Are You Branded?

By Susan Dunn
Posted Sunday, August 29, 2004

Bill, one of my clients, is trying to build a coaching practice. When I ask him what he wants to do, what kind of coaching, he says he wants to help people reach their goals and get more in touch with themselves.

Mary is also starting a coaching practice. She says she wants to help clients find out who they are, and make great strides in their careers. All good coaches help their clients touch the source, as I call it, discover their strengths and set and reach new goals. All chiropractors offer spinal adjustments. All businesses that sell widgets, sell widgets.

Why would someone choose Bill or Mary then, instead of one of the tens of thousands of coaches out there?

“90% of coaches feel they are highly differentiated from other coaches, says William Arruda, The Branding Guru, who’s had 20 years experience in international branding. “Yet,” he adds, “only 10% feel strongly that their differentiation is visible to their ideal clients.”

Branding means defining what's unique about you and your services of products, and building a strong image around that.

Now let me tell you about Bill and Mary as I see them.

Bill worked with autistic children for 15 years. He’s empathic, gentle, versed in psychology, and has led many men’s growth groups. We’re working on defining his ideal client.

Mary comes from a corporate background, an HR professional with an MBA. She’s focused, forceful, and thinks ‘career’ first. She knows her ideal client – women in middle management. Each coach has a very different background, personality style and preferred ideal client.

How to get this across is what branding is about. It means finding the way to stand out among your peers in a way that helps your ideal clients find you.

Are you branded?

About the Author
©Susan Dunn, Marketing Coach, (http://www.webstrategies.cc) . Web design and strategies, consultation, marketing plans, article- writing and placement, ghost-writing eBooks. Let us launch your eBook for you. We can help you write it too. Mailto:sdunn@susandunn.cc for FREE eZine. Put “Checklist” for subject line.