Managing an online brand - 1

Let me begin this blog with a quote I'd come across recently - that undoubtedly had spurred my thinking along these lines. 

"Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You. It's that simple - and that hard. And that inescapable." - Tom Peters.

This is in fact, one of the Holy Bible truths for every entrepreneur, as when one may interact with other patrons - investors, stake-holders, customers, partners and more importantly the future team members. This is mainly because , the entrepreneur is mainly judged by these 2 parameters -

1. who he is
2. what he does / has done

One of the ways of building the image of a company / brand is to to use the power of the web.

Online reputation management has thus gained an important mindshare in the consumer as well as the entrepreneur's thinking.

Fundamentally, at the outset, online and offline branding practices are quite similar. Online content is all the more important in the former somehow.It requires care, caution and a keen eye for detail. The medium is just shifted to the LCD this time. 

Successful branding depends on what others think of the brand - not the entrepreneur. In fact, stretching this thread of thought, I must say that the 'like' buttons on FB works wonders ! They map the like and keep a track of the numbers.

Interesting. But I was specifically reading about online brand management with start ups in mind.

For start-ups, as I'd realized, it becomes all the more important to connect, engage and stage the image of the brand with the target audience. In fact, there are some simple steps that guys like me must follow and ace ! -

1. Get an own domain. 
2. Put all content in one place so that even when one searches from Tumblr, Stumble Upon, Wordpress, Pinterest, Instagram or other social network sites, one is directed to the main website.
3. Be stylish - get a designer to jazz up the aesthetics
4. Optimize presence on sites by customizing URL and repeating the brand's name wherever, whenver
5. Keep private as private - assuming that nothing now confines itself in the sanctity of private. This applies in the case of pics and updates , specially over social network sites
6. Be flexible and move with the times.

Hmmm.. I do agree ....

Wait .. this seems appropriate -

"(A) plea for originality, for passion, guts, and daring. Not just because going through life with passion and guts beats the alternative (which it does), but also because it's the only way to be successful. Today, the one sure way to fail is to be boring. Your one chance for success is to be remarkable. - Seth Godin in his Purple Cow

Yes. Brands need to be remarkable to be remark-able. It all depends on imagination.

I need to read up more on creation and maintenance of online brands now

Next blog !

E-commerce trends

So folks, I had spent the last few days reading a lot on E-commerce trends and what 2013 holds for its past, present and future.

What was NOT striking is that E-com is big. All the countries in the world, starting from USA, UK, Australia to China and even our country, report a steady incline in growth, potential, opportunities and also have a stable prediction ready till even 2020.

This brings to mind a lot of areas to look into where E-com is concerned. There maybe also, a lot of untapped areas that we need to look into.

What I understand from the voracious reading people, and correct me if I'm wrong, India is a magnet for a market. You introduce anything here, and it will sell. The ways can be wizened up - which depends on the imagination of the marketer!!

Let me note down the bullet pointers of what I had found interesting about E-com and its growth potential.

• Mobile or what nowadays people call M-tail - yes M-comm is coming up in a big way and a lot of experts predict that it's soon going to overtake E-comm. Mobile shopping is high and growing higher. For 2013 it is no longer about whether a website should ‘go mobile’ but about how.  Should they spend on making sure their site is ‘mobile optimized’ or go the route of hiring a developer for their own Mobile App? That is the question. most companies now stress on optimized shopping platforms in mobiles too - mobile apps to be downloaded easily. I enjoyed this quote from Eu.cmo.com: “Most shoppers now carry a virtual shop in their pocket, in the form of a tablet or mobile device.”

• E-tail is everywhere - In fact, the e-world is all pervasive and for everybody. Nowadays, everyone is part of the Screen Culture, or so to say and sport a virtual shopping experience from "on-to-off" and "off-to-on."  

•  Yes, no matter what, one cannot take away the growth aspect from E-comm even though T-com (Tablet commerce) or M-com (Mobile commerce) are rapidly growing. It's thus safe to say that all the web's a shop!!      

                                                                                                                     

• In fact Easy-commerce has eroded the barriers that might have stopped our shopper. With easy credit and cash on delivery options in every site, the mental barriers have significantly been reduced giving way to Delivery Delights instead. Compared to brick-and-mortar shopping experience, the online world does offer advantages of being able to share, accessibility, collaboration, reach and transparency.  This Retail Renaissance does not aim to replace but just to supplement offering a Niche Rich variety.

• For the seller, it’s imperative to know that Video is big and becoming humungous. The retailer must dial up the inclusion of an interactive video in his selling strategy to gain the view share and instant engagement

Also, there are some basic pointers on India that I feel must be included here -

India's online market is rapidly and exponentially growing.
Most consumers are in metropolitans.
Most companies tie up with multiple logistics partners.
Just like the emerging markets in India too, a variety of localized payment options is a must.
Think global but act local - must be the watchwords of any retailer in India.

More to follow!!