The Dog Whistle Branding Playbook
For Veteran Small Businesses to drive revenue by engaging with their perfect customers, they need learn the ins and outs of Dog Whistle Branding, so they know how to attract and communicate with them.
Imagine if there was a dog whistle you could blow, that causes your perfect customer to come running. This dog whistle is like music to your perfect customers ears, and by the time they reach you, they’re begging to pay for your products or services. Guess what? That whistle does exist, it’s called your brand. If it’s not, it’s because you don't have a dog whistle brand. Don't worry, there's still hope, so get some some pen and paper, and get ready to take some notes!
The biggest veteran-owned small business owners make is trying to market their product or services to the wrong customer.
Instead of wasting time, energy, and resources, marketing to the wrong people, veteran-owned small businesses need to adopt a dog whistle branding mindset. Stop praying and spraying precious marketing dollars all over the internet, making a bunch of noise to attract attention. It’s not working and it’s why you don’t have any return on investment from that PR or marketing firm you have on retainer for 10k a month, with nothing to show for it!
Rather than burning through cash on marketing and branding that doesn’t work, take some time to dial in your brand, and position yourself as a category of one.
This makes it easier for your perfect customers to find you, engage with you, and tell all their friends how amazing your products and services are. The key is to niche down, and create marketing category, that you're uniquely qualified to serve, such as other veteran owned businesses, or an industry you have expertise in.
Once you do, Stop settling for prospect calls and start chasing perfect customer calls!
The type of calls that from the moment you open your mouth, you have a perfect customer. Not only will they be hooked on who you are and what you stand for, but the day you send the proposal, they'll immediately sign it, pay your fees upfront, and are ready to get to work! They are grateful and appreciate the opportunity to work with you, even sending a constant stream of referrals your way. It makes you wish all your customers could be like this. I’m here to tell you they can, you just need to apply IRONBOUND Media’s Dog Whistle Branding (DWB) Framework.
The sole purpose of our 3-step DWB framework is to attract your perfect customer; not your not so perfect customer, or the clients to keep the lights on.
We want the rock stars, the clients are a pleasure to work with, pay you a premium, and recommend you to all their friends and colleagues. Hell, I’m willing to bet they’d wash your car for you if you asked them. Maybe not wash your car, but you get the point.
The process is simple:
- Identify your perfect customer ( i.e. Former Army Officer now Nonprofit CEO, Chief Procurement Officer at Medical Supply Company, CEO of a small business mastermind, etc. )
- Demographics
- Geographics
- Psychographics
- Non-negotiables
- Find their preferred whistle. (Free workshop, podcast, video series, blog post, articles, etc. Something that is externally facing in an effort to locate your perfect customer, and draw them in).
- Dial-in your branding. (Make it easy for them to find you and engage with you. Once you blow that whistle and your perfect customer comes running, they’re going to visit your website, book a consultation or product demonstration, or attend a paid workshop. When they do, your brand needs to be on point!
- Internal Branding- Core Purpose, Core Values, Bold Beliefs, Brand Promises, etc.
- External Branding- Brand Aesthetics, Brand Proprietary Framework, etc.
Once you apply the DWB framework, the fun begins. You must apply this ruthlessly to every product, service, or customer facing aspect of your brand. You have to test your strategies on a weekly, monthly, and quarterly basis until you get it right, because once you do, not only will you increase revenue, you’ll increase your happiness and by working with perfect customers.
Now that you know how to apply our 3 Step DWB Framework, it’s time to stop wasting precious time, money, and resources on prospects who were never going to buy from you in the first place.
If you want the best bang for your marketing buck, working with us at IRONBOUND Media, where we leverage our DWB Framework to help Veteran-Owned Small Businesses, create, distribute, and grow branded podcasts for their companies and organizations. Podcasts are our Dog Whistles, and we’d love to help you build one.
Learn more about Dog Whistle branding and our other services at IRONBOUND Media, by visiting our website at www.IRONBOUNDMedia.com.
