Brand awareness is a term used to describe how consumers recognize a product's name. For instance, when thinking about fizzy drinks, many people ask for coke or Coca-Cola. Without labels, soft drinks look pretty much the same (though they differ in colors), so it is no surprise to see some of the biggest brands put effort into creating memorable marketing strategies.
The goal of brand awareness is to get people to associate products with a specific brand. After all, someone is more likely to go for a name they recognize.
One of the problems is trying to create a brand awareness campaign that stands out, particularly when there is so much competition.
Below, you will find a list of 4 solid ideas on raising brand awareness with the emphasis on channels that you should use as a means of promotion. Also, keep in mind that the main goal is to leave a positive impression of your brand on as many potential consumers as possible.
Customer Reviews
Let's start with customer reviews. Whenever someone visits an online store to purchase goods or services, they often look at prior shopper experiences. Be it video reviews or a short text below a product page, the value is there, and it should not be underestimated.
Some brands use the Opinew.com site and their services to import Shopify reviews directly to their site. Such an approach is a solid option and can be considered complementary to the overall customer review strategy, but relying on it completely is not necessarily the best approach.
You should also encourage customers to leave reviews. Offer them perks, such as free shipping or a discount for their next order. Simplify the review system and provide templates or a questionnaire-like system to let shoppers fill out a form rather than write a text.
The more customer reviews a business has, the more social proof it benefits from. In addition, customer reviews are beneficial for SEO, and they build customer loyalty by giving shoppers a platform to express themselves.
Organic Search
One of the biggest challenges of making a business successful is to find your demographic and attract it to the site. Identifying the right channels for advertising is difficult, and there are plenty of examples of how a marketing campaign turned out a waste of time and other resources.
Uncertainties lead more businesses to invest in search engine optimization, which is beneficial for multiple reasons, including brand awareness.
Imagine someone using a computer or a mobile device and typing buy-intent keywords on Google or other search engines. Results at the top are the pages that people will click. And even if they do not and are only doing research, for now, they will still have an impression of a highly ranked site.
Having said that, it is not like you can simply rank on search engines. The effort requires professional work, and it is no surprise to see brands investing as much as they can in hiring SEO professionals.
Successful search engine optimization campaigns can take months to show results, so it is important to emphasize patience.
Social Media
It should be a given that social media marketing is so prominent. From influencer marketing to freebies and giveaways, brands can make themselves visible on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Interacting with users by replying to their comments is also a good way to drive engagement. Not all brands realize that showing their friendliness and human side does a lot of good in connecting with followers and establishing a better name for themselves.
At the end of the day, social media campaigns are about engagement, and if a brand wishes to raise awareness, it should focus on driving as much engagement as it can.
Podcasts
Podcasts are one of the more underrated ideas to raise brand awareness. These days, it is common to listen to podcasts as a pastime. In fact, roughly 30 percent of the US population listens to a podcast at least once a week (Influencer Marketing Hub, 2021).
Because podcasts are so popular (and we can expect the popularity to increase), it would be a waste not to take advantage of reaching a new audience.
Look for podcasts that are relevant to your niche and get in touch with hosts. Often, podcast hosts are looking for guests, and they should be more than happy to invite someone who has interesting ideas to share.
Of course, do not treat podcasts as one big opportunity to just promote the brand. No, be subtle, and find an opportunity to mention your brand or agree on the details with a podcast host in advance. Otherwise, you risk putting your brand in a spot that damages the reputation rather than raises awareness.
