[Originally appeared in Avenues to Marketing Success]

Imagine for a moment your average work day. Consider all the decisions you have to make, the types of problems you have to troubleshoot and that stack of stuff you just can't get to and keep setting aside for a rainy day.

If you're that busy, very likely so are your clients and prospects. After all, the world is more complex now and people are faced with more choices and decisions to make than ever before.

As a result, you need to think of ways to simplify your marketing message to make your clients' lives easier -- and literally almost spoonfeed them the reasons why they should choose you. If they don't know what you do or why to choose you, they won't. It's that simple.

In my upcoming marketing course, I will be sharing my comprehensive system to create a professional brand for yourself just like Avenue East does for its clients. Here's a sneak peek of some basic branding principles you should consider in order to make it easy for clients to say "yes" to you.

1. Carefully identify what you do for your clients.

Many business owners focus on the products or services they provide. Your clients are interested in what you do for them. Whether you sell products or services, outline the problems you help your clients solve.

2. What got you into this business to begin with? And why are you still doing it?

In the frantic day-to-day stress of the business day, it's easy to forget why you love what you do. Thinking about what keeps you going every day can help you figure out how best to communicate your marketing message -- and it will re-energize you so that you can put more power behind your message.

3. Analyze your competition.

If you haven't taken the time to take a look at your competition lately, it's high time you did. Examine the way they communicate their brand, their target audience (is it the same as yours?), the marketing tools they use to get the word out, etc. and see what you can learn from them.

4. What differentiates you from your competitors?

Are you actually different? Why? And if you're not different, you might want to focus on a slightly different target audience -- say, instead of all restaurant workers, only the upscale establishments in your area. Or you might want to brand yourself based on a benefit you've not considered before.

It has to be something that your clients also care about -- but you likely have something that makes you a much better option than the next business. What is it?

5. Summarize your brand message in a sentence.

Outline the problems you solve for your clients (see above), your ideal clients, and why you're different.

6. Include your brand message in all of your upcoming marketing campaigns.

Everything you do as a business sends signals to your clients and prospects. That's right, every single thing from your letterhead to your answering machine message to the look of your shopfront (if you have one, of course) lets other people know what your business stands for.

So what signals are you sending? Consider your:

• letterhead
• business cards
• tagline
• latest sales letter
• attire and that of your employees
• range of services or products
• the way you answer the phone

... and the list could go on and on!

When you concentrate on a single message for your brand, you will find that your clients better understand what you do and why they should choose you. If you can help make some decisions for them by creating a coherent brand for your small business, they'll appreciate you so much that they'll send business your way ... over and over again.