Creating A Powerful Brand for Your Mushroom Farm

Before you begin laying the groundwork for your brand message, you’ll want to make sure you thoroughly understand your market.  This includes knowing who your potential customers are, and who the competition is.

Here are a few ways to do this:

Research social media accounts from within your target audience. Pay close attention to what they tweet, how they respond to posts, what they like and are most receptive to. 

You’ll want to do the same for your your competitor’s.  Focus on what kinds of content is being posted that boosts engagement as well as how they’ve positioned themselves in the market.

Google your niche and analyze the top search results. Spend time on their websites, read their sales copy and if possible, purchase a few of their products so you can evaluate the type of content being offered. 

Spend time within Facebook and subreddits where people in your niche congregate to discuss common topics.  Look for commonly asked questions, and always keep a look out for ongoing discussions as it signifies a growing demand for help in specific segments of your market.

As you research, take as many notes as possible! 

Look for who your average customer is and who your top competitors are. These are existing brands that have established themselves in your market. You can learn a lot from how they’ve positioned themselves as influential leaders and created a brand around that image.

It’s important that you truly understand your target audience before you create your brand. You want to build your brand image around what your average customer feels is most important to them. If you do this, you can’t go wrong.

Once you’ve done your research, it’s time to figure out your positioning statement.  This is simply a few lines that describe your brand and solidifies your place in your market.

This isn’t necessarily something you include on your website or on business cards.  It’s simply an expression of how your products and services fill a specific need in your market. It gives people a compelling reason to buy from you.

The easiest way to come up with a solid positioning statement or USP is to think of your brand as a customer.  What would she/he be most interested in? What words would matter most?  What offers or promises are expected? What questions do they have?

Thinking about your brand from a customer’s perspective will help you choose a voice for your business that speaks to your audience and ultimately sets the tone for everything from marketing campaigns, social media updates to the content on your website.