We hear a lot about branding your business, but what exactly does this mean? Your business is establishing a brand for itself whether you are trying to create one or not. The term “to brand” is to develop a trademark for the business, a way that your customers identify you and what you have to offer. As I said, whether you are intentionally creating a brand for your business or not, you are doing it with your clients/customers or those you serve. Your “branding” actually starts with what people hear about your business and then what they say when they visit your place of business. What your business looks like from the outside to the inside effects your brand. Just think about this; would you go to a doctor or dentist’s office that was in a run down building that was dirty and the property was not kept up? Probably not, but what if the outside looked okay, but once you got inside the place was a mess, the staff had wrinkly scrubs on and their desks were piled high with papers and charts, would you stay? And if you did stay would you come back again? Lets take this one step further and you stayed, were taken back to a treatment room, you saw that the counters and floors weren’t that clean, then what? The doctor/dentist walked in to greet you and their white coat was all winkled and had stains on it. What do you think that office brand is saying? Many business owners do not think about the fact that their business brand starts from the outside of their building and then carries throughout the whole office including the client’s experience. Your staff adds even more to the visible brand of your business when they encounter your customers. They usually have the first contact with them and no matter how nice they were on the phone once your patient/client is in the office and your staff’s appearance and attitude are visible to them, what does it say? Your staff needs to score an A+ for you or you could lose a client. Remember it is not only this client that you may lose, but those potential clients that this one client will make sure they tell about their experience with your office. Have you ever wondered why clients, patients or customers never return for a second visit to your business?
Take a few minutes today to ponder what your work environment looks like and feels like to others, those you serve, and ask yourself “what is our brand and what are we saying with it to our customers?” This is good food for thought and not just for today, but everyday, your business success depends on it.
12-27-12
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