By Contributing Author

If someone had to randomly approach you and ask, “What is the one key distinction between a start-up bound for success, and a giant corporate entity such as Amazon, Google, or Apple?”

What would your answer be?

When we ran this study, almost 60-percent of the entrepreneurs we asked failed to get to the right answer.

The answer is the brand authority that the business commands.

Developing a strong brand authority is often the defining factor between a successful business and a business bound for failure. After all, this is the visual image of your business. It represents what the business stands for, and the effort behind both it’s products and customer satisfaction.

So What’s The Big Deal Behind Brand Presence & Authority

Now, I know what some of you may be thinking,

“So what if we don’t have a strong brand authority. As long as our current customers are happy, we are in the green, right?”

Wrong!

Why?

Because no business will be able to thrive without the ability to ensure continuous growth. Now keep in mind that on average, 74% of consumers have pointed out that word of mouth is often the biggest factor in there purchasing decision when investing into a brand-sponsored product or service.

In addition to this, almost 94% of consumers in a recent study stated that they are more likely to go with a brand that has taken the time to establish themselves as both trustworthy, and transparent.

We are talking about millions of dollars at play here.

Which is why your brand authority is one of the most important investments that you can make if you are looking to 10X your profits in the coming year.

Social Media Is Your Companies Best Friend

Social media marketing is a vital form of digital marketing for any business. However, not just because of the potential sales and growth it provides.

But also because it is where your customers are comfortable communicating.

Which means it’s the ideal location to lay down the foundation to establish your brand, build rapport with your followers, and lay down your business vision, and beliefs.

In fact, did you know that in a recent survey done, four out of ten customers said that they were not likely to connect with a business emotionally unless the brand was well established on social media?

Establish Your Brand Image

Establishing a brand is not just about explaining what your business vision is. It’s the process of creating trust in your customers both present and future.

It’s the process of setting an image for your business that these same customers can grow to love and trust.

But in order for them to feel that way…

You need to take the time to establish your enterprise as a successful operation, where customers can trust that their money will be well spent.

That means having a well-thought-out website, that’s easy to navigate. It means ensuring everything from your business cards, right down to your letterhead design represents your business ideology.

Prove To Your Customers That You Care About The Problems They Have

The biggest mistake that businesses make is they forget about what their customers are going through. It’s a huge mistake to get lost in the money, and lose sight of the reason why you have customers in the first place…

They have problems that YOU need to solve.

Customers love being shown that they are cared about. This is why 79% of all customers say that they are more likely to reinvest in a brand if they had excellent customer service when they originally bought a product or invested in the service.

One way to show your customers that you care about there problems is to invest in quality over quantity. Provide resources for customers to turn to for guidance.

This could really be anything, from a blog that deals with answering some frequently asked questions, or problems your target market is known to face.

Or…

You could even start up a podcast, which would basically be an audio version of your blogs. Perhaps even have 1 on 1 interview with your customers on air. This will help you establish exactly where they are having problems, and from there – you can adjust your product/services directly to alleviate their problems.