Last week, we talked about some of the things you can do to set yourself apart from other agents in your area while utilizing websites, newsletters and trade magazine articles. This week we are going to go a little deeper into the concept of branding yourself and setting yourself apart by discussing the creation and implementation of your brand.

Create your brand. When we say this, you may automatically think, “I need a logo!” But that is only one part of the process. Your brand needs to tell your client who you are, what you do, and what they can expect from you. Create a tag line and mission statement that reflect your brand and purpose and think about how to incorporate it into all aspects of your business.

Maintain a professional website. Whether you use a professionally designed website or a free Wordpress template, it needs to look professional. All graphics and design elements should be crisp, orderly, inoffensive and sensible. The content on the site should be professional and informative with no spelling or grammatical errors. Lastly, the content and the design must cohesively represent your brand. It should have the same colors as your logo and the content should carry a voice consistent with your tagline and mission.

Add a blog. Blogs allow you to post relevant content on your website while responding to current events and keeping your clients and potential clients informed. In addition, it gives your readers the opportunity to communicate with you through comments and develop a relationship with a foundation of trust. The blog should support and enforce your brand.

Be committed. One of the best ways to create, build and solidify your brand is to be committed to it. Always strive to represent the things your brand stands for. Remember, it’s not just a tag line and a pretty picture—your brand is you.

One trip to a grocery store will tell you that there are a lot of choices to be made each day. If you want “o” shaped, fruit-flavored cereal for breakfast, it’s no longer a matter of running to the store and grabbing a box. It’s now a matter of going to the store, finding all the fruity-O possibilities and comparing ingredients, vitamins, calories, quality guarantees, etc. Often, tired consumers without the time or inclination to compare will just reach for whatever product they are most familiar with, thanks to that company’s tireless branding and marketing efforts.

In the insurance industry, many agents in a territory compete over the same clients. They may have insurance offerings that vary wildly from each other, but often the only agent who even gets a phone call to meet with a client is the one whose name (or brand) is recognized by the prospect. There are a few very easy ways for you to start edging out competition by promoting brand YOU in a memorable way.

1. Create a website and promote it locally. A website gives your potential clients an easy, electronic format for meeting you. Think of your website as an introduction. A professionally designed website with relevant and educational content that shows up in local online search results and is promoted at local events and club gatherings will help to create a place for your information in the minds of your potential clients.

2. Send a regular email newsletter. Of course, visiting your website once certainly brings about brand YOU awareness, but it doesn’t provide any reminders about the importance of insurance and it doesn’t strengthen your brand recognition over time. By offering a newsletter sign up from on your website, you give your prospect the opportunity to be reminded of you every month in their inbox. With a newsletter, they receive a reminder of your presence as well as a strengthening of their opinion of you as a caring and trusted authority.

3. Create articles that can be published as advertisements in local papers and on local websites. You can purchase pre-written insurance content and personalize before submitting them to the editors of local online and print publications. This gives potential clients who read only print materials access to your brand and those who read both print and web materials extra doses of your brand.

Used together, you have a three-pronged approach to branding that hits all the major communication angles: web, email and print.

You may not dream of seeing your name in the lights, but to have your byline appear in an industry recognized trade magazine could be lucrative for your agency. The authority that comes with a published credit in a respected industry journal is undeniable and the potential marketing opportunities are impossible to ignore.

Luckily, trade magazines are always looking for new contributors. While they may have some staff writers, most trade magazines accept articles every month from guest writers, industry experts and freelancers. Often, in an effort to cut costs, trade magazines will run articles written by industry professionals who are not asking for pay. By not asking for payment for the article, the professional has a greater chance of the article being accepted and their byline appearing in next month’s issue.

But not everyone has the ability to write the kind of article that trade magazines or online publishers want to print. Sometimes, you need a little help—help that a ghostwritten article can provide. Ghostwritten articles produced by industry professionals are accurate, interesting and lay the groundwork to define you as an industry authority. When you buy our pre-written insurance content, you get industry-relevant and timely content written by professional ghostwriters that can be personalized by you to promote certain points that you want the article to convey.

When you market your agency, you leave no stone unturned. You network, cold call, send newsletters, gather leads, create a web presence, advertise—you do all the things you are supposed to do to attract new clients. Buying articles for use in trade magazines is just one more step in cementing your place as an authority and getting your name out there—even if it isn’t in the lights.