Is your brand built to last?

When we bought our first house – a charming but nearly 100-year-old fixer-upper – we had no idea what we were getting into. We were blissfully naive, armed with big dreams and a can-do attitude. Thankfully, one of my early (and generous) bosses at Progressive Insurance agreed to delay my start date so I could tackle the endless DIY projects.

I showed up for my first day at Progressive with paint in my hair and primer under my fingernails.

We quickly learned the hard way: if you don’t strip the wallpaper properly, no amount of paint will stick. You can rush to make things look good on the surface, but without the right prep work, it won’t last.

Marketing is no different.

Recently, several clients have asked how to drive brand awareness and consideration cost-effectively in today’s digital environment. They ask how to improve their LinkedIn presence, boost their search visibility, and tell a brand story in a way that connects. These aren’t riveting new trends – they’re the groundwork. And just like stripping wallpaper before you paint, they’re what makes everything else stick.

So, here’s a practical list of fundamentals to help you build visibility, trust, and engagement online.

Build Awareness Organically with LinkedIn

Start with the basics. Is your team showing up professionally on LinkedIn? Here’s what to check:

Every team member has a complete, up-to-date profile.
Your company profile is current and tells your story.
Branding, tone, and messaging are consistent across profiles.
Relevant content is shared regularly to build awareness, elevate thought leadership, and drive traffic to your website.
Profile photos are recent and professional (save the dog pics for Instagram).

Create and Maintain Google Business Profiles

Formerly known as Google My Business, this free tool is your digital welcome mat. If you have a national business with regional or state locations, you can use Google Business Profile (GBP) to improve local visibility, customer trust, and search rankings in each region. You can create a GBP for your corporate office and a separate profile for each location.

Each profile should feature:

Your most current contact information, and hours, if applicable
A link to your website
Photos that don’t scream 2015
Reviews that you’ve responded to

Regularly Optimize Your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Strategy

Yes, this topic is important and can be challenging. Yes, you need someone on your team who is a Google algorithm guru. And yes, every time content is written for your company, you need to ask yourself:

What would someone type into the Google search bar to find this?
Does this include keywords our audience uses, not jargon that our company relies on internally?
Is it clear what this page is about in three seconds?

Craft a Story That Resonates

To build a brand people connect with and remember, your story needs to be authentic, relevant, and distinctly yours. And it needs a human touch. Without it, the relationship risks being purely transactional. When you lead with heart, you spark connection, build trust, and create loyalty that lasts.

For many, finding the right words is the hardest part. To establish a connection with customers, your story needs to answer these questions:

Why do you exist? How did the idea, product, or service come about? Here’s where you demonstrate your humanity.
What makes your company, process, or team different and relevant to your audience? Specificity is key.
How do you help your customers?

Once you’ve shaped a story that sticks, it needs to be told consistently across platforms. Inconsistency creates confusion – not confidence.

Need help putting it into practice? Let’s chat:

laura@vivalabrand.com