Consumers’ buying behaviour has changed markedly since the COVID-19 pandemic began. While the full impact will not be known for some time, its clear that there will be an increased push towards e-commerce. Find out how to brand your products with Neelofa and learn her methods of success!
Posted by SME & ENTREPRENEURSHIP MAGAZINE on Jumaat, 12 Jun 2020
What is a business without a brand? To put it simply, very little. Branding is a way to give your business a “face.” It makes your business recognisable in a world where both successful and failing businesses are a dime-a-dozen.
It goes without saying that consumers will often gravitate towards brands that they recognise. Familiarity breeds trust, which in turn leads to confidence in a brand’s product and/or service. Creating a standout brand is therefore of paramount importance to any business.
Your brand is your reputation, and it’s in your hands to bring this reputation to life through clever brand strategy. This is even more important now in a post-COVID-19 society.
SME Magazine conducted a short webinar in order to discuss ways as to how businesses can build their online brand and establish themselves in the digital world to thrive in the ‘new normal’. The panellists includes Zed Lee, Head of Seller Management, Shopee, Mohamad Aqief, CEO, NH Prima International Sdn Bhd, and celebrity actor and entrepreneur, Neelofa.
This lineup of panellists is unique in that NH Prima International and Shopee have collaborated with each other to elevate both brands to a whole new level of success. All three panellists agree that such cooperation between businesses is vital in the post-COVID environment for SMEs to thrive.
With regards to building an online brand, Aqief believes that groundwork must first be laid. This includes driving awareness online, especially through the use of social media, understanding ones audience and their expectations, and familiarising ones self with their intended online platform.
Aqief also believes that while building an online brand is necessary to adapt to the digital age, offline business will still remain an important aspect in retail. This is particularly true for businesses that start out in physical retail before establishing and online presence.
Neelofa also mentions that despite being a celebrity, building an brand both online and offline was no easy task. While she acknowledges that getting the attention of her audience was made easier due to her fame, maintaining the interest of the target market is far more difficult. As such, she believes that creating a cohesive team that listens to feedback and understands the expectations of their customers through social media is vital to brand building.
On the other hand, Zed advises aspiring entrepreneurs to experiment with selling their products of online platforms before considering opening up a physical store or starting their own website. Plenty of online sales platforms offer much lower barriers of entry when it comes to selling products, while also allowing the seller to gauge the market and control their brand message.
Consumers’ buying behaviour has changed markedly since the COVID-19 pandemic began. While the full impact will not be known for some time, it’s clear that there will be an increased push towards e-commerce. As such, online branding is more important now than it ever was.
You can view the entire webinar via the SME Magazine Facebook page, which can be found here.
