How to build equity for your business

It’s very easy for business owners and marketers alike to become fixated on growth. By falling prey to the belief that bigger is always better, many tend to associate growth with business success, but one does not automatically equate to the other.

For instance, a business tracking on an upward growth trajectory may increase the size of its team, expand its divisions and enter new locations. While each of these activities may drive more revenue, it will not necessarily lead to an increase in profitability or build real financial value into the business.

At Distl, we understand there’s a difference between projecting the appearance of a thriving business, and actually building financial worth. We’ve learned from experience that true success comes from developing a robust and sustainable business that not only generates short term revenue, but also has the strength to weather any storm.

As a marketing agency, we’re not here to merely pursue business growth for our clients. We’re far more interested in building equity.

What is equity?

Equity is value. It’s merit. Quality. Worth. Sometimes measurable or commercial. Sometimes intangible or emotional. It’s the critical mass your brand needs to survive and creates the momentum it needs to thrive.

When we talk about equity, we’re referring to both the value of your business as well as your brand.

Business equity is simply assets minus liabilities. It’s a monetary figure on a balance sheet that represents how much your business is worth. Brand equity, on the other hand, is less tangible. Here, value is derived from consumer perception of your brand and your offering, as well as your reputation in the market.

While it may be less quantifiable, brand equity is just as important as the dollars and cents. As it reflects what consumers think and feel about your brand and the level of trust your name inspires, its value has a direct correlation with business performance.

Our approach to equity building

We get to work with businesses of all shapes and sizes across a broad range of industries, each with their own unique set of needs and objectives. While we tailor our approach to each client, there is one key theme that underpins the work we do for each and every one of them.

Our mission as an agency is to build and communicate growing equity into every aspect of our client’s brands. To realise our purpose and deliver on our promise, we provide integrated solutions across four key service areas. Our team of specialists work to drive equity growth for all of our clients by leveraging the power of strategy, web, branding and marketing.

Strategy

Like building a house, assembling Lego or starting a business, it’s always best to start with a plan. Diving in head-first and figuring it out as you go might seem tempting, but it’s not the most effective way to reach your desired outcome.

When armed with a strategy, you’ll have a clear roadmap that outlines how you intend to achieve your goals, ensuring that your time and energy is put toward meaningful tasks that will aid your overall progress.

Whether it’s a broader digital marketing strategy, an SEO, content or social media plan, or an overarching brand strategy, it’s all about putting your business on the path to success, no matter what that might look like to you.

By taking into account your objectives, your audience and the wider competitive landscape, we can work with you to create a long-term strategy that’s designed to fulfil your objectives while working within your budget.

Branding

Your brand is the sum of what your audience thinks, feels and says about your business when you’re not around. It’s a combination of perception and reality, and while you can’t control what people say about your brand, you can certainly influence their perception.

Branding is the process of creating, maintaining, clarifying or changing a brand. Our job as brand specialists is to craft this message in a way that communicates your unique qualities and position. It’s about strategically combining colours, imagery and language that reflect the internal personality, culture and values of your business and its reasons for being.

When done well, a great brand has the power to influence your value perception, attract high quality staff and stand out from your competitors.

Web

As your website represents your business in the digital world, it’s important to provide an experience that will build trust in your brand and your offering. The way your website looks and functions will affect how your existing and prospective customers perceive your company.

Your website needs to be fast, easy to navigate and intuitive, which means it needs to be built using the best technology. It also needs to be informative and engaging by providing relevant, quality content that will ultimately encourage users to take action on your site.

By teaming the WordPress CMS with the improved front end capabilities of React, we design and develop lean websites with elegant interfaces that deliver the best possible user experience. By building our sites on strong SEO foundations, we ensure users are able to access well-structured, valuable content.

Marketing

So, you have an effective strategy, a differentiated brand message and an engaging web presence. It’s marketing that will amplify your story and put your message in front of the right users.

From SEO and PPC through to social media and everything in between, our in-house team is comprised of experts that specialise in every aspect of the digital marketing spectrum. By taking the time to understand your business and its objectives on an in-depth level, we’re able to recommend integrated strategies that will generate optimal results in both the short and long term.

Driven to consistently improve, we’re always exploring new platforms and seeking out opportunities that will deliver even more value to our clients.

Get started today

We’re proud to have decades of expertise across all four of these key areas, but more than this, we know how it can generate real business equity. If you’re interested in building equity rather than focussing on growth, get in touch with us today.