Brand identity represents your brand to the world. Who are you? What do you offer? Why do you do what you do? What are your values? From the logo to the latest post on Facebook, every element that comes from the brand contributes to building its identity.
So you can imagine how important brand identity is! To understand it even better, here are 5 great reasons to define your brand identity:
1. To differentiate the brand
With a well-defined brand identity, there is no risk of being confused with your competitors or mistaking your industry or line of business. Your voice is unique and all your content and products are recognizable.
If you define your identity well, it will remain consistent across all channels. All your company’s strategies will inevitably abide by the brand identity. For example, if one of your company’s values is respecting the environment, everything must be executed with this value in mind: from the style guide, to speeches, to every new product that is created. Everything will reflect this value and therefore the identity of your brand.
3. For a positive brand image
In order for the public to have a positive image of your brand, they need to understand your brand and its mission. This way, they can feel an attachment to your brand. With a strong identity, carefully considered and executed, their opinion will be positive!
The more recognizable your content and products are, the more the public will recognize them and become aware of your brand. That’s what we call brand awareness. And the more well-known you are, the better!
5. For more sales
As a direct result of our previous point, you will inevitably make more sales. If more people know about your brand, that means there are more potential buyers out there. These consumers are more likely to become ambassadors and tell others about your brand who will also buy. It’s that simple!
In conclusion…
Defining your brand identity is a great idea. Don’t be afraid to spend a long time on it so that you can be sure that it corresponds to your company and the message that you want to convey to the world.
Today’s consumers are increasingly informed and autonomous in their purchasing decisions. They search online to find information about the products and services they wish to buy. That’s why companies need to adapt their marketing strategy to meet these new behaviors. Inbound marketing is an increasingly popular approach to meeting these needs.
The inbound marketing approach
Inbound marketing is a marketing method that aims to attract potential customers by offering them relevant and useful content. This approach focuses on creating quality content that attracts people interested in the product or service on offer. The aim is to establish a relationship of trust with potential customers, who will then turn into loyal customers.
Inbound marketing is based on four key steps:
1. Attract
The first step in inbound marketing is to attract potential customers by creating quality content. This content can take many forms, such as blog posts, videos, white papers, webinars and so on. It must be relevant and useful to the people the company wants to attract.
2. Convert
Once potential customers have been attracted to the company’s content, the second step is to convert them into leads. This can be done by offering them additional content in exchange for their contact details, such as a newsletter, a more detailed white paper, or a free trial of the product or service on offer.
3. Close
The third stage of inbound marketing is to close sales by converting leads into customers. To do this, the company must propose offers tailored to the needs of potential customers, using segmentation or scoring tools, for example, to identify the most qualified leads.
4. Retain
The final step in inbound marketing is to retain customers by nurturing a long-term relationship of trust. This can be achieved by offering regular, high-quality content, efficient customer service, or exclusive offers for loyal customers.
The benefits of inbound marketing
Inbound marketing has many advantages for companies. First of all, this approach is less intrusive than traditional marketing methods. Potential customers are not bombarded with invasive advertising, but rather come to the company on their own.
What’s more, inbound marketing is more effective at generating quality leads. People who are interested in the company’s content are more likely to become loyal customers.
Finally, inbound marketing is more cost-effective than traditional marketing methods. Creating quality content can be expensive, but it’s more effective in the long term than traditional advertising.
Conclusion
Inbound marketing is an innovative and effective approach for companies wishing to adapt to new consumer behaviors. By creating high-quality content, companies can attract potential customers and build long-term, trusting relationships.
Ultimately, inbound marketing helps generate quality leads and build customer loyalty, while being less intrusive and more cost-effective than traditional marketing methods. If you’re looking to improve your marketing strategy, inbound marketing is an approach you should seriously consider.
This year, optimizing content for search is top of mind for businesses everywhere. Of course, search has been key to success on the Internet for more than 20 years. But as just about everything went online, getting discovered in search results has taken on a new importance. What are the SEO trends to know in 2021?
But first…
In case you missed it, check out our look at the top SEO trends in 2020. Learn about voice search, the no-click challenge and more. All caught up? Read on for three ways to prepare for the future of search.
2021 Search trends for business
Back to basics
The number one rule for 2021 is to focus on the fundamentals. Despite entire industries built around tiny changes to the way search works, simple optimizations are still easy and effective. They may not be new, but these strategies are the starting point for any good SEO effort. For example, make sure that you associate each piece of content with appropriate keywords. Then, double check that those keywords appear in the content’s title, description and text.
While this idea has always been the heart of SEO, few would have imagined it to be a major trend in 2021. However, the Covid-19 pandemic forced businesses to move everything online—and revealed that many were neglecting search basics. All the more reason to set aside the fancy stuff this year and review your content’s keywords. Or to put it another way, don’t let an oversight stop your content from being found in search.
TIP: You can add or update your publications’ title and description on Calaméo in just a few clicks.
UX factor
Although the basics should come first in 2021, that doesn’t mean SEO trends are standing still. One major announcement from Google made it clear that it’s time for businesses to get serious about user experience. Also known as UX, this aspect of digital design includes the interfaces and structures that allow people to interact with websites. Overall, good UX makes it easier to do things like placing an order or contacting support online.
And now, improving your site’s UX can have a big impact on its visibility in search. Just like loading speed and mobile display in past years, UX factors will soon affect search results. According to Google, content quality still matters most. But the pages to beat will be the ones with great content and great experience. The bottom line? Starting in 2021, UX should be part of your business’s SEO strategy.
Analytics overhaul
Last but not least, there’s a new reporting tool in town for anyone following their content’s views. More specifically, businesses are looking at Google Analytics 4: an updated version of the data tool used by millions of sites. GA4 will eventually replace Universal Analytics, which was first released in 2012. First, however, businesses need to consider how and when they will want to make the switch.
In addition to technical changes, Google Analytics 4 offers fresh ways to understand how people use search to visit your site. That may mean adapting your existing methods for evaluating your content’s performance. Before updating everything, take the time to test the new platform. Be sure to note the metrics you want to watch and connect them to the information you already have. For a smooth transition, a little preparation goes a long way!
Quick conclusions
Now that you’re all caught up on the most important SEO trends for 2021, what’s next? Here are a few action items to help you start taking advantage of these trends today.
Invest now
If it’s been a while since you made SEO a priority, put it back on your to-do list in 2021. You may want to invest in a full SEO audit of your business’s content to get a sense of where things stand. Then, commit the time and resources necessary to optimize the basics. Don’t forget content types other than regular pages: videos, images and publications should all be optimized.
Be patient
Even with a solid investment, the visibility of your business’s content may not grow overnight. Building an audience on search requires consistent content and attention to quality. Create a few benchmarks that you’d like to achieve this year and track your progress, but stay focused on your long-term SEO goals.
Look ahead
Many of the upcoming changes to SEO involve complex projects. For instance, UX improvements can take months to research, design and put in place. As a result, it’s a smart idea to begin planning for these changes now. Decide on a timeline for how your business will tackle big SEO transitions, like moving from Universal Analytics to GA4. That way, you’ll be ready for the SEO trends in 2022!
As always, one simple way to boost your business content’s SEO is with smart digital publishing. You’ll find all the details you need to get started in our Ultimate Guide to Digital Publishing. Or see for yourself how easy it is to do even more with your professional content! Create your free account on Calaméo today.
READ: Create unique digital publications in 3 steps
TIP: You can add or update your publications’ title and description on Calaméo 
