How to Build Brand Awareness on a Budget
Running a startup/ scale-up is hard. Figuring out how to get your product noticed and your voice heard in a pay-to-play world often feels like an extreme sport. Particularly when bootstrapping, traditional marketing strategies are out of reach and it can feel like the deck is stacked against you.
We get it. The struggle is real. On the bright side, small budgets and limited resources empower teams to dig deep, be resourceful and get creative. Many founders have pointed out that their best ideas were often the result of forced constraints that required unconventional, breakthrough thinking.
If you can't outspend, you have to outsmart.
That means doing things your competitors wouldn’t DARE even speak of, let alone do. This challenger mindset leads to innovative ideas that not only capture attention but also build lasting, organic brand awareness.
1. Start with a Bold Brand Point-of-View
It isn’t always the best product that wins (unfortunately). As Mike Cessario, CEO of Liquid Death, points out in this interview, “You can’t own an ingredient.” A product difference has a shelf life, however a brand difference is something you can own. To create brand awareness, you first need a distinct point-of-view that your core audience will care about - something that’s more compelling than your product difference. Particularly if you're in a crowded industry, your brand POV will be the compass that leads the charge in the battle to break through the noise. Without it, you’re pushing product features that, frankly, nobody cares about. Need to establish a bold brand POV? Get in touch.
2. Target a Niche Audience
When funds are limited, efficiency is key. By focusing your efforts on an underserved audience, you can maximize the impact of every dollar spent. This might sound like generic advice, but it’s amazing how few brands have the discipline to focus their audience and stick with it. Rather than a demographic, build for an aspirational tribe mindset. This approach ensures that your marketing efforts are concentrated on a specific group that’s most likely to resonate with your brand, rather than diluting your efforts across a broader audience that will be difficult to convert.
3. Be an Eavesdropper
Utilize social listening tools like GummySearch and BrandWatch to tune into conversations that are relevant to your target audience. This strategy allows you to craft content that resonates deeply with your people, based on real data and insights on their pain points, trending topics, micro-culture conversations, etc, making your communications more effective and targeted. Be sure to filter any findings by what's most relevant to your brand POV and create content that aligns only with your niche audience.
4. Aim for Fame
Think earned media over paid media. Nothing grabs attention like a well-executed publicity stunt or guerrilla marketing campaign. These bold moves can amplify your brand’s message far beyond conventional ad spends, often garner free press (when they're considerably audacious), and don’t have to cost an arm and a leg to be effective. Take a cue from the entertainment industry. For example, 20th Century Fox’s Confessional Booth to promote the First Omen at SouthBySouthwest, creating a mini experience that functioned like an interactive preview for the movie. Or 3M’s inventive Three Million Dollar Bus Stop campaign to show just how strong the brand’s security glass was (there was only $500 of real cash in the display). These were relatively low-budget and captured immense public interest and media coverage.
5. Ambush Your Competitor
Engage in some sibling-style rivalry by picking a public "fight" with your competitors. This works best if you’re David taking on Goliath, because you have to assume that your audience recognizes the competitor in order for the message to land, but it’s a great way to assert your brand point-of-view against the market leader. It doesn’t always mean negative campaigning, but creatively calling out your competitors through your advertising to position your brand against theirs in a memorable way. A solid example is Back Market’s bold parody that mimics Apple's classic marketing tropes (i.e. backlit product shots and dancers choreographed with tech gadgets in hand) as well as the obsession with 'new' tech. Prior to the spot's launch, the brand created faux ads for a more sustainable and affordable phone model and 'leaked' them in high-traffic areas around Apple's headquarters. Their aim is not just to sell you refurbished tech, but to change the way people think about tech and circularity, taking on the 50M metric tons of electronic waste produced annually.
6. Leverage an Underutilized Channel
In a landscape where the latest platforms can quickly become oversaturated, turning to less crowded, perhaps forgotten channels can offer more bang for your buck. An innovative example was the promotion of the Netflix series Wednesday using security bins at airports to promote the show —an unexpected yet brilliant tactic with messaging that completely nailed the tone-of-voice of the character. Or Surreal’s LinkedIn strategy, a platform that had largely gone unnoticed by CPG companies a few years ago (next to Instagram or Facebook). The brand now boasts 85K+ followers on the channel, with significant engagement on each post, for a relatively small team (2-10 employees).
Image source: LinkedIn
7. Become a Media Maven
Transforming your brand into a quasi-media company can significantly boost awareness and engagement. Take a cue from Liquid Death, a company that produces entertaining content that captivates audiences, while also selling water. The key here is focusing on quality over quantity, delivering original content that may divide opinions but will definitely capture attention and spark conversation. Play to your strengths and start small - you don’t need a presence on every channel right at the jump. Pick 1 or 2 formats that you can really nail - podcast, video, carousels, print publications, etc - and keep it original. Need help creating on-brand content on the regular? We’ve got you covered.
8. Host an Event
Events don’t have to break the bank. The first startup I worked for (circa 2010) was a fashion tech company, and we had no money. So, we hosted an event during SXSW (not affiliated with the conference). Beforehand, we published a mini magazine with interviews from a bunch of fashion tech founders, and invited them to attend our event as honored guests. We also had a panel discussion at the event and invited anyone attending SXSW in our industry. We saw a HUGE spike in traffic, signups, and interest from our core audience and spent a whopping $5K on the event. Another great example of leveraging in-person events on a shoestring budgets is Chubbies, a men’s clothing brand that’s bringing back short shorts, who debuted their designs at an annual Fourth of July party in Lake Tahoe with only a few pairs, instantly selling out and capturing the hearts of party-goers.
Keep in mind, you don’t have to use all of these ideas - pick the ones that are most exciting to you, fit within your budget, make sense for your brand, and are in your wheelhouse. Remember, when resources are limited, creativity must be unlimited.