How to Increase Brand Awareness: 15 Ways [Complete List]

There are many ways to increase brand awareness. In this blog post, we’ll discuss some of the best methods and how you can make them work for your business. Check out these tips!

Here are the 15 ways to boost your brand awareness:

1. Answer to mentions
2. Embrace influencer marketing
3. Use search advertising
4. Employ remarketing techniques
5. Use customers’ testimonials
6. Guest posting in related industries
7. Use trending hashtags
8. Create a hashtag campaign
9. Produce consistent content
10. Create a social media contest
11. Invest in the referral program
12. Engage with customers
13. Sponsor events
14. Make your product exclusive
15. Invest in sources that bring results

15 tips on how to increase brand awareness

01 Answer to mentions

While developing your brand and products, people will mention it across the internet.

When someone mentions your brand on social media, it’s an opportunity to increase brand awareness and connect with potential customers.

By responding to media mentions, you can show that you’re listening and caring about your online community.

Quick, personal responses show that there’s a real person behind the brand, and this can help to build trust and loyalty. In addition, responding to mentions gives you a chance to share your brand’s story and highlight what makes you unique.

When done right, responding to social media mentions can be a powerful way to increase brand awareness and connect with customers.

How?

You need a social listening tool that will gather mentions containing keywords you want to track. Inside the monitoring project, you can filter mentions by popularity and importance. Such a tool can send you a report when interesting mentions appear.

The tool also detects whether the mention is positive, negative, or neutral. As it measures many valuable metrics (such as social media reach, the share of voice, presence score, engagement, etc.), it’s very helpful while running brand awareness campaigns.

02 Embrace influencer marketing

Work with industry influencers to increase brand awareness. Influencers can help you reach consumers you’d otherwise miss. 

They can spread your content and legitimize your message with their authority.

The key to successful social media influencer marketing for your company is choosing the right influencers. They have to align with your brand’s core values and have the same target audience as you do.

So, how do you choose the right ones? We have an answer!

Take a look at your project in Brand24, more specifically at the Analysis tab.

Brand24 analyses all the mentions and identifies two key metrics for identifying influencers:

• Influence of social media authors
• Most active social media authors

Brand24 also identifies the platform the influencers are active and calculates their share of voice, number of mentions, and reach.

That way, you can be sure that you choose the right influencer to work with.

How?

Influencer marketing works especially well on Instagram, although you should select the experts you work with carefully. Not every influencer is a good fit for every brand.

You need to consider the topics that the influencers talk about, whether their image is a good match for yours, how engaged their followers are, and many other factors.

As you continue to grow your audience, consider sponsoring or partnering with established industry influencers so their audiences can discover your brand. Like Olay, CVS, Calvin Klein, and Amazon are doing:

03 Use search advertising

Put your brand name in your customer’s line of vision with search advertising – one of the most popular forms of PPC.

Search advertising lets you show specific ads to particular audiences based on their needs. And the analytics behind it are rich in detail, so you can see who clicked on your ads, the types of interaction that occurred and whether these users returned later. Plus, customers find search ads to be much less disruptive than, say, pop-up ads.

How?

Start by bidding on keywords for ad placement in Google’s sponsored links. When customers try to Google these keywords, your ads will display at the top of the page, like in the Nike example below.

Even if you don’t receive a lot of clicks, this will make your company more visible and increase brand awareness.

04 Employ remarketing techniques

Remarketing ads work by finding audiences who have previously visited your website or used your mobile app so you can show them advertisements for your brand.

Remarketing has several benefits. When your customers see your brand everywhere, it creates the impression that you’re ‘bigger’ than you are. And much like search advertising, you can show specific ads based on audience behavior. Also, remarketing can help to spread the word and increase brand recognition. 

This creates a much more personalized message, making your brand more memorable. With the right approach, remarketing can be an invaluable tool for increasing brand awareness and driving sales.

How?

An important thing to watch out for is keeping your message consistent across channels (like all your search, email, and display ads) so that you don’t lose the effectiveness of your targeted messages. And busy or distracted customers can receive reminders about the brand they have been interested in.

05 Use customers’ testimonials

Customer testimonials are a great way to build brand awareness and convince undecided customers to opt for your product!

What are the perks of testimonials on your website?

• They help establish your credibility as a brand,
• They drive sales. There’s nothing more convincing than reading success stories from other satisfied clients,
• They are highly effective and free ads.

How?

So, where do you start with implementing customer testimonials on your website? Use all the positive mentions your media monitoring project has gathered!

You want to display only positive mentions about your products or services on your website. Don’t worry; we got you covered.

Brand24 offers a sentiment analysis option. In the Mentions tab, on the right side of the screen, you’ll find a slider that will filter the mentions according to their sentiment.

You can analyze only positive mentions with your predefined keyword and group them.

You can also check the Quotes feature that lists positive mentions.

06 Guest posting in related industries

By writing articles for other related websites, you can reach a whole new audience of potential customers. This will help increase traffic to your website and give you a chance to show off your expertise and build credibility in your industry.

How?

If you’re not sure where to start, try reaching out to some of the bigger websites in your niche and see if they’re interested in publishing guest posts. Or, you can search for guest posting opportunities on Google or social media.

Of course, it’s important that you choose the right sites to guest post on and that you create quality content that will resonate with their readers.

Whatever approach you take, ensure that your articles are well-written and informative.

07 Use trending hashtags

Hashtags extend the reach of your post. By capitalizing on trending topics, businesses can ensure that a wider audience sees their content. 

When used correctly, hashtags can be a powerful tool for driving traffic to your website or social media platform. Make sure you pick hashtags that are popular enough. 

Research has shown that brands that use hashtags on Twitter increase user engagement by 1.5X, while optimal results for Instagram can be obtained with 11 or more hashtags. 

How?

Pay attention to how popular the hashtags related to your topic are. You can use media monitoring for this purpose.

If you’re launching a campaign, consider creating your own hashtags to be used together with existing ones. 

Here are some tips:

• How to find trending hashtags on Twitter
• How to find trending hashtags on Instagram 
• How to find trending hashtags on Facebook 

08 Create a hashtag campaign

Creating a brand awareness campaign with a dedicated hashtag is a great way to increase brand awareness on social media platforms.

Businesses can reach a wide audience and create a buzz around their products or services by creating a unique hashtag and encouraging customers and followers to use it.

Moreover, a successful hashtag campaign can have a lasting impact on your brand recognition and visibility. While it takes some effort to create a successful marketing campaign, the rewards can be significant. So if you’re looking to increase brand awareness, a hashtag campaign is definitely worth considering.

How?

Think about what slogan will resonate with your target audiences. It should be short and catchy. For example, sportswear company Asics created a brand awareness campaign with the #ASICSFrontRunner hashtag. It’s very popular on Instagram.

09 Produce consistent content

In today’s competitive marketplace, a strong content marketing strategy is essential for any business that wants to succeed.

By providing valuable information that educates, entertains, or both, businesses can create a positive association with their brand in the minds of consumers. 

This, in turn, can lead to increased sales and long-term customer loyalty. Furthermore, by consistently producing high-quality content, businesses can establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry, attracting new customers and increasing overall visibility. 

When your audience sees new posts from your brand pop up in their social feeds, this increases brand awareness by reminding them about your brand via news and updates. Plus, posting new content regularly helps your audience see you as an innovative source.

How?

Publish high-quality blog posts, articles, images, and videos regularly. Aim for consistency, whether it’s daily, weekly, or monthly. Adjust it as necessary for different platforms.

10 Create a social media contest

A social media contest is a fun and easy way to boost brand awareness and connect with your customers. 

Creativity is the key. 

You can ask them to name a new product, like Lay’s did with their uber-successful Do us a Flavor campaign. The user-generated content and engagement from these contests will help put your brand out there for all to see.

I’m a big fan of Aerie’s #AerieREAL campaign. For every un-retouched Instagram photo of a customer in swimwear posted with the hashtag #AerieREAL, the brand donates $1 to the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA).

 It connects the brand with an important cause aimed at making the public aware of body issues that affect women (and men!) – and people were interested!

Customers shared so much user-generated content that the brand reached its initial goal of donating 10,000 dollars in no time and increased the value of its goal to keep up with its customers.

How?

To get started, simply choose a prize that will be of interest to your target audience. Then, create a post on your social media channels promoting the contest and explaining how to enter. 

Be sure to include clear and concise instructions and a link to your website or landing page. 

Finally, set an entry deadline and announce the winner once the contest has ended. 

11 Invest in the referral program

Referral programs are a great way to spread the word about your brand, product, or service around. 

When customers refer their friends and family to your business, they give your brand a seal of approval. This social proof can be invaluable in attracting new customers. 

In programs like that, your existing customers and influential people from your industry niche encourage others to make a purchase. 

Additionally, referral programs often offer rewards for both the customer and the referral, encouraging customers to spread the word about your business. 

Referral programs can help you reach new customers that would otherwise be unaware of your product. Moreover, the burden of creating new content is on your partner.

How?

Create an offer for existing customers offering a bonus for attracting new customers. 

Take a look at the example. Mobile Vikings offer lower bills for inviting friends. 

12 Engage with customers

There are a number of ways to engage your target audience. 

This could involve interacting with them on social media, responding to their reviews, or providing excellent customer service. 

When customers feel like they are being heard and valued, they are more likely to stick around and tell others about your business.

By connecting with customers, businesses can create a loyal following that will help increase brand awareness and drive sales. 

Additionally, engaging with customers can also provide valuable insights into what they are looking for and how they perceive the brand. As such, it is an essential strategy for any business that wants to build a strong and lasting relationship with its customers.

Taco bell has done a pretty good job of engaging its customers on social:

How?

Automate the way you find customer complaints, questions, and requests with social listening so you can focus on engagement. Tools like Brand24 run deep web searches to find mentions of your brand across platforms. They’re gathered and put in one place. So you can access them all from a single location.

While writing social media posts use your brand voice that will stick in the memory of your audience.

13 Sponsor events

Do you know that big events like marathons or basketball games always have huge banners from different brands? Sometimes they’re paid advertisements, but often, these banners are from event sponsors. 

Large visual displays like this are great for increasing brand awareness, especially when the event is related to an important cause.

How?

Millennials are interested in what’s going on in the world. Sponsor events that support the environment have a health-conscious bent to it and important social causes. Extra bonus if you partner up with related businesses. 

The more people who promote the event, the more participants there will be, which means you’ll be able to increase your brand awareness, no matter the source of interest.

14 Make your product exclusive

When Google first introduced Gmail, you could only log in if you had an invitation from somebody who already had an account.

Word of mouth is a great marketing strategy, and Google is aware of it. Gmail users were sharing links to the email agent, and the tool quickly went viral.

Creating a sense of exclusivity will, on the contrary, expand brand awareness. People like to share their interesting finds.

From the UX design point of view, make it easy to share. A clear call to action, for example, invite your friends, and an easy-to-fill form is a must-have.

How?

If you don’t have a strict software product to offer, think about all the exclusive deals you could offer to your customers to boost brand awareness. You could provide a discount for referring your product to a friend or propose exclusive content to your customers.

15 Invest in sources that bring results

While building brand awareness, you will try different marketing channels. But not each will benefit you. So it’s important to invest in sources that will bring you the results you’re looking for.

Knowing where to invest your time and money can be challenging with so many options. Thankfully, there are a few key things you can look for that will increase your chances of success.

First, consider the platforms your target audience is using. If they’re mainly active on social media, then focus your efforts there.

How?

Detect where your target audiences are. You can use a social listening tool for this purpose. It will show you the sources of mentions.

If people speak about your product or business niche using a particular marketing channel, you should also be present there.

Conclusion

The above-mentioned ideas present many ways to boost your brand awareness strategy. Some are free, some paid, and some just require you to spin your resources differently.

Choose a method (or implement all of them) that suits your needs best.

While implementing your new brand awareness strategy remember that:

• It’s necessary to measure brand awareness campaigns regularly to check the efforts,
• There are some key brand awareness metrics that will tell you whether your efforts pay off,
• You can use brand awareness tools to both, measure and increase the awareness of your brand.

Ready to increase your brand awareness? Try the Brand24 tool that will help you do that!