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- The Ruralpreneur #4 - Poop, Death, and Brand Success
The Ruralpreneur #4 - Poop, Death, and Brand Success
Empowering small town entrepreneurs to expand their businesses using digital tools and ecommerce
Tance Hughes
September 11, 2023
🛀 Shower thoughts:
🍹The drink list on a menu is never at the very front, despite it being the first question asked at every restaurant.
☕️ Coffee makes you hyper, but coffee shops are intended to make you slow down and relax.
😝Biting your tongue while eating is a perfect example how you can still make a mistake, even with decades of experience.
We just launched an account on X so… join us there?
THEY DID IT, SO CAN I
The Harlem Globetrotters of Baseball
You don't have to come from a big city to make it big in business. Just ask the Savannah Bananas, a baseball team that's become a viral sensation and built a wildly popular brand, all while staying true to their small town Savannah, Georgia roots.
Launched in 2016 in the modest market of Savannah, the Bananas quickly unleashed an outrageous, fun-first identity that burst through the seams of the traditional baseball mold. From on-field antics to fan engagement to creative concessions like Unicorn Poop, the Bananas crafted an irreverent experience perfectly suited to shareable social media and word-of-mouth buzz.
In just a few short years, this small town team has risen to prominence with ESPN features, celebrity fan shoutouts, and merchandise sales in all 50 states. Their meteoric ascent demonstrates how a startup from anywhere, even a minor league baseball team in Georgia, can capture widespread attention and success. Thanks to precision branding and smart digital marketing, the Savannah Bananas prove startups from small towns can dream big.
REVERSE ENGINEER IT
Stand For/Against Something
Launching an e-commerce business from a small town comes with stiff competition. To break through, creative and memorable branding is essential. Take inspiration from brands like DUDE Wipes and Liquid Death, who leveraged bold and unexpected narratives around poop and death.
Smaller brands may hesitate to take risks with branding, for fear of alienating local customers or deviating from tradition. But the online world rewards authenticity and emotional connections. By embracing bold branding, small town businesses can build an authentic digital presence that creates buzz and inspires loyal customers across geographies. It's time to showcase your signature charm with an unconventional branding edge.
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR
Define Your Messaging
Let’s get straight to the point.
If you are someone living in Louisiana shopping for a new contractor to build your family a new home with custom features on land that you already own, which of these taglines would resonate with you the most when Google searching for a contractor?
We offer a range of construction services in the Louisiana area.
We build beautifully inspired custom homes in Louisiana with unlimited possibilities on the land that you love.
Louisiana’s #1 Home Builder
Obviously the second tagline specifically targets you better than the other two. This would clearly highlight to me that this company is the one that offers the service I am looking for.
Too often, business owners think they need to be everything to everyone. They are scared to niche down because they are afraid of losing out on a potential sale. The fact of the matter is, they’re losing out on potential sales because they are not focusing on the customers that are most likely to do business with them.
TODAY’S WORD
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.