I write a lot about balance when it comes to digital marketing.

Balance is crucial in many respects – from fending off volatility coming from any single channel or tactic, to aggregating data points for some of the newer surfaces available to your small business customers.

Balance, in many respects, can also be thought of as a symmetry – something that remains unchanged under transformation; the same on both sides of an equation.

Symmetric Experiences

While I don’t explore much of the offline world of marketing here, it’s a crucial (and strategically important) piece for most small businesses.

Since small businesses are often much closer to their customers, having real world, in-person experiences allows them to connect with them much more often outside the digital world.

That same offline connection should be easily translated into the digital experience when they encounter their small business online.

A Seamless Look And Voice

When it comes to matching your online experience, it really comes down to making sure you match the way you look and sound the same way you would in the offline world.

How You Look

Your small business identity – your logo, colors, typography, media (photos and videos), graphics: all of these should be exactly the same between your offline/online experiences.

A missing logo, strange colors, an old photo, some aged graphics or any other inconsistency can cause folks to pause or hesitate when they interact with your small business – something that’s not ideal.

How You Sound

There’s much more to your shaping your small businesses’ voice, but making sure you write or speak the same way you would in the offline world can ease any worry or doubt that customers may have about your small business.

If a customer interacts with your small business online and notices a mismatch in the way you sound in the offline world, it could cause another hesitation in their decision.

If you’re more casual offline – be casual online.

If you’re more formal or professional offline – match that energy with what you post online.

As Comfortable Online As Offline

If you’re a longtime client, you know I say this a lot: you ultimately want customers to be as comfortable interacting with your small business online as they are with you in the offline world.

Any mismatch in your representation can make folks uncomfortable, so keep symmetry in mind when you’re looking to build a more seamless experience in 2026.