Brand consistency is so important for bloggers and business owners because it not only distinguishes you from a sea of sameness, but it also helps to create a recognizable image for yourself. This is quite important these days considering the lightning speed of social media feeds. If you stick to these seven tips, you will be sure to create brand consistency and be more memorable.
1. Use the same profile picture for all platforms- I have been to so many social accounts that had a different profile picture on each one. This is an automatic way to be less memorable because viewers aren't seeing a consistent image of you. If you use the same photo, you will be easily recognized in a sea of images on a feed or even in comment sections of blogs.
2. Use one account name for all social platforms- It's easier to find you when you are under the same name on every social platform. It also takes the guesswork out when trying to find you on a platform that people aren't sure if you use or not. It's easy to get caught up with different names on social media since the direction of your blog/business may change over the years. You may not want to start a new account if you already have a large following. If this is the case, you can always open a new account with the name that you use for your other social platforms and you can direct new people to the old account, or direct your current followers to your new account.
Tip: If you're just starting out, you should perform a search for the name that you have in mind on all platforms to make sure that they're available before signing up for anything. An easy way to do this is to go directly to the proposed URL to see if it's already taken instead of wasting time going through the sign-up process. For example, if you want the name "ColorHug" on twitter, just type www.twitter.com/colorhug into the address bar to see if it's taken. FYI, this is taken :)
3. Create a unique hashtag for your business/blog- This is a fun way to make your blog or business stand out. For example, if you are a coder for female bloggers in the creative field, you might create a hashtag for all of the images of you working as #CuteCoding. As long as the hashtag represents your blog or business, go for it!
Tip: Search for the hashtag that you have in mind to see what (if any) images people are associating it to. Depending on the images that pull up, you may want to consider a different hashtag.
4. Stick with the same fonts and colors- This is the easiest way to create brand consistency and it's totally free! Stick with no more than three colors to represent your blog/business (unless it is one in which multiple colors make sense), and stick with two fonts. You can use variations of your colors and fonts as accents. For example, changing the opacity of colors is a way to get accent colors that are still on brand and changing the style of a font to bold, light, etc. is a great way to use a font variation and still be on brand.
5. Use a catchy tagline or phrase to end all of your email correspondence, blog posts and periscope sessions- This is a fun way to emphasis your blog/business purpose, and when people hear it enough times they will possibly incorporate it into their lives and remember that it was you that said it. For example, Mattie James of Mattieologie uses the phrase "Slay Your Day" at the end of all of her Periscope sessions. Because I hear it so much from her, it has become a part of my mentality, and I might end up saying to someone "As Mattie says, Slay Your Day".
6. Post specific topics to your social on certain days- Recently I started posting a "Welcome" image on the 20th of the month on Instagram for all of my new followers so that I can introduce myself and welcome them to my feed. This is also cool for my current followers because they get to know a little more about me each month since I share a small thing about myself in the description. You may choose to post weekly about something specific to your blog/business or even daily at the same time of day. Either way you choose to do it, it will create consistency and your followers will be looking forward to it.
7. Say NO to randomness- If you have a business selling eco-friendly makeup brushes, your Instagram feed should be a reflection of the products and things that relate to an eco-friendly lifestyle. It wouldn't make sense to post images of home improvement projects, children's books or a fur coat. Your feed should be very specific to what your blog/business represents, and random acts of posting should be avoided so that people won't be confused on what your account is about. There's nothing wrong with posting personal photos every now and then, but just remember that people are there to see your blog/business, so the Random Show can cause more harm than good.
If you stick with these tips, you will be sure to change your online presence for the better and you may even begin attracting more followers that are a part of your niche!
