The term "branding" is very popular in the business marketing world. Branding refers to creating an image for a company or product. For example, when you think of Snuggle? fabric softener, what do you think of? Probably a soft cuddly bear, soft sheets, towels and blankets that smell good and clothes that feel great to wear. That's exactly what the company that makes Snuggle? wants you to think of and they've spent millions to ensure you do just that. Welcome to the world of branding.



Companies spend thousands of dollars on branding efforts each and every year. In fact, many marketing professionals believe that branding is critical to the long-term success of a business. If you want your business to thrive and grow, you're going to want to look into branding. The good news is, you don't have to spend thousands of dollars to do it. There are cost effective ways to brand your DVD business and you'll achieve the same results others pay thousands for. The best part? You'll be one of the very few eBay sellers focusing time and effort on the benefits of branding.

One of the most effective branding tools is a logo. If you do absolutely nothing else in your branding efforts, at least have a logo created that your customers can recognize you by. How much you spend on logo creation will depend on how complicated and intricate you want your logo to be and who you hire to create your logo for you. You can get a basic logo for less than a hundred bucks or you can have a logo done by an expert artist for a few hundred. Remember, regardless of how much you spend, an outstanding and memorable logo is well worth the investment.

Once your logo is created, put it on everything. Put it in your auction template, but it on your mailing labels, put it on a t-shirt, etc. The more your logo circulates, the more brand recognition you're creating for your business. You can even have little business card magnets made up with your logo and website address on them and can send them out with your DVD orders. There are thousands of things you can do with a logo.

In addition to your logo, you're going to want a tagline for your business. For example, right now McDonald's has a tagline of "I'm loving it" and people all over the world can't get that little tune out of their head when they have the urge for a fast-food lunch or dinner. That's what I call an effective tagline. Develop a tagline that reflects what your business is about and what you are committed to. For instance, "Affordable DVDs and Awesome Service" is a basic and simple tagline, yet it gets across the image of your business.

If image is everything, branding is the money that buys you whatever you want. Without branding, you cannot effectively create an image for your business and without a business image, there's nothing to set you apart from your competitors.

If you have any questions, please contact me using the email address below.