I watched a video interview last week where Chris Brogan interviewed John Morgan about his book called Brand Against The Machine. Here are two things that stood out to me from that interview:

1. Your brand is a commitment.

The only thing wrong with this is statement is that I didn’t say it like this before John did.  Your brand is WAY more than your logo. It’s your commitment to an idea/thought/opinion/way of doing things/experience. This is what we call Living Your Stand Out Brand™.

2. Creating content is not really where it’s at anymore.

Content is everywhere. Your opinion on your content is your opportunity to stand out and start a conversation.

Can I have an amen!? The way to make people follow and care about your content is to add your personal style, thoughts and opinions. People follow your content for your unique spin. So go ahead – provoke some thoughts and stir up an interesting conversation.

Watch the interview here if you’re interested – just scroll down a bit to find it: http://brandagainstthemachine.com/

Branding. It’s one of those words that gives many business owners pause. It conjures questions like:

• What is our brand, exactly?
• How can we effectively showcase our brand?
• What can we do to strengthen our brand?

Here are a few things to think about as you take a closer look at your brand and how to incorporate it into your life and business so you can feel it in your bones. Because as the leader of your company, if you can’t feel it and live it yourself, you don’t stand a chance of anyone else “getting it” either. (more…)

When I was in college, I worked at a Hyatt hotel in the Washington, DC area at the front desk. They drilled into our heads that we were to say “my pleasure” in response to someone saying “thank you.”

At the time, I thought it was a bunch of nonsense. “Whatever!”

With some time and life experience, I came to realize how important these two little words really were. It truly is a pleasure to be of service. And people who have that attitude are infinitely much more fun to be around.

Fast forward to today and I’ve noticed more and more that some people are responding to “thank you” with this: “No problem.”

It always makes me think: “What? I wasn’t aware that I may have been giving you a problem. All I did patronize your business.” Like order a meal at a restaurant. Or buy groceries. Or check in at the airport. Or buy shoes for my kids… You get my point.

Saying, “no problem” is hard, cold and uninviting. Saying, “my pleasure” is warm, friendly and carries a tone of service. And it just sounds better.

So as a person who provides a service to others, knowing how you and/or your staff will respond to someone saying “thank you” is an extremely important yet often overlooked detail. It’s a part of the overall brand experience that you create for your clients and customers.

So which would you rather do: Use two simple words to leave someone with a warm and friendly feeling or cold and distant feeling?

So, the next time someone says, “thank you,” think of replying with a smile and a heartfelt “my pleasure.”

Ahhhh…. Now doesn’t that feel better?

Whether you are a small business, micro business or big business, showcasing what makes you special, notable and different is what makes you stand out. And businesses that stand out are the most memorable. Memorable businesses get more business.

Here’s a simple thing to do that will help you stand out without reinventing the wheel:

Notice what makes you uniquely you and use it to spread your message and your special point of view. For example, one of our clients is a health coach uses the word “yummy” to describe things.

“That sweater is yummy!”
“This exercise is yummy!”
“My vacation was yummy!”

It’s just so HER!

After doing a branding exercise with us, she now that  she is aware that she uses this language naturally and she intentionally incorporates it into her business through her “Yummy Tips” in her newsletter and on social media. It helps her to be memorable and stand out. (Check her out on twitter: @sallykennedy)

This may seem like a small insignificant thing, but in fact, small things like this add up to make a really big difference. So do you have a word you favor? Or another notable nuance? How can you use it to stand out?

I’m sure you have heard about Facebook’s Timeline, the new layout that they have been rolling out to profile pages. Well, effective March 30 Facebook is going to change all brand pages to use Timeline as well. What this means for you if you have a brand page is that if you don’t change your profile before March 30, your timeline cover photo will just be a big gray box, and it will look like your page is inactive. It’s a simple thing to update your profile to use Timeline. Facebook has made it dead simple by providing a help page with instructions.

The dimensions of your cover photo should be 851 x 315. Here are some examples of brands (both large and small) that have already implemented timeline on their pages:

• Coca-Cola
• Tiffany
• Herbal Essences
• Dove
• The Law Office of Doug Bend (see, it’s not just the big companies who are doing it)

As you can see, there are lots of different options for how to implement Timeline for your page. So get creative! The important thing is to do something before March 30, before Facebook makes the change for you. Trust me, whatever you choose to do will represent your brand better than the big gray box Facebook has waiting for you if you do nothing!