Igoturmuffins
New Member
- 1
I know the last post is a month old at this point and while I'm just getting my feet wet in the senior market I do have something I can add to the discussion.
As a quick background. I started my own niche natural health business 14 years ago and am raising a family on only that income and working 4 days a week most weeks. The insurance gig for me is extra but that's another story for another time.
As far as branding I found out very quickly that all the advertising and logos and stuff is secondary. While you need name recognition I would say it's earned not bought/manufactured.
What worked for me was doing what I did for the right reasons. Money was important but again a secondary thing to me. My main concern was for my clients. I listened to them, I talked through things with them (with being the key word), and treated everyone who came in my office like an old friend the first time I met them. I did the best job I could do for them and went the extra mile to do late night research or fit them in when it wasn't the most convenient of times for me. I made housecalls sometimes late at night. The reputation you earn will be your brand, which should just be an extension of yourself. My business is pretty much exclusively referral. It's taken me from having no real education and living in a depressed area to 3 locations and working on tour buses for artists. The business name and logo and website and all that came eventually but was more to stay connected to people in convenient ways and to be found when my name gets dropped in the coffee shop. I started as myself and my "brand" more or less kind of grew around me.
All that to say: if you treat people well, and do your best and put in the time then branding won't be anything to worry about as you'll have a reputation that will precede you. Don't be afraid to do things differently, just do what you do well.
As a quick background. I started my own niche natural health business 14 years ago and am raising a family on only that income and working 4 days a week most weeks. The insurance gig for me is extra but that's another story for another time.
As far as branding I found out very quickly that all the advertising and logos and stuff is secondary. While you need name recognition I would say it's earned not bought/manufactured.
What worked for me was doing what I did for the right reasons. Money was important but again a secondary thing to me. My main concern was for my clients. I listened to them, I talked through things with them (with being the key word), and treated everyone who came in my office like an old friend the first time I met them. I did the best job I could do for them and went the extra mile to do late night research or fit them in when it wasn't the most convenient of times for me. I made housecalls sometimes late at night. The reputation you earn will be your brand, which should just be an extension of yourself. My business is pretty much exclusively referral. It's taken me from having no real education and living in a depressed area to 3 locations and working on tour buses for artists. The business name and logo and website and all that came eventually but was more to stay connected to people in convenient ways and to be found when my name gets dropped in the coffee shop. I started as myself and my "brand" more or less kind of grew around me.
All that to say: if you treat people well, and do your best and put in the time then branding won't be anything to worry about as you'll have a reputation that will precede you. Don't be afraid to do things differently, just do what you do well.
