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Give Me A Reason To Believe

August 21, 2016Nina KovnerENGAGE, GROW

Stories are attempts to share our values and beliefs. Story telling is only worthwhile when it tells what we stand for, not what we do. Simon Sinek

(This post was originally published on April 8, 2013. Over three years later, it remains as relevant as the day I wrote it.)

When you hear the word “marketing”, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? For some, it may be fuzzy, for some, you may think about the services and products you sell, maybe some of you are thinking about promotions, brochures or advertising. Or maybe some of you are saying, I have no clue, but it’s not my job. I am here to tell you if you are trying to sell something, it is your job. Your job as a brand owner is to give me a reason to believe.

I Feel Stories
When I hear the word marketing, I see, hear and feel a story. I always have. And now more than ever, both online and off, people want stories. They are looking for meaningful relationships with businesses. They are looking for your why. Your purpose, promise, and passion.

You see, there are so many products and programs and so many platforms to scream about them, about how awesome they are, and how they are so much better than everyone else’s. But guess what, the consumer is smarter than ever, and with all the noise in the marketplace, products get lost, but compelling stories stand out.

I Know You Cut Hair, But Why Should I Care
I never received a formal education in marketing. Yet I was responsible for marketing one of the biggest global brands of professional hair care in the world. And I was good at it. Why?

Because I did not see products as products, I saw them as solutions, as part of a bigger story and worked tirelessly to bring meaning and value to each and every thing I marketed. The same idea goes for your biz. Why should I come to you to get my haircut? There are a gazillion other options I have. Why you?

Creating A Relevant Story
 When it comes to marketing something and creating a compelling story, I ask myself these simple questions:

1. Why am I creating this program, product or service?

2. What problem am I solving?

3. What is the brand purpose WHY) and promise (HOW)?

4. Who am I creating this for?

5. Why will they want my product, service, program or business?

Give Me A Reason To Believe, Please
So what’s your story? Your why? Your purpose, promise and passion? I want to know before I choose to engage with your business. And here is a hint. If it’s hype and BS, I will see right through it. If you promise me the world, I will doubt you. I want the truth. And I want you to give me a reason to believe.

Are You Ready to Create Awesome?
Are you an owner or independent entrepreneur and want to learn more about marketing your biz and creating compelling stories that connect with the ideal client you would love to serve? My A School for Owners online coaching program may be a good fit for you.

Check it out and as always, if you have any questions or just want to say hi, I’m listening.

Love + Awesomeness- Nina

PS: Our stories now live on multiples platforms, both online and off. To learn how to get your story onto your social pages, you may like this weeks Passionista Biz Tip About The About Section. Enjoy.

The Miseducation of A Brand Passion Squared hd

The Miseducation of A Brand

April 18, 2016Nina KovnerGROW

“A cool logo does not make you a brand.”

My life’s work has been about creating brands, building brands, growing brands and reinventing brands. And each day I see the term brand used, is another day my heart breaks a little bit more as the word seems to become more misunderstood. And don’t get me wrong, it is perfectly OK to simply have a great business, but a great business is not the same as having an awesome brand.

What A Brand Is Not.
A logo
A website
A URL
A trademark
A name
An Instagram account
A building
A paint color
A business card
A business
A product
A service
A sticker
Etc…

What A Brand Is
A brand is an entire experience. How I feel when engaging with you and the decisions and actions I take (over time) because of that feeling. i.e. click, call, book, tell my friends.
A brand is…
An experience
A feeling
A connection
A culture
A relationship
A story
Which ultimately leads to a decision and choice to take action. Over time. Again and again.

According to Seth Godin, the master of all things marketing and one of my most early mentors of marketing… “A brand’s value is merely the sum total of how much extra people will pay, or how often they choose, the expectations, memories, stories and relationships of one brand over the alternatives.”

Several elements go into creating a brand of long term value. And yes, brand identity (logo, colors, fonts, image, etc.) is a part of creating an awesome brand, but it is not the brand. Big difference.

You can have a beautiful logo and no brand recognition.
You can have a cute sticker but no brand value.
You can have a beautiful building but no clients.
You can have a killer Instagram following but no relationships.
You can have a beautiful paint color but no connections.
You can have a fancy, overpriced website but no visitors.
You can sell a product or service one time but have no repeat clients over time.

So let’s play a game…
When you think of Passion Squared, how do you feel?
When you chose to do business with, follow or subscribe to Passion Squared, why did you make that choice?
When you recommend Passion Squared to your friends, what do you tell them and why?
When you engage with a Passion Squared coaching session, workshop or class, how do you feel when you leave?

If you said you feel empowered, have more clarity, feel loved, inspired, informed, you trust me, it feels like I understand you; that is when my brand has created some form of value for you and you made a choice of exchanging time and money for that experience.

And know this… All the work I have done over the last 5 years building the Passion Squared brand got us to this point. Each move I make, each workshop I teach, each program I create, each story I tell, each piece of content I share, each blog I write, its all strategic. Its all by design. And quite frankly, it has nothing to do with my cool logo. Cause the reality is, I had the logo long before you chose to engage with my brand. And the logo was meaningless and had no value, without all the other efforts I have put into creating something of value for you, consistently, over time. Again and again.

However, when you see my logo, if you know my brand, it inspires a feeling. A feeling I work daily to create. You see how this works? It’s not as simple as someone saying, “I am going to teach you branding”.

Creating a brand of value is much more than a cute logo or a bunch of followers on Instagram. Remember that.

Love + Awesomeness-
Nina

PS: I also wrote about this topic a few years ago here.

 

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Change The System, Change The Experience

March 28, 2016Nina KovnerENGAGE, GROW

“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent that will survive but those who can best manage change.” Charles Darwin

As a young businessperson, one of my coaches once shared a simple yet profound concept; change the system, change the result. And today, I would add experience before result. Change the system, change the experience, which changes the result.

Simple, yes. Easy. OMG no! That is why businesses suffer and become irrelevant, that is why so many small biz owners feel angst instead of excitement at the thought of change. But guys, I am here to tell you, I know this first hand. I have lived it. This is the truth.

While I am thinking of biz models pretty much 24/7, and how I can help empower the people I love with ideas, concepts and actions, this one thing has been weighing heavy on my mind, so here it goes…

The Client Journey Has Changed, Have You?
As a paying client of two hair salons @sugarskulls @larisadoll and an eyelash extension salon @ilianaladma, and as one who is an awesome social listener and student, I have witnessed what is awesome and not so awesome in many of the salon business models. The one thing that stands out so much to me right now is how clients are booked. And no, I am not going to shove online booking down your throat again, you can read that here and here.

Passion Squared Glam Squad Sugar Skulls Larisa Love Iliana Ladama

No, what I am talking about is creating space and time for the “new” client journey + experience. The one that includes capturing the experience in order to create a relevant and compelling story to share, as well as help your clients facilitate the story they want to share about their experience.

If we want to capture the empowering opportunities of the social + digital web, we must change the way we do business. And that means changing the amount of time we give to that experience.

But Nina, I Don’t Have Time!
If you find yourself saying “I don’t have time to capture pictures, I don’t have time to Instagram this experience, I don’t have time to Snapchat this story, I don’t have time to pre-book the next experience”, then I say it’s time to take a big step back and look at how you are managing your time and the amount of time you are giving to each client.

Now, I know you will say, “but Nina, this is how I make money, more clients, more money.” I get it. And I will say back to you, if you understand the social + digital web, and clients passion around sharing experiences, and want to provide the best experience possible, then if you create space to do that, you will actually make more money because your experience is more awesome and your clients will share it.

Change Is Constant, Period.
Change happens. The only decision you need to make is if you are going to fight it or embrace it and re-think how you can capture your awesome experiences.

Love + Awesomeness-

Nina

PS: If you are an owner and want to learn more about how to create more awesome in your biz + life, and learn how you can create awesome on the social + digital web, check out my A School for Owners program.

PPS: This idea of client experience in the age of social + digital has nothing to do with the age of the salon, the stylist or the client. In fact, it has nothing to do with age at all. As defined by the awesome Brian Solis, it has everything to do with Generation C, the connect customer, who is not defined by age but by behavior. And “their” passion is sharing experiences, whether it be via a social platform, a review platform, or any other way they can share. If you need more proof then what we are witnessing every day as humans, I highly recommend you read The End of Business As Usual by Brian Solis and The Thank You Economy by Gary Vaynerchuk.

#QandAwesome Personal Posts On Social Platforms

March 26, 2016Nina Kovner#QandAwesome, ENGAGE

In this episode I share the truth about “personal” and social platforms. The truth is, nobody can nor should tell you what is right for your brand or audience. But until you have clarity around your brand and audience, it will continue to be difficult to know where the line is. Thanks so much for watching!

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What Do I Post On Social Platforms?

March 18, 2016Nina KovnerAWESOME, ENGAGE

“Your content is your marketing.”

In this episode of #QandAwesome I answer a question I get every single day. What the heck do I post on my social platforms? It begins and ends with getting clear on your brand and your audience.