How ‘brand’ is 3x-ing my business
There’s one thing that’s growing my business more than anything: brand.
Let me explain:
People talk a lot about “brand” but it all feels lofty. It all seems metaphorical and not practical.
Like what really is a “brand” in the video/photo world?
For a while I didn’t think I was building a brand.
Until I got invited to the table for some huge conversations.
Conversations that are very likely to 3x my business in 2025, to the tune of $1,200,000 in projects.
And it’s all because of brand…
Not All Portfolio. It’s Brand.
I used to think people were only going to hire me because of my portfolio. A stronger portfolio = stronger sales.
Right?!
Portfolio is important. You can’t close larger sales without a quality portfolio. But a strong portfolio isn’t the end.
A brand is who you (or team) are, what you bring to the table, how you operate, how personable and fun you are, and what your process is for getting things done right.
That… paired with a strong portfolio… is a winning brand.
And that’s what puts in you in a seat at the table with people who have lots of money to spend.
Honestly…
When I started my video/photo production business in 2019, I didn’t know how to make my brand stand out.
I live in a medium sized market in Memphis, TN. There are a few larger production companies that everyone knows.
And I didn’t know how I would stand out among them and differentiate myself.
But after I had worked at a creative agency for three years, here’s what I had learned about building a better brand:
Brand can be as simple as feeling - how we make clients feel
The agency I was at made people feel frustrated because they were slow
Brand for me became doing the opposite: make people feel confident and proud they chose me
I’ve worked hard at that for five years. Grinding away at proving that brand to the community.
And guess what?
People now associate my brand (Erwin Media) with: reliable, trustworthy, personable, responsive, and fun.
People know when they come to us that we are going to get the job done right and take care of them in the process.
But I had to prove that “brand” over time. I couldn’t just talk about it.
Brand, in a lot of ways, is “walking the walk, not talking the talk.”
Big Conversations Because of Brand
I’m currently talking to four creative/production agencies about my team taking on work from them.
How do we have a seat at the table?
Two reasons:
A referral, who respects our brand
The agencies see how we treat clients
I talk a lot about our passion for client experience. How we’re big on communication and responsiveness. How we care about our clients and them succeeding.
They love that.
And that’s brand.
So many creatives and freelancers are known for being unreliable and unresponsive.
My brand is the opposite and people are feeling it.
I’ve always remembered this quote:
“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” - Maya Angelou
That’s the key my friends.
Brand gives a feeling.
So if you are only creating quality but there’s no feeling, then people are going to pass over you.
They need to feel something with the quality.
Conclusion:
Having a “brand” will grow your business
Brand is the feeling you give others
Because of the brand I’ve built for five years, agencies are asking me to take on a lot more work for them
TAKE ACTION:
Keep building a strong portfolio, but also…
Evaluate your client experience
Become known as the responsive and reliable crew
Talk about your brand AND follow through on how you make people feel
Cheers my friends,
-Trent