The Internet is chock full of Black business gurus. They preach this message of “all it takes” to be successful is an idea, hustle and an LLC business registration. What these experts conveniently leave out, however, is all the other stuff required to create a long-lasting brand. Sadly, by the time their followers purchase courses and ride their manufactured wave of excitement, all that’s left are fragments of tried and failed brand launches. If this has ever been you, here are five tips to bounce back and finally launch the successful brand of your dreams with more structure.
Take Full Responsibility
Nothing hurts worst than the sting of getting got by an internet guru. Especially if they’re Black, you trusted them and invested your coin into instructions they were selling. It sucks! But you can’t blame them for your brand’s overall failure. Because what they did if anything was get you off the sidelines and into the game. Be proud of that. There are individuals who will never even try to do what you did because of the risk of failure. But you didn’t let that stop you. That alone should be celebrated. So take full responsibility for both your courageous launch and its subsequent failure. All is not lost.
Take Stock
Gather everything you purchased, created and used for marketing your brand. If you were selling a physical product, for example, gather all your inventory, packaging and shipping labels. For digital products create a folder on your computer to consolidate all your images, content, website logins, business license, etc. in one location. Seeing everything in one place can give you a better perspective on what has been accomplished. Instead of looking at all your collected pieces as a try and failure, take stock of what worked and was successful. This assessment will be the building blocks of your relaunch.
Strategize, Strategize, Strategize
Now that you’ve gathered all the moving pieces of your brand it’s time to develop a strategy. Most often the only difference between failure and success is structure. So use this step to do the following:
Craft a living business plan. This doesn’t have to be daunting. Start with answering the 5 W’s: who is your brand for, what product or service are you selling; when will your products or services be available (i.e. year round, monthly drops, etc.), where are your products or services available for purchase, and why are you in business (what’s the story behind starting your business). Adding your “how” to this plan will give you the skeleton for financials and daily operations. Finally, since this is a living business plan don’t be afraid to edit and change it when needed. Nothing is permanently set in stone.
Study your market thoroughly. It’s not enough to follow your brand’s competitors online and call that market research. No, really take time to study what problem your product or service is solving for consumers. From this solution-based perspective craft your ideal customer avatar and create marketing campaigns that speak directly to their pain points.
Develop a marketing strategy. Posting on social media once a week is not a viable marketing strategy. Where are your customers and how do you plan to get knowledge of your product or service to them? Create a multi-tiered marketing strategy that includes social media, email, digital and in-person network marketing.
Market Like You Mean It
Marketing is oftentimes the delineating factor between successful and failed brands. Consider every viable marketing avenue to reach prospective customers. Although it seems like everyone is on social media, everyone is not. So diversify your market outreach. Attend networking events, utilize email marketing or radio advertisements. Try avenues like content marketing where you provide free valuable content via a blog or video reel series. In turn, you build the trust of followers who you can potentially convert to customers with your call to action. The market is open and vast. Tap into as many avenues of marketing that make sense for your brand.
Relaunch Your Brand
Like the late Aaliyah sang, “dust yourself off and try again”. There is nothing wrong with relaunching your brand after it fails. Big businesses do it all the time. Just think about how many phases Amazon had to go through before they became the multibillion-dollar company we know today. So don’t let one failed attempt stop your show. Pivot, rebrand if need be and relaunch your brand into the success stratosphere!