Episode 057: How to Make Your Brand “Binge Worthy” with Nikki Arensman
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Are there any brands you can’t get enough of? I mean, you watch their every story on Instagram, open any email they send with excitement, and quickly add any new product to your cart before deciding whether you really need it or not. Does this sound familiar? Well, my friend, it sounds like you’ve found yourself a bingeable brand, and in this episode on Priority Pursuit, we’re going to talk about how you too can make your own brand binge worthy.
Nikki Arensman is the former Founder and CEO of a nearly million-dollar women’s activewear line, JIVA Active, that started with only a $300 investment. Since then, Nikki has become the host of The Business Branding Podcast and the creator of the DFY Branding Kit – Brand Identity Breakthrough, which helps service providers stand out online in an ethical way while not spending thousands on their branding!
Nikki has over a decade’s worth of experience in the branding world, and today, she helps female creatives and service providers build binge-worthy brands while staying true to who they are. Whether working one-one-one with a client, coaching in her courses, or speaking on stage, Nikki aims to help her audience realize that they have expertise and uniqueness that, if tapped into, can help them stand out, be seen, and sell more.
In this episode, Nikki shares 13 steps you can use to make your own brand binge worthy.
*Note: Nikki briefly touches on each of the 13 steps in this episode of Priority Pursuit. To get a more in-depth understanding of how each step works, please check out her Brand Strategy Blueprint!
What is a brand & what does it mean to have a “binge-worthy” brand?
When you hear the word “brand,” I’m guessing a few images come to mind. But, a brand is much more than a logo.
According to Nikki, a brand is all of the pieces that a business uses to communicate who they are, what they’re about, what their story is, and who they want to reach. In other words, a brand is an opportunity for creative entrepreneurs to tell their ideal clients who they are and what their business is like.
Okay, that makes sense, but what does it mean to have a “binge-worthy”?
Nikki defines a binge-worthy brand as, “A brand that people are genuinely attracted to, want more of, and are drawn to the story the brand tells.”
For example, it’s like when your favorite TV show on Netflix comes out with a new season, and you can’t wait to get home, sit on the couch, and watch every single new episode. There is just something that draws you in, leaves you glued to the screen, and before you know it, you’ve binge-watched an entire season.
In other words, when your brand is binge worthy, your ideal clients won’t be able to get enough of your content, products, and services.
Now, I don’t want this to seem like one of those “too-good-to-be-true” ideas where with just a few steps, you’ll instantly have this binge-worthy brand. Nikki emphasizes that, “A binge-worthy brand is authentic and is created in a strategic way through a branding strategy that creates a binge effect without coming across as fake.” Your brand is binge-worthy to your ideal client when it genuinely communicates who you are and what your business is about, which is what your clients connect with and keeps them coming back for more.
How do you make your brand binge worthy?
Okay friend, now that you know what a brand is and what it means for a brand to be binge worthy, let’s dive into the practical steps it takes to make your brand binge worthy.
In this episode, Nikki shares that you need to define or answer the following 13 questions and elements:
1. Your vision.
First, you have to decide where you want your brand to “go.” Because, according to Nikki, your vision is like a GPS.
For example, if you were driving from Florida to California without a GPS and you started driving west because you know California is in that general direction. You’ll eventually get to California, but more than likely, it’s going to take you a lot longer and include more than a few detours than if you used a GPS that clearly marks out the roads to get to California.
The same concept applies to your vision for your brand and business, because when you’re clear about your vision, you’re able to create clear goals and outline how you’re going to reach those goals. And, chances are, you’ll be less likely to make mistakes or run into detours along the way to your goals if your vision is clearly defined.
2. What is your purpose?
In this step, you’re defining why you’re doing what you’re doing and why you’re selling the service or product you do.
3. What is your mission?
Next, your mission statement is where you’re able to clearly state what you do and who you’re doing it for.
For example, a mission statement could include: I do (insert your product/service here) for (insert type of client). (By the way, you’ll want to include this statement in your Instagram bio and on your website!)
Nikki explains that your mission statement serves as an identifier for a client when they click on your website or land on your Instagram account. A potential client can quickly see who you are, what you’re about, and decide if your product/service is what they want.
*Nikki shares that in the Brand Strategy Blueprint, there is a more in-depth approach to creating a mission statement that includes a one-liner and a longer mission statement.
4. Your differences. How do you stand out?
While there may be many creative entrepreneurs who provide a service or sell a product similar to yours, they don’t do exactly what you do. And according to Nikki, this step is all about determining what makes you different and how you stand as a creative entrepreneur.
Nikki explains that the things that make your business different can fall within two categories: (1) your product or service itself is different and/or (2) your process is different. Clients are searching for a specific product or service that meets their needs, and you want to stand out in their search as the best option.
For example, Nikki shares, there are web design businesses where a website can be created all in one day; there are weekend workshops that teach small business owners all the ins and outs of building their own website; and there are web designers that take six to eight weeks to design and complete a full, customized website.
Each of these options for creating a website gives the same result, a completed website, but the process is different. That’s what differentiates each business, and potential clients will choose the option that works best for them.
5. Your value proposition. What are you promising to your clients?
In this step, it’s important to communicate what you can deliver, whether that be a product or a service with your dream clients.
Nikki explains that your ideal clients want to know that you’ll follow through with what you say you can do. You want your clients to know exactly what they can expect from working with you from the get-go.
6. What are your values?
With this step, you define your core values for both your business and yourself. Nikki shares that your core values are what your business is built upon and what builds a relationship with your ideal clients.
For example, in a recent interview with Brandi Mowles on Nikki’s podcast, Brandi shared how she was given the opportunity to speak to a group of ideal clients for her business. However, the people sponsoring the event didn’t mesh with Brandi’s core values and she turned down the opportunity to speak. Although it was a great chance to connect with Brandi’s ideal clients, the core values she had in place for herself and her business were more important.
Nikki emphasizes that when you know your core values you’re able to stand firm in the decisions you make and trust that those decisions are right for you and your business.
7. Your voice/your personality.
Now, this is your opportunity to let your personality and emotion shine through to show clients who you are.
For example, Nikki shares that your voice and personality come through in places like the copy that you write (e.g. blog posts or captions on pictures etc.), in the way you respond to DM’s, and how you handle any issues that arise in your business.
8. What is your story?
In this step, you’re working on connecting with the hearts of your dream clients. You’re telling the story of how you got to where you are, what it’s been like to be a creative entrepreneur, and/or why you decided to start your business in the first place.
Perhaps it seems a little out of place to get more personal as a business owner. But, Nikki stresses that your story is what draws your clients into work with you, because more often than not, your clients identify with something you share about yourself that they’ve experienced too.
9. How we roll. The little fun things that make you YOU!
Alright, this is where you get to have some fun and share the real-life things you want people to know about yourself, your brand, and your business.
For example, this could be things like, you don’t work on Fridays, you love mocha frappucinos, and you’ve watched Encanto at least ten times in the past month. In other words, think about the things that are the more “human” elements of your business and communicate those things to your ideal clients.
10. Who are your dream clients?
Okay, friend, in this step, pull out all the stops and really hone in on who your ideal client is. According to Nikki, your ideal client shouldn’t be some imaginary person; this is an actual client with a name and a face.
Nikki explains that when you’re deciding who your dream client is, you want to know things like what season of life is your client in, what issue they are wanting solved, or what your client is into right now.
For example, if your ideal client is just some random girl named Jenny who’s a mom and likes to shop at Lululemon, you haven’t identified who you want to work with. Whereas, if you know more specific things like the age of Jenn’s children (teens, newborns, adults), you’ll be able to get to know and understand your ideal client even better.
The bottom line is that to attract your ideal clients, you have to know who they are and what they want. And, according to Nikki, your ideal client isn’t some made-up person. He/she is an actual person in a specific stage of life (e.g. a mom of a newborn), has specific needs, and is looking for a specific service or product. The more specific you can get in identifying who your ideal client is, the better you can create a brand that is binge-worthy for them.
Need help identifying your dream clients? Tune into “Episode 020: How to Identify Your Ideal Customer as a Creative Entrepreneur with Nate Dale”!
11. What are your touchpoints?
Next, you want to think about your touchpoints with your clients. Your touchpoints are “all the ways you connect and share content on a daily basis.” This might include social media posts, email campaigns, or any other way you communicate with both your current and potential customers.
12. What are your pillars?
Here, in this step, you’re working on defining your brand pillars, which according to Nikki are “The strategic topics that allow you to show up consistently online and create content that is consistently engaging without having to pull teeth every single time you want to create something.”
Brand pillars are essentially topics or ideas that you’d like to be associated with your brand. And, brand pillars make it easier to avoid those moments of, “I don’t know what to say on social media,” because you have a framework in place to reference. For example, on Mondays you talk about a certain topic, Tuesdays is another topic, and so on for each day.
Need help identifying your brand pillars/brand topics? Tune into “Episode 007: How to Develop & Communicate Your Brand as a Creative Entrepreneur”!
*For a further explanation of brand pillars, please check out Nikki’s Brand Strategy Blueprint.
13. What are your visuals?
Last but not least, this step is about everything that’s visible to your audience that connects them back to your brand.
For example, this includes your logo, colors, fonts, and any kind of graphic element that you have as a part of your business.
There’s never a “wrong” time to create a brand strategy!
Whew! Friend, that’s a lot of steps, but each one is going to help you create a binge-worthy brand that your ideal clients just cannot get enough of.
Nikki shares whether you’re just getting started as a small business owner or you’ve been running your own business for years, these 13 steps on how to create a binge-worthy brand are invaluable.
There is never a bad time to define or refine your brand strategy. After all, a strategic, well-implemented brand strategy is what is going to allow you to create a connection with your ideal customers.
If you’re ready to start tackling these steps, there’s no time like the present! It’s time to make your brand binge worthy!
Want to hear more from Nikki?
If you’d like to hear more from Nikki, you can find her on Instagram at @nikkiarensman, and at www.nikkiarensman.com.
Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode
Nikki’s Free Resource: How Binge Worthy Your Brand Is?
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