Oct 27, 2021
Summary:
On today’s episode, we chat with Marcus Meazzo about branding, and how to make a genuine brand that people will relate to. Marcus talks about what he believes is vital to build a brand that will last, and says that although people typically think of branding as a logo or slogan, this is only a small part of what great branding really is! He breaks down the process of building a brand into 4 main steps. The first is to find your identity. Figure out what your values and beliefs as a company are, what makes you stand out, and define your second bottom-line. Next you need to build tone and voice “pillars” to help you illustrate and explain your brand to the public and your customers. You must also create a consistent culture within your business to support your brand from the inside out. Finding and identifying your true target audience will also go a long way to increase the impact of your brand and product. Once you’ve built your brand, use it to make a special bond with your customers that will be unique to your agency and set you apart from the thousands of emails consumers receive daily. Having a relatable and authentic brand that reflects your identity can help your advertisements be more original, drawing attention and potential clients to your agency.
Top 3 Curtain Pulls in this episode:
For more tips, discussion, and behind the scenes:
About our Guest:
Marcus Meazzo: Principal owner of Meazzo Design Co. From aspiring start-ups to fortune 100 companies, Meazzo Design Co. blends strategy, design, and user experience to help business owners with their ah-ha’s and turn them into influential brands.
About The Guys:
Bob Hutchins: Founder of BuzzPlant, a digital agency that he ran from from 2000 -2017. He is also the author of 3 books. More on Bob:
Brad Ayres: Founder of Anthem Republic, an award-winning ad agency. Brad’s knowledge has led some of the biggest brands in the world. Originally from Detroit, Brad is an OG in the ad agency world and has the wisdom and scars to prove it. Currently that knowledge is being applied to his boutique agency. More on Brad:
Ken Ott: Co-Founder and Chief Growth Rebel of Metacake, an Ecommerce Growth Team for some of the world’s most influential brands with a mission to Grow Brands That Matter. Ken is also an author, speaker, and was nominated for an Emmy for his acting on the Metacake Youtube Channel (not really). More on Ken:
Show Notes:
[1:27] Brad introduces this week’s guest, Marcus Meazzo. “He has built brands for companies you might have heard of like PayPal, Dave Ramsey, Dr. Axe, hundreds of other awesome brands. So Marcus, welcome to Agency Exposed.”
[3:47] Marcus chats about his eye-opening recent travels around the country in an RV before settling down in Wisconsin. “We were traveling around the country for about a year after we sold our house in Colombia”
[5:54] Brad asks Marcus about his philosophy on good brands. “Talk a little bit about your philosophy and your background and things that you think a good brand has and what companies need to think about when they think about their brand.”
[7:00] Marcus talks about the importance of knowing who you are and what your values and attributes are as a company. He also uses an analogy of how a house is decorated to illustrate important aspects of branding. “how are we going to help you get known? And what are you known for?” “What are your values? What are the things that you care about?” “if it's something that's not really you, if it's not your values, if it's not the thing that's really truly makes you unique, then it's not sustainable.”
[9:39] Ken talks about how often you can tell which brands are genuine and which are facades.
[12:53] Marcus says that “a brand can't be all things to all people, and they can't be who they're not”
[16:19] Bob asks Marcus about how he communicates his brand to his customers and how that compares to how he communicated it a few years ago.
[16:56] Marcus says that simplicity is key. “if you are too complicated, people do not stop to look”
[18:00] Bob asks, “Do you have a process, Marcus, that you walk your clients through?”
[18:49] Marcus talks about 4 key things to consider when building your brand.
“values and beliefs would be first and then we would create pillars from that. We would understand the culture we want to be in so we really need to understand who we're talking to… Who are the people that are our ideal target audience… What are the attributes and benefits that would be a perfect fit between you and your customer?”
[23:07] Brad asks about the best way to create brand consistency within your business.
[24:16] Marcus says that the best way to create consistency is by, “making sure that what you're creating, they are actually bought into it.”
[26:26] Ken uses Dave Ramsey’s business as an example of how consistency strengthens your brand. “If you're not polarizing, you may not have a strong brand.”
[26:51] Marcus talks about how Ramsey has regular meetings about the values of his business and how “he wants his people to practice what they preach.”
[31:58] Brad discusses how “creating a brand off of a celebrity that everyone seems to already know and saying, if our brand was this, this is kind of the personality of the person helps other people identify”
[36:37] Bob relates branding to marketing. “don't build campaigns build conversations… people don't respond to ads, they respond to what they're interested in.”
[37:43] Ken asks how to brand your own business?
[40:11] Marcus talks about the challenges of trying to “write your own resume” and how it is often easier to bring in someone from the outside. “Everybody needs someone, someone on the outside to come in and help get that stuff out of them.”
[44:01] Marcus mentions a few of the questions that he asks his clients to get them thinking about what they want their brand to be about.
[47:03] Ken concludes this week’s episode by saying that, “I don't want to be known for a service, I want to be known for the result I created in the world.”