This is a guest post by Alecia Rother. Read more about how you can guest post on Christian Web Trends here.
Few things are as motivating as being part of something bigger. For Christians, if you believe your new ministry or business is part of God’s calling on your life, you probably already feel inspired, excited and full of energy to get started.
Unfortunately, feeling motivated and called won’t necessarily be enough to make that faith-based project a success. You’ll face obstacles and competition, which could limit or even block the impact you want to have. For example, your still-unknown brand has to stand out among many other organizations’ marketing.
You need to implement wisdom and stewardship of all that’s entrusted to you to ensure your desired outcome in the long run. Jesus’ life actually carries many practical examples of how to do this correctly, even in business.
Prayer and divine guidance will of course form part of your faith-based project. In addition, use these steps to guide you while building your brand among the challenges created by the current faith and business environments.
Get Clarity on Your Audience and Your Competition
Knowing your audience’s needs is vital for branding in a commercial environment and even if your brand is focused on serving the community. You may think you want to engage with everyone, but your product or service is usually relevant to a specific group in terms of:
- Age
- Interests
- Needs
- Income
- Education
- Gender
When you study your target audience’s characteristics, it’s easier to create messages that resonate with their needs. Jesus is an excellent example of this. He identified and spoke to an individual’s unique needs, rather than offering a general piece of advice.
It’s also important to research any competition for your organization. These organizations’ marketing will already give you insight into your audience’s priorities. Also, in order to have your brand stand out, you need to know what the opposition looks and sounds like.
Decide What Your Brand Will Look And Sound Like
Based on the information above, you have a starting point for creating your own brand’s look, message and personality. To create a timeless brand, you need to keep your brand consistent for years to come. This requires absolute clarity on what you want to communicate in terms of your brand’s personality and the values that determine your brand’s decision making.
Humans prefer building relationships with organizations and businesses they can trust. You have the benefit that Christian values, such as honest living, respect and love for others, will easily spark trust and loyalty in others. Now formulate a clear message which you can incorporate in your brand marketing going forward.
Your look is as important as your message. In the same way Christians are supposed to be characterized by the love among them, you should easily be identified as being ‘different’ to others. Use visual aspects to your benefit to excel at this, such as designing a Christian logo that is relevant to your organization and picking brand colors that won’t be confused with your competition.
These visual elements should be used across all your marketing, both printed and digital. Whenever you share your brand’s message it will clearly be associated with your organization.
Identify Your USP
When you start compiling your marketing content it won’t work to simply share all the benefits you provide. Here, once again, you need to focus on what makes your brand different. This will prompt others to choose your start-up rather than another brand offering similar services or products.
Nurture Your Network
One can see Jesus’ journey as a metaphor for building a brand. After all, He wanted everyone to know about His message of salvation. To achieve this, Jesus joined hands with many people during his years of ministry on earth. Whether it was a few small fish and loaves of bread, or someone’s home to gather his disciples in, those resources helped Him fulfill His tasks. Make a list of individuals in your network with whom you can partner and enjoy mutual benefits.
Make Use of the Digital Environment
You have divine inspiration for your start-up but you’re operating in a digitally driven world. Make sure you stay relevant by having a quality website and social media profiles that your audience can access.
Also create digital content on a continual basis. The way to impact others is to prove you’re relevant to their needs and needs can change over time. You must generate new, relevant content to keep on sparking their interest in your brand.
Benefit from an Empowered Team
Another lesson from Jesus’ life is that He didn’t ‘go it alone’. He gathered 12 dynamic people around Him and made sure they understood His vision. Centuries later, their message is known across the globe, which proves the power of investing in your team.
Talk to your employees about your goals, values and what you want your audience to understand about your brand. Having clarity about this makes it easy for them to include it in their communication with clients, partners and anyone they engage with.
Final Thoughts
Your faith-based startup can become a beacon of light to clients and members of the community the way you dream of. Simply don’t forget to pair wise decision making with your faith-driven zeal. If you have any additional tips for other believers who own startups, please share your insight.
