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Caffinated: Thanks for the question: “Is there such a thing as too much brand?”
Absolutely not, if it done right and is in keeping with your brand. I never get annoyed by seeing a quality brand’s presence around me. Just make sure your visual brand is striking.

However, if your part of your brand personality, for instance, is being environmentally friendly, then you might question how your branded packaging or accessories are being viewed. Are the materials you’re producing an annoyance or ending up as litter in the street?

Political campaigning is highly steeped in branding. And I’m sure nobody missed that brand. It was everywhere. Whatever your political affiliation, Barack Obama’s presidential campaign is a perfect case study in a branding message that not only reinforced their primary value of “a new kind of politics,” but took advantage of all media avenues. Including adapting to the times by adopting, in part, social media outlets that would reach a large potential audience.

Hi . This is a great question on Social Media.

If you’re looking to build your community, do business research, provide customer support, build a database and discuss current issues, the answer is by all means take advantage of these outlets.

As you probably know, it’s an arena that is constantly changing. Each business has its own uses for these outlets. Social spaces like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter all have valuable business potential. These are great tools that provide opportunities for business professionals, entrepreneurs and retailers who are looking for new contacts and communities. As well, there are tons of other networks to choose from, including ones outside the US, such as Hi5, Orkut and Bebo.

We do not have a best practices that we can recommend. But we would suggest you explore the different options so you see how they function. Most have “help” areas, recommendations, and success stories.

(If you haven’t explored this Site, I highly recommend it. It’s a wonderful community offering invaluable resources for small businesses. Start a conversation. Be an authority. Ask a question.)

You can also search for blogs that cater to your audience. For more on branding, check out www.brandingstrategyinsider.com. We find this a great resource for learning more about brand building.

Here's a great example of someone who's using Twitter to get exposure for his business. Kogi is L.A.’s hottest culinary obsession. Kogi’s chef is Roy Choi, an alum of Le Bernardin and Culinary Institute of America. The craze is over his food that fuses the taste of Korean BBQ and the portability of tacos and burritos. And where can you find this tasty restaurant? You can’t unless you follow their Twitter feed that announces where one of its two roving restaurants is. Yes, his restaurants only have wheels. And admittedly, there is nothing new about a taco truck, but Kogi has transcended those roots with his gourmet gastro-mobiles and has emerged, through a combination of phenomenal cuisine and social networking savvy.

In fact, just today Kogi posted on Twitter that they are five people away from hitting 24,000 followers. That is huge.

There are too many to count, but the same goes with raising a child. There just aren’t classes in this kind of thing. However, to make the process easier, I like to encourage our clients to take positive steps when developing their brand. The same would apply to all small business owners working with their creative team. Here’s a partial list:

1) Trust us. We have education, experience and the resources to make great decisions for you. You are investing in us for these reasons.
2) Remind us to trust you. I say this as a reminder to our clients that they are the true experts in their vision and goals. It is a partnership and we have to listen for their brand to be a success.
3) Remember your Brand Personality Profile. It’s too easy to get distracted from your vision. Successful growth is long term and comes from a cumulative process of being consistent.
4) More is not always better. People are bombarded by thousands of marketing messages a day. Make yours memorable. Keep it simple.
5) You are your own Brand Manager. It’s your brand. You make the final decision. Don’t let someone else drive your choices unless they know your brand fully.

Thank you. And I appreciate all your questions. I’d like to close this discussion by saying that in the twelve years since opening Perry Sessions Design, I have found that small business owners are the most passionate about what they do. We have been fortunate to develop projects for Fortune 50 companies, but there is nothing more exciting than seeing an entrepreneur’s business vision flourish. I hope all of you find the right team to make your brand a success.