Richard Branson is one of the greatest business minds ever and has changed the way we fly and do business. For those of you not familiar with him, he is the founder of Virgin Atlantic with an estimated worth of 4.9 billion as of October 2014. I know your asking yourself: How can he be related to blogging? His fundamental principles can be applied to every business no matter what the niche.
In this post you’ll learn what he taught me about business and how you can apply it to your blog going forward.
Knowing Your Audience
He knows his audience like the back of his hand and knows exactly what they’re looking for. His airlines are spacious offering massages to their travellers. The tickets are very cost effective and the airline is attractive which push people to fly with Virgin Atlantic. Knowing his audience has allowed him to make tweaks as time went on and he didn’t lose sight of what’s important to him and his customers. How can this apply to your blog?
It’s all about knowing your readers and what they’re looking for in your content. It’s creating content which is attractive and easy to read. The higher quality your content and attractive your web design, the more people will stay on your website and opt into your newsletter. Knowing your audience will allow you to make tweaks along the way keeping things relevant and of value.
Standing Out Compared To Others
Richard Branson is known for his daring stunts whenever he’s about to launch a new product or service. He’s been involved in a few world record attempts and till today when people mention his name they automatically associate him with going the extra mile. Richard Branson knows to be successful you have to be different and standout compared to your competitors. It’s a great way for building a unique reputation and being considered an outsider which many people find impressive. Apply this to your blog by doing the following…
First, write content or start a blog on a niche which hasn’t been tapped into. When you write content make it different by adding elements not implemented by your competitors. It’s even a great idea to introduce a few catch phrases of your own which people will associate with you. You can create a landing page or logo which people remember and create a completely different style like none of your competitors have.
Brand Awareness
Richard Branson knows the importance of creating a brand and all his marketing campaigns have the Virgin Atlantic logo splashed in front. Once you build a reputation for providing the best your brand name will carry you a long way. For example, whenever I see the Virgin Atlantic logo I’ll think of quality, money and uniqueness. Another example is Donald Trump and his “Trump†brand which is known to provide luxurious living environments. Whenever you see “Trump†you think of high quality living arrangements and receiving the best.
In my previous posts I’ve outlined the importance of building your brand so when people hear or see your name they know their getting the best. For example, JohnChow.com is branded with his name and he’s known to be a pioneer for making money online. It’s important to create brand awareness so your blog will market itself when people hear or see your name.
Expand Broader
The one thing you don’t know is Richard Branson and the “Virgin†name is NOT just about flying high. He has gone into other markets and his brand made it easier for him to flourish within these markets. He’s involved in television, print, music and formula one racing. The point is he didn’t put his eggs in one basket because he knows the importance of diversifying your portfolio. If he loses money in one business he’ll make up for it in another. Expanding broader is a strategic plan for him to market his brand to different types of people who are involved in other businesses.
Blogging should follow the same principle however I’m NOT saying to jump into other niches. This concept can be applied to a broader topic scope in your niche. For example, instead of focusing on social media go broader and focus on “online marketingâ€. Instead of focusing on “link building†go broader and focus on “Search Engine Optimizationâ€. Having this structure will provide you more flexibility when writing and marketing content. You have a broad range of topics and can use different angles when marketing.
Know When to Let Go
Richard Branson first started out in music and made millions of dollars. The time was right and he was moving with the trend. However, he expanded into commercial aviation too quickly and found it hard to hold onto both businesses. He was smart enough to know when to let go and closed down his record label. The point is he knew he had to make money and when he started losing enormous amounts sustaining two businesses he pulled the plug on one. A successful businessman knows when your time is up and every business has to make money. If he doesn’t make money the business model is no longer working. Since Richard Branson made the decision to close his record label, he went from making millions to becoming an official billionaire over a few years.
I started doing business in ecommerce and did very well until 2007 when the little recession hit making it too hard for me to keep going. It was my first business so I didn’t want to let go and lost all my savings keeping it going. If I had pulled out sooner I could have invested money into other ventures, but it didn’t work out that way. I learned a lot and won’t make the same mistake again. If you find yourself losing money and tried to tweak things around without having success than shut down before it’s too late. Don’t be upset because it’s a great learning experience and you’ve just saved yourself from trouble later down the line.
