5 Ways to Revitalize Your Brand

Staying fresh and relevant is a constant challenge for any business. A struggling economy doesn’t help much. How do you maintain your growth momentum or possibly kick-start a business experiencing a plateau? The answer is to look at your brand (your business) with fresh eyes. When doing so, you will discover new opportunities to pursue and uncover options you may have never thought you had. Of course, there are countless ways to revitalize a brand, but here are 5 universal strategies that most, if not all, in the children’s business can employ:

1. Find New Consumers

It may sound overly simple, but there are two basic ways to grow your brand. The first is to get your existing consumers to buy more; the second is to find new customers.

To find new customers, sit down with your team, along with a few uninvolved objective people, and have a brainstorming session. I’ll bet you uncover entire groups of consumers you had not thought of before. Think broadly about what you sell and consider your company’s brand essence. Basically, see all the different trees in this forest, instead of just seeing the forest.

For example, say you sell juvenile wall art. You could consider pitching your products to pediatric offices, schools or day care centers. The idea here is to think beyond a child’s bedroom and consider all the possible places where juvenile artwork might be seen or make sense.

2. Discover New Ways to Use Your Product

Going back to those two basic ways to grow your brand; you can grow your brand by getting your existing customers to buy more. How do you get them to buy more? Give them more ways to use your product. This requires looking at your product in a different way or talking to objective consumers who can give you some insights into how your product might be used in different ways.

I saw a great example of this type of thinking at a trade show. Someone saw a carbine hook, used typically in industrial applications, and created a line of them for the children’s category. They were being marketed to moms wanting to attach bags, purses, etc to their stroller. With some minor aesthetic enhancements to the hook, this not only created a new use for an existing product, but also opened up the product to a whole new group of consumers.

3. Tell a Compelling Story About Your Product’s Origins

Many business owners within the children’s category did not set out to be an entrepreneur. Most have interesting stories about the path that led them to be a business owner. People like to hear these stories. They add a human element to your brand. They give insight into your company’s name, its products and other interesting tidbits about the business. Feeling like an insider, armed with this personal information about a business, people feel more connected and thereby more loyal to your brand.

A story I found interesting was that of the launch of TOMS shoes. After a trip to Argentina, founder Blake Mycoskie decided he wanted to help children in need of shoes. He considered making a monetary donation, but decided that starting a footwear company that donates a pair of shoes for every pair sold would be more sustainable and ultimately help more children. While not personally attracted to TOMS shoes, I find myself inclined to purchase them now that I know how they came to be.

4. Look for an Effective Tie-in/Partnership

Finding a partner to work with in a mutually beneficial relationship can help both brands grow. I see it happening more and more these days as celebrities partner with retailers on exclusive lines, or brands partner with other brands on hybrid products or cross promotion. Partnerships, when successfully executed, result in a win-win for everybody involved. Not only is brand exposure increased, but costs can decrease as expenses are shared.

A successful partnership was that of McDonald’s with Disney back in the late 80s. The introduction of a branded toy in the Happy Meal opened up a whole new world of cross promotion. McDonald’s leveraged the pull the Disney brand had with children, while Disney used the thousands of McDonald’s restaurants to promote their current project. To this day, kids’ meals licensed toys are used as a go-to means by companies to promote movies, toy brands and more.

5. Market Around a Cause to Generate Goodwill

People like to feel good about their purchases. If they know that their purchase will benefit a worthy cause, they might be more inclined to buy. This is another opportunity for a win-win situation between a business and a strategic partner; in this case a charity would be that partner. When the chosen charity has a meaningful tie in with the business, it further increases the potential for goodwill to be generated, such as an apparel company donating to a homeless shelter or children’s brand partnering with a children’s charity.

Giving can be done via product like TOMS shoes, a portion of sales, or by donating company resources, such as employees working at an event. However you choose to give, involve the consumer in the effort in whatever way you can. This not only encourages a relationship between your brand and consumers, it helps to communicate your efforts to the market at large.

However you choose to revitalize your brand, remember to think about your business in new and unique ways. Some of the most successful efforts are those that aren’t immediately obvious but certainly make sense when executed. Always try to keep objective people in your circle who can offer you fresh points of view so that you can identify these unique opportunities.

To read other articles in the series, click on the green “Business Sense” at the top of this article.

About Insights Discovered
Penny Redlin is a regular contributor to the “Business Sense” feature on The Giggle Guide™, sharing insights about business planning, effective communications and marketing strategies.

Based in Las Vegas, Nevada, Insights Discovered was founded by Penny Redlin in an effort to share her professional expertise within the children’s product category. The company’s mission is to give every mompreneur an opportunity for success. Insights Discovered exclusively services children’s products brands. The specific industry focus demonstrates a strong dedication to the unique needs of children’s products companies. Insights Discovered offers strategic planning, market research and traditional marketing services.

For more information, visit www.insightsdiscovered.com or call 702.218.5707.