Two advertising veterans explain the myths about branding—and how even the smallest businesses can benefit by defining themselves to their customers. Branding may be the single most misunderstood concept in marketing. It’s not only for big businesses with big bucks. It’s not about a logo, a color, a font, or a type of advertising. Branding is defining a company’s image in such a way that the customer is left with a single feeling about that business and what they do. Branding is about finding a business’s juicy center. Even small businesses on shoestring budgets and sole practitioners can learn the principles of good branding—an effort that encompasses not just messaging, but multiple day-to-day decisions that shape and build your customers’ perceptions and emotions. With numerous real-life examples and the expertise that comes only from experience, this book guides you to a new way of thinking about your business, and the kind of wisdom that no amount of money can buy.

BERNT ULLMANN, often referred to as "the man behind the brands", has been a trusted brand acceleration expert helping generate over 6 billion dollars in global sales so far in his career. With over thirty years experience as a corporate executive of major fashion brands, Ullmann's portfolio includes brand development and management including licensing and distribution, modernization, and global expansion for fashion moguls such as Daymond John, Eddie Lampert, and Tommy Hilfiger. He has also contributed to successful launches of platform expanding brands for celebrity clients like Jennifer Lopez, Adam Levine, Nicki Minaj, and many others. IN HIS DEBUT BOOK, The Billion Dollar Branding Blueprint, Ullmann shares his expertise in a systematic seven-step process to help entrepreneurs, no matter who, launch their brand successfully. This book is a step by step, easy to follow blueprint to achieve business acceleration and create lasting wealth.

Better Branding, Better Benefits Marketing techniques, retailers, and distribution channels have changed dramatically since authors RICK CESARI and BARB WESTFIELD started in the business of brand building and direct response advertising twenty-five-plus years ago, and they will continue to change, but over their combined years of experience, Rick and Barb have found that five key strategies have remained constant: 1 Utilizing your "unique selling proposition," or USP; 2 Creating a name and market position for your product or business; 3 Under-promising and over-delivering; 4 Listening to your customers to develop world-class customer service and powerful testimonials that will sell for you 24/7, and 5 Direct branding selling--the best way to brand for most small businesses and startups. In this book, Rick and Barb will expand on these simple brand-building keys and show you how they built brands like GoPro, the George Foreman Grill, Sonicare, and others using these keys, and how you, too, can put them to use immediately in your business or new product launch.

The author explains why the most successful brands--whether products, services, or organizations--create a culture of belief, in which the consumer develops a powerful emotional attachment to the brand as the best of its kind.

Hidden among the chaos and hype, there are secrets to success on the web. Globally renowned internet expert Chad Barr and business strategist and bestselling author Alan Weiss, reveal them - and show you how to use them to amploify your web presence and profits. Using the unmatched reach of the web, entrepreneurs are empowered to take a more tactical, brand-driven approach to attracting new clients and reinforcing the relationships with their current clientele—quickly raising the bar to produce better results for their brand and their business. Starting with their website, Weiss and Barr reveal five critical areas that can be immediately enhanced to emphasize creditability and instantly build trust among visitors. Entrepreneurs also discover how to outfit their site with new tools, products and offerings that pull visitors in, keep them captivated, and compel them to keep coming back. Weiss and Barr then coach thought leaders in capitalizing on today’s social web, delivering a strategic plan to uncovering opportunity in online communities, social networks, and other popular platforms—allowing them to showcase their greatest business draw: their expertise. Entrepreneurs also learn which components are critical to their success as a thought leader, gaining valuable insight into trending technologies like mobile devices to help them in determining which avenues are of the greatest gain. Offering support such as assessments, real-life examples, screen shots, and access to free downloads, tutorials, and more, Weiss and Barr deliver a comprehensive plan to help entrepreneurs enhance their online efforts and strategically elevate their brand, and ultimately, their business.

The only guide for the small business owner to create a revenue-enhancing website that lets them compete with the "big boys." Award-winning website consultant Lori Culwell demonstrates how to create a website that will increase sales and generate repeat customers on a small business budget. Not just another "graphic design for the web" book, Culwell offers invaluable insider advice on what it takes to build a high-profile website, including dozens of guidelines to avoid the pitfalls of bad usability, with invaluable tips on: ? Enhancing brand awareness ? Creating graphic designs that keep customers engaged and not confused ? Writing web-savvy content ? Capitalizing on user feedback ? Making the most of search engine optimization ? Using blogs and social networking sites to increase traffic and get the word out