Brand Satellite rockets into 2026

2 days ago

4 min read

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As the new year gets underway, many businesses are looking to identify how they can elevate their competitive advantage in 2026.

We spoke to brand specialist, Giles Etherington, who is launching his ’28-day brand launchpad’ at the end of February. The programme is designed to help businesses create a stand-out brand.

This year he is turning his attention to a particular sector – the space occupied by independent coaches and consultants. Giles says: “A quote I use a lot is: “When you're inside the jar you can't read the label." What I mean, is that when you work on your own, you can get so close to the business that you can’t see how it looks to others. You become unable to step back and see the bigger picture.

“In my experience, many independent coaches and consultants are inside the ‘jar’. And it can be lonely. It can lead to uncertainty and self-doubt. I’ve therefore designed this programme specifically for them.”

The course has been designed to be collaborative, as Giles explains: “There will be a small group of peers at the launchpad, each bringing their own expertise and experience to the table.

“Participants will get lots of feedback, support and encouragement – not just from me, but from the other members of the group.

“I believe that this is the only small-group, brand-creation experience of its kind in the UK”, he adds.

Taking marketing to the next level

Giles has given a lot of thought to the challenges that independent coaches and consultants can experience, particularly when it comes to marketing:

“Marketing your own business can be really tough. You are passionate about, and an expert in something. But brand creation and marketing requires a different set of skills, to be successful.

“If you haven't got the energy and expertise, it can be confusing, frustrating and draining. It will eat up your time and money and not necessarily get the results you are looking for. Plus, every enterprise is different, so there is no one way to market your business.

“But the clarity you get from creating your brand will help take your marketing forward. It will help you focus on the marketing activities you need to do and to not waste your money on the ‘shiny objects’ you don’t need. You will have a much clearer idea of who you are talking to and what they want to hear.”

What do you do?

Taking a step back and hearing others’ views, as well as input from someone outside your business is crucial, says Giles, as he reflects on his ‘jar’ analogy: “When you're too close to your business, you're in danger of telling people what you want to tell them, not what they want to hear. You often fall into the mistake of looking at, and talking about your business from your perspective, not theirs.

“You know your business inside out. So, when you try and explain it to others, you might miss bits out because to you they are so obvious.

“I see this all the time, when people stand up and do their pitch at networking sessions. Those listening are normally too polite to say they don’t really understand what the person has just said.

“During one of my previous group brand-creation programmes, one of the members did their networking pitch to the rest of the group. I asked the rest of the group for honest feedback.

One of the other participants said: “To be honest, I still don't know what you do.” Slowly, one by one, the others agreed. The person who did the pitch said: “I have been using that pitch for five years, and you are telling me none of you understand what I do?” You don't get that feedback when you stand up at a networking event, people will just politely nod and leave still not knowing what you do.”

Giles says there are a few steps to take, to address this challenge, as he suggests:

“Get external perspectives on your business, your brand and your messages. Find a community of like-minded people, whose opinions you trust. Be open-minded and take on board what they say.

“Work with someone who has the experience, expertise and energy to help you. This is such an important part of your business: you can’t afford to get it wrong.”

The launchpad

The launchpad lasts for 28 days, with participants undertaking one activity per day, which will take around an hour to an hour and a half to complete. Attendees can expect a group size of anything between four-eight people, plus Giles himself.

As feedback is at the centre of this programme, participants gain daily feedback on activities, and there are also weekly feedback days, weekly group feedback calls on Zoom and weekly one-to-one feedback calls.

Summing up the launchpad, Giles says: “As human beings, we make decisions dictated by the emotional part of the brain. The programme helps participants become clearer about their business, who their ideal clients are and about how to connect with clients’ emotions.”

“It will also give them confidence that they are communicating the right messages to the right people and the courage to ‘show up’ in a way that authentically communicates their passion, expertise and the value they add.”

https://www.brandsatellite.co.uk/28-day-brand-launchpad/