More pings from the contact form, unexpected calls from new clients, offers of collaboration, bigger re-orders, greater recognition, fresh possibilities, new opportunities, big wins, small wins and best of all – quick wins… (A must for any great marketing strategy.)

Quick wins are good for the soul – they give little jolts of excitement, fresh doses of motivation and much needed vindication. They help to build crucial momentum for those big and lofty goals you’re chasing.

At the loft we get determined, sometime obsessive about the tiny wins – those little momentum shifters that get everything moving – one new customer, one more enquiry, one more phone call, one more view on social. We know those tiny wins compound over time and deliver real value.

Over many years, we’ve developed countless super lean action plans (these are our kinds of marketing strategy) – single pages of A4, presented like scrap-book pages, put together in an hour or two, presented in about 15 minutes, approved, put into action and delivering value for the client in a matter of days.

No days lost to unnecessary consultancy, no time lost on laborious presentations, no 22-point strategic plans and no Return-On-Investment that is so far into the future you lose interest.

What’s brilliant about the leaner approach is that it gives the client a quick win, some immediate value, a reason to get excited – something to build on. Brilliant for people that are time-poor (almost anybody scaling a company) and most of all – their success stimulates new and more exciting ideas giving everybody something to build on.

More weighty plans will always have a place but we’re big believers in keeping it light, being a bit more outcome-focussed and getting as much early momentum as possible.

“Go as far as you can, when you get there, you’ll see how to go farther…”

Brilliant for rapid growth with brand, marketing and creative services. If you have ideas in mind or would like to chat to us, give us a shout, we’d love to hear from you…

Benedetto

Benedetto is an enthusiastic creative and business person.

His journey has taken him from a career in car design through to his current role as the Founder of the loft – A Design & Branding Agency based in the heart of Glasgow.

He is thrilled to manage a great team, work with brilliant clients and have a lot of fun mixing with so many great people in business.

Useful Links

The Lean Start-Up by Eric Ries >>>

<<< Accelerate by the loft

<<< To see more of the loft’s brand solutions 

Very little matches the sheer thrill, excitement and emotion of start-up entrepreneurship – backing yourself to do something special, taking a chance on a new product/service, winning those first customers, creating teams with little or no experience, building systems, exploring new paths, finding their limitations – all done at pace, usually done with a fluctuating bank balance and fluctuating sleep patterns too. I have a serious respect for anybody who has been able to build a business from nothing into something sustainable and of scale- which leads me to Undercover Billionaire.

Undercover Billionaire is a programme which explores all of the above and so much more. Released in the United States by Discovery, where they send an entrepreneur to an unknown place, take away their identity, their contacts, their wealth, etc and give them an old phone, a truck and $100. They have to take on an alias name and are tasked with creating a $1,000,000 business in just 90 days. This second season sees three incredible entrepreneurs take up the challenge – tech investor Monique Idlett, real-estate developer and designer Elaine Culotti and The Founder of the 10X Movement – Grant Cardone.

Safe-to-say, it is a brilliant watch, I don’t spend much time in front of the TV but I’ve already been through this series a couple of times. There is just so much to learn from three entrepreneurs who are well past the start-up phases of their careers do what they do best – the sophisticated-yet-genuine way that Monique is able to build relationships with others, her ability to plan and create value too, the just awe-inspiring drive, determination and can-do attitude of Elaine Culotti who also possesses something rare and special in the way she puts together teams of people who just love her despite her pushing them all to their absolute limits. Finally, Grant Cardone, the reason I got into the show in the first place, Mr10X’s salesmanship is definitely something to admire as well as his infectious enthusiasm and ability to deliver. Without giving too much away, all three of them achieve something spectacular not only with the businesses they build but the relationships they create throughout the process.

We’ve had entrepreneurship programmes on the telly for a while now but there is definitely something quite special about Undercover Billionaire. All three of these outstanding individuals are tasked with the challenge to see ‘if the American Dream is still alive and well in the 21st century.’

What you see is that although they each have unique talents – there is nothing there that can’t be learned and done by any/all of us – Undercover Billionaire, well worth a watch…

Benedetto

Useful Links

Watch Undercover Billionaire >>>

Monique Idlett >>>

Elaine Culotti>>>

Grant Cardone >>>

<<< The Loft’s Entrepreneurial Approach

Benedetto is an enthusiastic creative and business person.

His journey has taken him from a career in car design through to his current role as the Founder of the loft – A Design & Branding Agency based in the heart of Glasgow.

He is honoured to manage a great team, work with great clients and have a lot of fun mixing with so many great people in business.

<<< To see more of the loft’s brand solutions 

For more information on brand-building by Benedetto >>>

Each and every day this week, we are answering frequently asked questions people have about their brands…  (Branding FAQs.)

Today’s question is…

Question – 4
Creating a brand is obviously an important part of business so how much should I spend on my brand?

Our Answer

Ha ha, one of our favourite questions – just like the chicken and egg conversation – what comes first a budget or a price?

We usually like to get things moving at the loft so we give costings pretty quickly after an initial enquiry. In all honesty, branding work can range from the hundreds to the thousands of pounds and much more for larger companies. There are also providers at all ends of the spectrum so there are no limits to what can be spent.

However, creating a brand should not be expensive. A lot of the character of a great brand comes from the culture of the company. The experience your customers or staff have on a daily basis – how people are greeted, how durable is the product or service itself, the quality of the after-sales process, does the company follow up well if there is a problem, etc, etc.

Each of these brilliant basics are just as impactful as great brand/marketing communications and they are completely free.

With regards to how much you should spend?

Spend whatever you are comfortable spending. You’ll know deep down how much certain things should cost and what your own budget is.

As mentioned above, you’ll find providers at all ends of the spectrum, don’t risk too much on an isolated project and look to capitalise on those moves that are delivering you results – be it a social campaign, regular website updates or some kind of video podcast, etc..

That way, a truly exceptional ROI is there for the taking.

As always, if you’d like some more information or ideas, please don’t hesitate to contact us…

Benedetto

Benedetto is an enthusiastic creative and business person.

His journey has taken him from a career in car design through to his current role as the Founder of the loft.

He is honoured to manage a great team, work with great clients and have a lot of fun mixing with so many great people in business.

<<< To see more of the loft’s brand solutions 

For more information on brand-building by Benedetto >>>

Branding FAQ’s (Previous Questions…) 
Yes, we are frequently asked questions on branding, website design, social media communications, etc – all the ins and outs of this wonderfully interesting subject – so we thought we’d wrap up some of the answers we generally give into a series of short posts.

These are our Branding FAQs.

Here goes…

Question – 1

We know branding is important, we hear about it a lot, we want to create a stronger brand and presence for our organisation but we just have no idea where to begin.

With Branding, Where Do I Start?

Our Answer
What a great question!

Start by working out what you want to do with your business first. Let your brand serve your business and not the other way around…

What do you want your business to achieve? More sales from existing clients? Attraction of new customers? Attraction of staff members? Improved reputation in the marketplace? Improved perceived value of your products/services? Something else?

The clearer you can be with the desired outcomes, the easier it will be to create ideas that boost your business and therefore your brand. You will also be in a position to give a much clearer brief to your creative/marketing agency and therefore help them more to help you.

To give a little more context, here are a few real-life examples, from clients we’ve helped in the past. 

A software company we worked with for many years was able to increase their sales with existing customers by sending out short little E-mail shots introducing them to new features of the software they were already using. By helping their operators to use their existing packages better, more people in the office started to use their software and licenses-per-customer increased significantly.

We’ve worked with countless companies and been able to help them attract new customers with just a few simple updates to their website. Small additions such as good testimonials on the home-page, less burdensome enquiry forms and a clear telephone number somewhere visible on the site. Each of these micro-details helping to transform the number of enquiries and therefore number of new customers gained by our client.

Finally, we’ve been able to help several manufacturing companies increase the perceived value of their products by simply creating and sharing high-quality, effective art-directed photography of their products. Photography which showcases their products in their best lights, being used by customers and presented in an eye-catching and seductive way. All factors which help increase the average sale value, particularly from new customers for those manufacturing companies.

Once clear on the outcome – the answers can be incredibly imaginative – sales promotions, small product giveaways, E-Books, parts of an E-Book, simple website updates, social campaigns, case-studies, bespoke newspapers, etc, etc…

At the loft, we always believe in spending a little more time in defining the end-outcome, keeping the solution light and manageable, then creating something which is easily repeatable once successful.

Helping business owners and organisation leaders to create stronger, more effective and commercially viable brands.

Question – 2

How do I make my brand stand out from the crowd?

Our Answer

Another great question and one with a bit of a historical context. The whole concept of branding was created by farmers branding their cattle to show ownership and to distinguish them from the others. In time, the profession has evolved, but the idea of differentiating your product, service or company remains the same.

The best way to help your brand stand out is to work out what is special about your product/service/organisation and celebrate that difference in the most effective way possible using all possible marketing channels.

If you’re a printer that is always on hand for clients with last-minute deadlines – find ways to communicate and celebrate your accessibility.

If you’re an accountancy firm with sector-specific expertise in one area – consider ways to celebrate this enhanced wisdom and knowledge.

If you’re an online retailer that sells rare and ‘hard to find collectable’ products – then this is the perfect place to start when crafting your message.

If yours struggling for answers for this one – ask your customers/staff or write a list – going on a journey of discovery about what is great about your own products, service, company, organisation or brand is great fun.

Question – 3
I keep hearing about Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, etc, etc. How can these help me to build my brand.  Where does social media fit in?

Our Answer
Another Great Question!!

All these channels are brilliant for giving you the opportunity to show off your brand to lots of new people as well as communicate with people you already know. As well as basic products and services, you can show off more of who you are, what you do and how you do it. All great mini brand-builders.

The options with social are endless – present a little bit about your team-members, showcase different ways people use your products, communicate which social causes you support, share customer testimonials, fun pics of the office, name-check people you are working with, etc…

Whether it is words, pictures or video – each and every interaction gives you the opportunity of another positive engagement with your customers, staff and others too – helping you to build and strengthen the way people perceive your brand.

As always, if you’d like some ideas in how to put this into practice, please don’t hesitate to contact us…

Benedetto