The brand development process can seem intimidating for small businesses today, especially when you’re competing against big corporations that have the finances to create million-dollar creative designs and online marketing plans — not to mention seemingly unlimited funds to brand a product, focus on UX web design, and retouch their company’s brand whenever needed.

But it’s important to realize that the brand development process doesn’t have to be complicated — and it’s also incredibly important as the foundation for any solid online marketing plan.

Here are just a few ways to start developing your own brand … although to be honest, you’ve probably already begun branding yourself without even realizing it!

• Step 1: Figure out what your business is providing, what you really care about and why you want to be an important part of your industry. This is all about figuring out what your values are and it defines what drives you and your employees to do your best work everyday.
  

• Step 2: Figure out who your customers are, why your business matters to them, and what they expect to get when they interact with your business. Unlike the first step, it will help to try to separate yourself from the company and put yourself in the shoes of your customers; your core values should tie in closely with the values of your customers.
  

• Step 3: Figure out who your competitors are and why they’re important. Having competitors can be a healthy part of your business model because you can learn from their strategies (and also their mistakes). This is also a time to figure out what makes your business unique from all the others.
  

• Step 4: Narrow down what your business is all about and create a mission statement that succinctly states what your purpose is, what you intend to provide, and how your business is impacting the community around you. This doesn’t have to be extensive — often just a sentence or two will do the trick!
  

• Step 5: Start looking at how to incorporate your brand into your marketing plan. This isn’t really a step that should end; instead, it’s an ongoing process to make sure that your marketing plan adequately represents who you are and what you do. And if you’re having trouble with this part, don’t hesitate to reach out to a professional marketing agency for some help!