Marketing 101

How to build a brand strategy from 0-1: a guide for startups

// 🧵

Reminder: brand strategy should be done WITH your Head of product and Head of Ops vs presented to them.

This creates buy-in and alignment on why this is important from day 1.

Brand strategy is NOT a marketing plan.

Brand strategy is WHY you will win.

Marketing plan is HOW: levers you will pull to hit your goals.

Step 1: Review Competitive Landscape

Do tear downs.
Understand leading value props.
Interview users of your competition to understand what’s working, what’s not.

Know who the players are and where they play vs where you will play.

Step 1b: Create your “ONLY” statement

Complete this sentence

We are the only brand that does x, y and/ or z.

Are you better, faster, cheaper? What makes you different and how would you say that efficiently.

I've created $10,000,000 in traffic value:

Here's everything you need for a *simple* SEO strategy that works: 🧵

The secret for SEO success is not advanced strategies & cutting edge ideas.

It's a simple plan paired with consistent execution.

To succeed, view SEO through the proper lens -- building equity into online presence.

It takes time & effort.

The 5-Step Simple SEO Strategy:

1. Keyword Research:

Identify the search terms that have a combination of search volume & intent.

Intent = why is this being searched?

Types of Keyword Intent:

Information: Shoes
Brand: Nike Shoes
Purchase: Best basketball shoes

Mix in all 3 -- to drive traffic & conversions.

The further down the funnel, the less volume, but higher purchasing intent.

2. On Page SEO:

Insert keywords into the proper places, so search engines understand site topic and target keywords.

- Page Titles
- Meta Descriptions
- Alt Text
- Content Structure (H1/H2/H3)

These are signals that algorithms use as information to influence rankings.

With digital advertising getting tougher and too many choices for consumers, it's important to have a website that is:

• story-first
• easy-to-navigate
• made to convert

If your grandma can't use it, you've already lost.

Here are 11 tips to build a high-converting site 👇

Have a compelling story and brand narrative on the homepage.

Your homepage should have a good balance of explaining WHO you are, WHY you exist, and WHAT you sell.

If someone doesn't go further, they should walk away with an understanding of all 3.

Focus on driving a customer journey.

Whether you're selling skincare or cookware, point the customer in the right direction with CTAs.

When merchandising, you should have a hierarchy of what you want your customer to buy. This helps reduce a customer's analysis/paralysis.

Incorporate social proof across the website & Google search results.

The latter: makes sure you stand apart in Google searches (search "non-toxic cookware" and you'll see)

The former: gives perspective from different POVs to potential customers.

Don't use full-bleed websites

From the data I've looked at, most people don't scroll when the website is full-bleed and you can't see the next section.

If you must, add a floating arrow or indicate there's another section to scroll into.

Always show there's more!