5 Surefire Strategies To Increase Brand Awareness

Your customers live in an unpredictable world. When they search online for a product or service, they must navigate a marketplace crowded with competing options, most of which they've never encountered before. So, is it any wonder they prefer familiar brands?

According to the Global Banking and Finance Review, 71% of consumers prefer to buy from a brand they recognize. That recognition is the essence of brand awareness — an easily overlooked but essential element of brand building.

In this article, we'll talk about how to increase brand awareness. You'll learn what strategies are most effective and get tips for building awareness as a brand.

Why Brand Awareness Is Important for Your Business

With strong brand recognition, your audiences can identify your brand through its signature visuals and voice. This easy familiarity helps you generate more sales.

Brand awareness is the first step to building brand loyalty, a key driver of business growth.

5 Strategies To Boost Your Brand Awareness

Here are five strategies that can help businesses of any size to build brand awareness, even if you're learning what that means.

1. Support Your Community

Community involvement is one of the most meaningful ways to build brand awareness. Did you know that 82% of shoppers prefer to buy from brands that share their values? You show local buyers what you stand for by demonstrating tangible support for your community.

Consider supporting a local youth sports team, sponsoring charity events, or donating to a nonprofit — sharing updates about your support online. And remember, the most important thing is that this support matches your brand values.

2. Run Awareness Ads

Reaching new audiences is one of a business's most significant challenges. Digital advertising is the most reliable way to close that gap.

Digital ads are highly versatile and are available on all major search engines and social media platforms. From Facebook to LinkedIn, social media platforms offer plenty of paid ad space. And digital ads appear as sponsored results on review sites like Yelp and in Google search engine results.

What Makes Awareness Ads Different?

Awareness ads are unique because they’re more about getting to know the brand than pushing a specific action (like a purchase).

For example, suppose a new childcare center wants to get the attention of local parents. Instead of urging readers to "enroll today!" or even "schedule a visit," an awareness ad might highlight the center's college-educated staff and evidence-based curriculum. 

Creating Successful Awareness Ads

The key is emphasizing what makes you different and understanding and speaking to your target audience's unmet needs.

Suppose you offer financial planning services for millennials and Gen Z. Financial services ads are notorious for targeting older consumers, so your ad would emphasize relevance to a younger demographic. You might mention why you understand a younger investor's needs and what a young person gains from financial planning.

Awareness ads also need a solid but low-pressure call to action (CTA). A "learn more" angle is ideal. Most importantly, your ad must be compelling enough to prompt the reader to take action.

Designing an awareness ad is a delicate balance. Consider working with a marketing agency with experience in multiple forms of digital advertising, including Google Ads and social media.

3. Promote Free Offerings

An awareness-stage consumer may not be ready to buy, but everyone loves to receive something for free. Offering a relevant freebie is an effective way to impress first-contact consumers and convince skeptics to try your brand.

Which Freebies To Offer

The perfect freebie varies by industry. Product-based brands can offer a free sample, which customers can claim in person or by submitting their addresses online. The "Just pay for shipping!" model is standard for this kind of giveaway.

Service-based businesses can offer free amenities or branded swag for customers who try their service. A beauty salon might offer a free trial bottle of shampoo with a cut and color. A dog daycare could provide a free training session for new pups.

4. Run Contests on Your Socials

Like giveaways, social media contests supercharge your engagement with new audiences. All you need is a valuable prize and a promotion strategy.

Structuring Your Contest

Start by choosing the type of engagement you want. Social contests are ideal for generating user-generated content (UGC), such as videos or photos of consumers using your product.

Picture a new bakery looking for local attention. The bakery owners might ask their social followers to send pictures of special occasions where customers are enjoying their baked goods. The winner gets a gift certificate for a free birthday cake.

Local families post pictures of birthday parties, baby showers, and reunions, tagging the bakery. Those customers' friends and families see those pictures and might even order a cake themselves. It's a win-win.

Don't want to ask for content? Like/share/comment entries are popular, too, as are contests that ask entrants to follow the brand. For example, you can offer one contest entry for everyone who follows you on Instagram and shares your contest post.

Generating Word of Mouth With Your Giveaway

Marketing your giveaway online is excellent for generating buzz. Promote it on various channels, always inviting readers to tell a friend. Make sharing easy with social media links on blog posts and any forms people would fill out to get the promotion.

5. Create Content To Work With the Algorithms

Social media algorithms ultimately determine who sees your content. Current followers have the best chance of encountering your material, but you must reach further to increase brand awareness.

To make that happen, you need to create content that algorithms will recommend. Recommended content is anything a platform's algorithm matches with a particular user based on that user's prior behavior and selected interests. 

Algorithm-based recommendations give you extra exposure, which helps you reach users who wouldn't otherwise know about your brand. The challenge is putting out content that algorithms will notice.

Start by digging into how social media algorithms work. You don't need to know the nitty-gritty technical details, but it helps to understand where recommendations come from. Keep these touchpoints in mind when creating content.

It's often helpful to partner with influencers and other brands. Algorithms will count interactions with your partner's content in your favor, giving you a better chance of reaching more people.

Bonus: Keep It Consistent

The science is clear — consistent brands are more recognizable. Before you launch any brand awareness strategy, take time to define and specify your brand image. 

Identify what colors, fonts, and graphics your brand uses. Describe your brand voice similarly to how you describe a person. You might be formal or casual, funny or serious, etc. Be as specific as you can.

Consolidate your choices into a brand style guide and make sure everyone on your creative team has a copy so the content you put out, from Google Ads to YouTube videos, incorporates your brand’s aesthetic.

Be consistent with your posting schedule. More people will see if you release blog posts and social content regularly.

Improve Your Brand Awareness With Expert Help

Brand awareness is the foundation of your digital marketing strategy. You can build a loyal audience with a solid plan and compelling messaging.

At Optimize Digital Marketing, we understand today's digital audience. We're here to help you build brand awareness campaigns that get your name out there. And because we know how to measure brand awareness, we can guide you to do more of what works.



To learn more about how to increase your brand awareness online or discover the other services Optimize can offer your business, schedule a free consultation today.