Booked: Getting your brand message out

Oisin Browne is a marketer who learned much about doing business by working for the City Bin company. He scored a big hit on Amazon with his best-selling debut title, The Binman's Guide to Selling, a trick he appears to be repeating, based on early sales figures for this follow-up title.

Browne is very clear on one thing here. Marketing is not some abstract process around creating an image. It is about sales. This is too often forgotten.

The marketing and sales teams are often viewed as two distinct entities, when in fact they are highly related wings of the same function. The book is structured for easy dipping in and out and contains 100 specific tips to improve your marketing efforts. These range across digital marketing, brand building, PR and becoming more media savvy.

When creating a new brand, Browne says it is vital to define exactly what that brand is. A successful brand creates a unique experience for its customers and knows how to communicate with them.

He cites Red Bull as a good example. It understands that its customers are young and uses a marketing approach promoting high-adrenaline activities that reinforces the tagline "No red bull, no wings".

What it stands for

You need to define your brand by identifying what it stands for, as well as the types of products and services customers can expect to receive from your company.

If your brand is the “new kid on the block”, you need to market it on every platform, blog and newsfeed that you can find. The more people see it, the more that they will remember it.

He suggests researching the profiles of your existing clients to see what they wear and where they hang out, and to consider demographic segmentation.

If they fall between the ages of 18 and 30, for example, an affiliation with a music venue could do the trick. Look at cool clothing and hoodies and hats. If they fall into the family bracket, look at child safety. In a country with Ireland’s climate, branded umbrellas are a good idea.

Entering awards is another great way of promoting your business. Look deeply at your competitors and other businesses competing for the award to figure out the points of difference. You need to take a good look under the bonnet to check the health of your business before you enter, and this is often worth more than the award itself. Should you win or receive a commendation, the big prize is the resulting publicity.

Brief and bold

Surveys are a great way of researching the perception of your business. Brand promises are also crucial, but they need to be brief, bold and unique.

A key section of the book covers e-commerce. While not short of ideas himself, Browne has the humility to invite experts to contribute. Darragh Canning provides a few handy tips on setting up an ecommerce platform. If you are selling literally just a handful of products, then PayPal can be a great choice. It's quick and easy to set up and can be linked easily to your bank account. You can create "buy now" buttons from the dashboard and get a shop up and running very quickly. For enterprises selling five to 20 products, a simple hosted solution called Shopify is recommended. Other contributors provide advice on growing your business via Facebook, Twitter and the use of web analytics.

Becoming an acknowledged expert in your field – or at least a provider of interesting content – is another good marketing technique. Browne outlines how to go about creating a podcast series interviewing the experts in your field. A catchy title for a series of related podcasts works well on a medium such as YouTube.

The book also includes 50 inspirational interviews with marketers and entrepreneurs. They share their wisdom on what it takes to successfully market a business.

Breezily written, The Binman's Guide to Marketing is likely to contain at least a few good ideas for anyone keen to raise their marketing game.