What are the basics of a brand strategy?

Hi Nick, 

I believe it will be a great exercise for you as a start to make a matrix and apply the morphological analysis by Fritz Zwicky. That will give you an opportunity to map all the aspects (vertically) of your business and then draw all the possibilities (horizontally). 

The most important thing is to state your problem clearly and then start filling all the boxes.If you want I am happy to jump on a call with you and show you how to use the Morphological Analysis. It is one of my favourite strategic tools.

 

BR, 

Bruce

Hi Nick,

Just a few initial thoughts:

1. If you haven’t agreed on your branding you should get that done asap. Without much expense, you can run auctions on design sites that will design logos/branding for you if you’re looking for inspiration.
2. Get great photography of your products, people and location. Use it to sell your story.
3. Establish your online/social media branding well in advance of launching. Even if you use placeholders (coming soon, launching on, etc.) it helps to build momentum.
4. I assume you will have a physical location so it’s important to work on local brand awareness, both online and offline:
1. Sign on to google business and any local commerce associations that you can find.
2. Promos - as part of your branding get some merchandising (caps, cups, phone holders etc) that you can use as gifts for your opening.
3. Voucher coupon sites are also good and well-used in the UK, for example. They will draw foot traffic and you can offer merchandising as well as discounted products.
5. If your cafe/venture is niche (vegan, keto, etc.) then get involved in any national/international online/offline associations that promote your niche. If they don’t exist, start one and own it as part of your branding.

I’d definitely start with those and would be happy to discuss further.

Best regards,

James