Last week I mentioned one of the hardest things for artist and self-publishers to do is gain exposure. This week I’ve a question, do writers and artist have brands?
A quick definition for brand, in terms of marketing, is a name or image that represents a company. Nikey’s swoosh is an image that represents a shoe company, and Kellogg’s cereal is a brand of…breakfast. Big companies create names and images that attract consumers to their product. It’s part of their marketing plan and helps with exposure as it gives their audience something to refer to. So what about writers and artist?
It might be a little easier for artists as their styles can be pretty iconic and easily recognizable like Andy Warhol. But writers? What can we use for our brand?
Writing style? I don’t think so. A lot of first-person narratives read the same.
Genre? Maybe if you write in one genre for your entire career.
Our Name? Yes.
It is my opinion that our name is our brand. Think Steven King. His name is linked to horror and suspenseful thrillers. Anne Rice often linked to vampire stories. Going along this thought process my name, Rebeca A Easton, is my brand represented by a bunny icon. Underneath my brand, I have two products, Mydeslexicworld and Pocket Change Stories. This blog has a logo that represents it as well.
How important is it to have a brand or a logo? Pretty damn important. Entire marketing campaigns hinge on it. Companies pour hundreds of dollars into branding a product. Think of all the lawsuits that have happened over company names and trademarks. Why?
Rememberability
At the few panels I’ve been on, I have stressed the importance of having unique businesses cards. At the end of the day, when the person is going through the stack of cards they received you want yours to stand out. I can say this works out quite well as more people remember my bunny icon and blog logo.
So, do writers have brands?
Yes.
It’s our name.