinz’s. Your containers are a) your brand page and b) your product listings. How you design and write them is as much a part of your brand as the products they promote. THINKING INSIDE THE BOX “The enemy of art is the absence of […]

In the sprawling marketplace of Merch by Amazon (MBA), your brand needs to shout louder than a New Yorker hailing a cab in rush hour. So, buckle up! We’re about to take a deep dive into the art of using your own MBA product to brand itself, from strategic logo placement to creating a style so distinct, it’s recognizable from a mile away. We’re not just slapping designs on products; we’re building a brand empire. STRATEGIC LOGO/BRAND PLACEMENT ON MBA PRODUCTS The apparel and fashion worlds are full of examples where the designer’s name or the company’s brand are incorporated into the product’s design. Since the days of Calvin Klein jeans, designers no longer hide behind their work, but feature […]

Social media. The blessing and curse of marketers. Back in the day, your promotion went in one direction: toward the customer. The only way the customer talked back was through the wallet. If they bought, they liked you. If they didn’t, then they didn’t. Now, the customer talks back. And boy howdy do they. Your brand on social media is a complex mixture of planning, content generation and babysitting, um, I mean, customer service. Like everything else you do as an independent entrepreneur, you’re going to need to juggle many elements to successfully tailor your social media to represent your brand. VISUAL BRANDING ON SOCIAL MEDIA It’s the first thing potential customers see. Think of your social media as window […]

After three weeks focusing on branding, now we’re going to focus on marketing. And it important to make the distinction between the two. Branding is like your window display, and marketing is like handing out flyers on the corner directing people to your store. They’re different, but they are intrinsically linked. Your branding may be spectacular, but unless your marketing is successful, no-one will see it; if your marketing is successful but your branding sucks, don’t count on a return visit. The good thing about being an MBA entrepreneur is the many built-in advantages Amazon offers. So, even if you have no capital or man-hours to devote to conventional marketing, learn how to take advantage of all the opportunities Amazon […]

If this article seems familiar at first glance, it’s because we only just discussed social media for branding your MBA business a few weeks ago. Branding and marketing are two completely difference disciplines, of course. We’re going to assume that by now you’ve optimized your social media branding and are ready to go out and get eyeballs. You can do this, of course, but like all the other elements of this endeavor, the devil is in the details. And the speed and volume of social media activity and platforms necessitate attention to every detail. CREATING ENGAGING PRODUCT IMAGERY AND VIDEO FOR SOCIAL MEDIA Again, we drove the need for compelling social media visuals in the branding article. Now you need […]