Congratulations! You've decided to go out on your own and build your own company. This can be a most exciting time in your career, and perhaps a little scary, as you now have the opportunity to soar to new heights. Ensuring that you have a solid marketing plan can be the difference between success and failure. You would be surprised by how many times companies are underfunded in this most crucial arena, especially in the beginning.

Why this happens makes sense, of course. A new company has many expenses; office space, signage, employees, just to name a few. A marketing budget is something that may seem discretionary in the beginning. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. A marketing budget and strategic plan are crucial to a start up business and should be thought through and implemented with care.

First, it's important to be able to communicate a clear message to your target audience. How is your company different? What makes you stand apart from the competition? Answering these questions will allow you to start to formulate your brand. Branding is an important long term strategy that will enable consumers to identify and remember you when it comes time for them to need your services.

Business owners sometimes place branding on the back burner. This is mostly because it's expensive to brand a company and doesn't often result in immediate leads. It's important to understand, however, that a clear and consistent branding strategy is the foundation of a growing company. Branding takes time, but can be the difference between just getting by and really making it in the competitive world of real estate. On average, it takes a minimum of 5 years of effective marketing to brand a company. So, making sure your message and target audience are solid is an important first step.

Once you've gotten your brand and concept buttoned up, it's important to figure out how you will communicate your message to your target audience. Consistency is key. This means that everyone in your organization is vested in your brand and communicates the company value proposition in the same manner. It means that your logo is consistent in all advertising and marketing, and it also means that you are committed to marketing vehicles that allow you to speak to your audience on an ongoing basis. These vehicles can include social media, conventional media, public relations, content creation, and email marketing. It's important that all of these vehicles work together on an ongoing basis to strengthen your brand.

With marketing preparation and planning, your new company can soar beyond your wildest expectations! May the world be your oyster!

For more information, visit: Expose Yourself Public Relations