Spring is a gorgeous time of year.  After the drabness of winter, it’s such a mood-booster to see the gardens blossom and feel the sun’s warmth again.  No wonder we feel like it’s the season for dusting off cobwebs.

Thanks to the pandemic we’ve had plenty of extra time to clean out our cupboards, sort out the garage and remove all the junk from around the house.  But if you’re like me, then you’re feeling just a tad over all the decluttering. Or there’s a good chance you’ve just got nothing left to clean out! If that’s the case, then why not turn your attention to your brand instead? 

While the business climate remains slow and many of us have more time to work ON our business, breathing fresh life into your brand – without the need to leave home – is something you’ll benefit from long term.  Don’t believe me?  I’ve listed three easy ideas below, including stats that show why each one contributes to the success of your business.

1 – TIDY UP YOUR WEBSITE

Use this time to go through every page on your site with fresh eyes – and I mean EVERY page. Is all your content up to date?  Is the info listed under any products or offerings on your site still relevant? Are there any old dates or promotions listed that need changing, or removing? Check all of your links to make sure they’re not broken, and why not use the opportunity while reading your content to add new links where possible?  This is a particularly good idea for your blogs, where you have a great opportunity to keep people on your site by leading them to more of your valuable content.  Speaking of which, if your blog hasn’t been updated for months, now’s a great time…

Once your written copy has been cleaned up, move on to your images. Are there any old images on your site that you can swap for more up-to-date versions? Obviously, it’s not possible to book in for shoots at the moment (insert sobbing!) but hopefully you have your own library of images from past shoots that you can pick and choose from. See if there are any images that are better suited to what you’re currently using.  You may also just want to swap out your images to give your page a fresh look!

If there are any pages on your site heavy with copy, think about adding images to break it up and add visual interest. Remember, your images are the first thing people will see before they read your content, so you want to make sure they are making the right impression, capturing attention, sending the right message, and encouraging people to hang around.

At the end of the day, creating a great user experience for anyone visiting our website is essential if we want them to hang around and check out what we have to offer – why wouldn’t you put yourself in the best position to do that?

STATISTIC: IT TAKES ABOUT 50 MILLISECONDS (0.05 SECONDS) FOR PEOPLE TO FORM AN OPINION ABOUT YOUR WEBSITE (SOURCE)

STATISTIC: 88% OF ONLINE CONSUMERS ARE LESS LIKELY TO RETURN TO A WEBSITE AFTER A BAD EXPERIENCE (SOURCE)

2 – DUST AND POLISH YOUR VALUES

Just like us, our values can evolve over time, changing along with our priorities, our circumstances, and our goals.  Your values may have been spot on when you first sat down to write them out, but are they still aligned with your message, mission and the vision you have for your business?  What mattered to you back then may no longer be relevant.

Values help set the important foundations of your business, so it’s important to revisit them on a regular basis to make sure they not only feel right but will keep guiding you in the right direction. Not only that, but when your values are in alignment with your purpose, you have a greater chance of attracting buyers.

STATISTIC: 77 PERCENT OF CONSUMERS BUY FROM BRANDS WHO SHARE THE SAME VALUES AS THEY DO (SOURCE)

STATISTIC: CONSUMERS ARE 4 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO PURCHASE FROM A BRAND THAT HAS A STRONG PURPOSE (SOURCE)

3 – CLEAN UP YOUR BRAND STYLE

Consistency is one of the key elements to creating trust and loyalty in business, so making sure your brand’s style is consistent across all of your platforms and assets is super important – it’s a major contributing factor to how your business is seen, experienced and remembered.

Your website is always a great place to begin but that’s just a starting point. When you think about all the assets your business entails, your brand will reach much further.  You’ll need to check your social media channels, newsletter templates, email signature, slide decks, brochures and any other marketing collateral you use for your business.  Double check that everything matches the colours, fonts and any design elements unique to your brand.  And don’t forget to check your images across all of your collateral while you’re at it – do they represent the look, feel and personality of your brand?  Are they cohesive with all other visual elements?  When you get this right, you can guarantee that anyone experiencing your brand will have a much better experience and be more likely to remember you.

STATISTIC: USING A SIGNATURE COLOUR CAN INCREASE BRAND RECOGNITION BY 80 PERCENT (SOURCE)

STATISTIC: CONSISTENT PRESENTATION OF A BRAND HAS SEEN TO INCREASE REVENUE BY 33 PERCENT (SOURCE)

Your brand ‘shows up’ in many ways in the world, and a brand that’s inconsistent or clearly out-of-date will not leave the best impression on viewers, let alone give you the confidence you need to grow and succeed.  So if you’ve got some downtime this Spring, make sure you put aside some time to dust off those cobwebs. You’ll be rewarded for your efforts!