Lifestyle brands are those that aim to target a specific kind of person as an audience. A lifestyle brand is one that often has a niche appeal and connects with people on a personal level. 

Also referred to as ‘niche’ brands, these businesses tend to focus on one particular aspect of life such as travel, fashion, health, or another area that isn’t already catered to by other businesses. 

Creating a successful lifestyle brand from scratch can be challenging but not impossible. Once you know what your brand stands for and the audience it speaks to, you’ll have a much smoother ride. 

Here are five tips to build a successful lifestyle brand from the ground up :

Research your competitors and audience

Before you go any further, you need to know your audience and understand your target market. This allows you to tailor your brand to the people you want to sell to. 

Start by researching your competition. 

• Why are their products or services so popular ? 
• What is their branding and marketing strategy ?
• Who is their audience ? 
• What is the consumer sentiment surrounding their products ? 
• What’s their pricing strategy ? 

 You can do this through a variety of ways, including : 

• Google Trends : this will show you the interest in specific search terms over time. This can give you an idea of what people are most interested in at the moment. 
• Amazon reviews : look at the reviews left on books and products related to your area of interest to see what people think and what they’d like to see. 
• Facebook groups : join relevant Facebook groups and look at the discussions taking place to see what your audience is interested in. 
• Social media : look at the demographics of your preferred social media channels and see what kind of content is being shared. 
• Surveys and polls : surveys and polls are a great way to collect qualitative data and information on what people think of their lifestyle choices.

Define your brand’s voice and messaging

Your brand voice is how you’re going to speak to your audience and create an emotional connection. This can be achieved through your website, social media, copywriting, and visuals. It’s important to get this right from the get-go, as this can make or break your brand. 

People are very perceptive and can pick up on the smallest details, so it’s essential you nail the tone of your message and brand voice. 

Ask yourself these questions to help define your brand voice and messaging : 

• Who are you targeting ? 
• Why are you targeting this group ? 
• What is your product/service offering ? 
• What are your unique selling points? 
• Who is your competition ? 
• What will set you apart from the rest ?

Know your product/service offerings

Depending on the products and services you’re offering, you’ll have to research the market to see what’s trending. 

For example, if you have a travel-related product and want to ride the ‘outdoors’ and ‘wild’ trend, you need to know when that trend started, why it’s popular, and the best ways to use it to your advantage. 

Being aware of the current trends in your industry will allow you to use them to your benefit, and give you a leg up on the competition. 

Keep an eye on social media channels to see what is trending and use this to your advantage in your marketing campaigns.

Create a visual brand identity

Next, you need to create a visual brand identity. This means choosing a logo and colour palette that represents your lifestyle brand strategy. This can be tricky, as you want it to be memorable and stand out from the crowd. 

You want something that will stay in your customer’s minds long after they’ve purchased your products/services. Your brand identity should encompass the feeling you want your customers to feel and what you want your brand to represent. 

This will make it easy for customers to recognize your brand and associate it with positive feelings. Creating a strong brand can be costly and time-consuming, but if you have the funds, it’s recommended you hire a branding or design agency to help you out. 

If you don’t have the funds for this, there are many free branding tools out there that you can use to create a logo.

Grow an engaged audience through content

The best way to get your brand out there and into the hands of your desired audience is through consistent and engaging content. 

What content you decide on really depends on your brand and who you’re targeting. To get a general idea, look at your competitors and the way they’re reaching out to their audiences. 

Once you have an idea of what your audience is interested in, create content that is similar and relevant to that area. Make sure your content is high-quality, engaging, and relevant. This will help you reach a wider audience, create brand loyalty, and build a following. 

As your audience grows, so will your sales.

Our final words

Create a lifestyle brand from scratch is challenging, but it’s not impossible. Start by researching your audience to get an idea of who you’re targeting, the messaging you want to convey, and how you want your brand to be perceived. 

Once you know this, you can start creating a visual brand identity and visual content that represents your brand. From there, engage with your audience through consistent content, and you’ll be well on your way to building a successful lifestyle brand.