The Truth About Brand Awareness 🪴

It’s what we all want right? The ever illusive goal of “brand awareness”.

OPEN TABS: SUPER DOSE NEWSLETTER

In this edition of Open Tabs, I’m breaking down the concept of awareness into 2 categories, macro, and micro as a guide for earlier stage businesses and a BUNCH of tactics you can use to not just get it but keep it (i.e. types of awareness, lead gen strategies, & nurture tactics).

JOIN THE SUPER DOSE

The Truth About Brand Awareness

OPEN TABS: super dose newsletter

In this edition of Open Tabs, I’m breaking down the concept of awareness into 2 categories, macro, and micro as a guide for earlier stage businesses and a BUNCH of tactics you can use to not just get it but keep it (i.e. types of awareness, lead gen strategies, & nurture tactics).

It’s what we all want right? The ever illusive goal of “brand awareness”.

join the super dose
  • Pop-up shop experiences in NYC or London
  • Huge OOH campaigns like billboards in Times Square or Sunset Boulevard
  • Hosting elaborate dinners for influencers at hot restaurants or clubs
  • Partnering with top tier influencers etc. to post about your product
  • Expensive PR boxes that go viral
  • Being a guest speaker at a huge conference or podcast


I sure am and I’m here waiting to make it happen with you.
The good news is, well there are 2 things:

Think of micro as the deposit, and the macro as the interest 🤑

MICRO (Actually Doable Right Now)
  • Host a founder meet & greet in a hotel lobby, studio, or café
  • Rent a room or studio and create an “open studio” pop-up
  • Offer a local wellness studio or retailer a custom discount code for their members
  • Partner with community-driven fitness or co-working spots for low-key events
  • Invite your best customers to try a product pre-launch, then debrief on Zoom
  • Pitch yourself to small but relevant media platforms or “discovery” accounts
  • Offer your product for in-kind sponsorships at relevant community events
  • Volunteer to teach a workshop for a coworking space or founder group

Lead Gen Strategies ⚡️

  • Cultivated connections with people who have an authentic interest in what’s coming up for you and pass on more opportunities
  • An open dialogue, where you’re in each other’s DM’s and stories (to the BFF level)
  • Word of mouth marketing - the GOLDEN TICKET TO SUCCESS - yes it deserves to be in caps, because organic referrals that spread like wildfire are the best thing you can hope for
  • Walking billboards in the form of people out there in the wild, wearing, using, eating, talking about your brand
MICRO:

Nurture Tactics 💌

jump on a Supercharged Strategy Sesh with me

You can’t get the interest without putting in the deposit. I suck at analogies but I think that one is pretty good…right?!

There are some AMAZING marketing tactics being deployed out there and they’re being spoken about with high regard, but with all due respect, they are not things that are relevant to your stage of business and can set unrealistic expectations of what level you should be at, things like:


These are what I’d call macro level tactics, and generally, cost a lot of money and require a lot of resources which like most of the founders I speak to, is not your reality right now.

That’s why they’re not relevant to you. And often just make you feel like you’re behind.

  1. There are a ton of ways you can do things like this, that are relevant to your stage of business, and will get you the awareness you’re looking for so that you can work your way toward having the resources to do these things too.
  2. These brands made their micro deposits along the way before they got to the interest part too.
I call it grassroots tactics, planting the seed, building a solid foundation, whatever you want to call it - and with the right love and attention (and patience) they will grow, as will your awareness.

Let’s break it all down > and you tell me what seems the most logical, and attainable to you.
MACRO (Aspirational, Not Always Attainable)
  • IRL pop-ups in major markets
  • Huge OOH campaigns
  • Influencer dinners with stylists and PR teams
  • Viral gifting boxes
  • Speaking slots at buzzy conferences
MICRO= High-Connection, High-Conversion
  • Loyal customers who rave about your product (BFF’s)
  • Up-and-coming creators genuinely obsessed with your brand
  • Founders, coaches, or professionals who share you with their people

Types of Awareness 🎲

The accessible, authentic, grassroots growth moves.

MACRO= High-Reach, Low-Control
  • Celebs or top-tier influencers
  • Major podcast or media features
  • Billboard-level visibility

The viral, expensive, often out-of-reach moments.

NGL, that best can be game-changing but…chances are low and stakes are high.
MACRO:
  • One and done, saw a huge spike (at best) but now it’s back to the status quo
  • Blew the budget and now that relationship is all over - you’re one of many in a long list of brands vying for attention and left to hope for the best
I’ve been at the receiving end of both where we saw 500%+ growth from a product play on TV with Rachel Ray, but then nada from a dedicated founder and product feature in Vogue Beauty Secrets video with millions of impressions.
I’ve also been at the receiving end of THIS kind of momentum where it’s more profitable and sets the tone for sustainable, incremental growth that reads, nourished, whole-food nutrition, instead of a business metrics dashboard that reads like a blood sugar spike after a margarita…

And unfortunately, we all know we can’t live on margaritas 🍹
Ready for some grassroots IFGT tactics?

Think of micro as the deposit, and the macro as the interest 🤑

jump on a Supercharged Strategy Sesh with me
  • Pop-up shop experiences in NYC or London.
  • Huge OOH campaigns like billboards in Times Square or Sunset Boulevard.
  • Hosting elaborate dinners for influencers at hot restaurants or clubs.
  • Partnering with top tier influencers etc. to post about your product.
  • Expensive PR boxes that go viral.
  • Being a guest speaker at a huge conference or podcast.

The viral, expensive, often out-of-reach moments.

Nurture Tactics 💌

  • Loyal customers who rave about your product (BFF’s).
  • Up-and-coming creators genuinely obsessed with your brand.
  • Founders, coaches, or professionals who share you with their people.

MICRO (Actually Doable Right Now)

I sure am and I’m here waiting to make it happen with you.

  1. There are a ton of ways you can do things *like this*, that *are* relevant to your stage of business, and will get you the awareness you’re looking for so that you can work your way toward having the resources to do these things too.
  2. These brands made their micro deposits along the way before they got to the interest part too.

You can’t get the interest without putting in the deposit. I suck at analogies but I think that one is pretty good…right?!

There are some AMAZING marketing tactics being deployed out there and they’re being spoken about with high regard, but with all due respect, they are not things that are relevant to your stage of business and can set unrealistic expectations of what level you should be at, things like:

The good news is, well there are 2 things:

I call it grassroots tactics, planting the seed, building a solid foundation, whatever you want to call it - and with the right love and attention (and patience) they will grow, as will your awareness.

Let’s break it all down > and you tell me what seems the most logical, and attainable to you.

These are what I’d call macro level tactics, and generally, cost a lot of money and require a lot of resources which like most of the founders I speak to, is not your reality right now.

That’s why they’re not relevant to you. And often just make you feel like you’re behind.

MICRO= High-Connection, High-Conversion

  • Host a founder meet & greet in a hotel lobby, studio, or café.
  • Rent a room or studio and create an “open studio” pop-up.
  • Offer a local wellness studio or retailer a custom discount code for their members.
  • Partner with community-driven fitness or co-working spots for low-key events.
  • Invite your best customers to try a product pre-launch, then debrief on Zoom.
  • Pitch yourself to small but relevant media platforms or “discovery” accounts.
  • Offer your product for in-kind sponsorships at relevant community events.
  • Volunteer to teach a workshop for a co-working space or founder group.

The viral, expensive, often out-of-reach moments.

  • Celebs or top-tier influencers
  • Major podcast or media features
  • Billboard-level visibility

MACRO= High-Reach, Low-Control

Types of Awareness 🎲

MACRO:

  • Cultivated connections with people who have an authentic interest in what’s coming up for you and pass on more opportunities.
  • An open dialogue, where you’re in each other’s DM’s and stories (to the BFF level).
  • Word of mouth marketing - the GOLDEN TICKET TO SUCCESS - yes it deserves to be in caps, because organic referrals that spread like wildfire are the best thing you can hope for.
  • Walking billboards in the form of people out there in the wild, wearing, using, eating, talking about your brand.

Lead Gen Strategies ⚡️

MACRO (Aspirational, Not Always Attainable)

  • IRL pop-ups in major markets
  • Huge OOH campaigns
  • Influencer dinners with stylists and PR teams
  • Viral gifting boxes
  • Speaking slots at buzzy conferences

I’ve been at the receiving end of both where we saw 500%+ growth from a product play on TV with Rachel Ray, but then nada from a dedicated founder and product feature in Vogue Beauty Secrets video with millions of impressions.

MACRO:

  • One and done, saw a huge spike (at best) but now it’s back to the status quo.
  • Blew the budget and now that relationship is all over - you’re one of many in a long list of brands vying for attention and left to hope for the best.

I’ve also been at the receiving end of THIS kind of momentum where it’s more profitable and sets the tone for sustainable, incremental growth that reads, nourished, whole-food nutrition, instead of a business metrics dashboard that reads like a blood sugar spike after a margarita…

And unfortunately, we all know we can’t live on margaritas 🍹

NGL, that best can be game-changing but… chances are low and stakes are high.

Ready for some grassroots IFGT tactics?

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