Would You "Like" Your Company? Why Brand Personality Matters
Rumor has it you’ve got a new brand. What’s s/he like?
Approachable?
Mysterious? Upbeat? Straightforward? Rebellious?
Helpful?
Adventurous? Energetic? Laid-back? Warm? Cool?
If your company were a person, how would you describe her or him to your best friend?
If your company were a person, how would you describe her or him to your best friend?
Go
with me on this. Write down five adjectives. Not features or benefits. Personal
descriptors.
Now,
erase the two that are not essential
to who your brand is, how it acts and what its reputation is (or will be) in the
world.
Got
your key three? Excellent. You’re racing ahead of entrepreneurs who neglect to
define (and deploy) a powerful marketplace differentiator: your brand’s personality.
Lest
any skeptics dismiss this exercise as trivial to your future success, take a
moment to think about the major companies you most admire.
Can
you easily describe their attitude? Can you imagine what an email from each one
might sound like? Can you pick out what they would wear to a party?
You
can – because they’ve been consistent about their image, their brand personality.
So
should you. Your potential customers are counting on it.
Consumer Snap Decision: Is this for me?
Every
one of us makes hundreds of snap judgments every single day. It’s a survival
technique. We can only pay attention to a few things. So when we encounter
something new, we seek immediate clues to answer: Is this
for me?
Having
a clear brand personality helps your customer “get” what your company is all
about. At a gut level, the customer instantly recognizes something about
herself (including her aspirations) – or she doesn’t.
Either
outcome is fine. Yes, either! You absolutely want to attract customers who are
eager to learn more. But you also benefit from weeding out unlikely prospects
that would waste your energies.
- A strong brand personality connects to and resonates with your target’s lifestyle, attitude and goals; be friend-able.
It’s
all about raising your brand above the competitive noise, and then running with
the customer pack most amenable to your offer.
Consistency Creates Trust
Once
you’ve piqued your target’s interest, being consistent with your brand’s
communications is key.
Consumers
adore clarity and flee confusion. We’re all confronting too many choices in a
given day. We crave reliable, go-to resources in an often-fickle market. Earn
that trust by being consistent.
- A powerful brand personality communicates with an unwavering “tone of voice”, viewpoint and style – including consistent design choices, colour schemes and imagery.
This
means more than using the right Pantone shade and font.
Building
a mighty brand requires alignment across the company. Your brand personality
must complement your business’s value proposition, corporate strategy, marketing
efforts and more.
Nobody
likes people who talk out of both sides of their mouth. Evaluate and adjust
your brand plan to speak with one, confident voice. Always.
Play Up Your Personality
Let’s
have another look at your three key adjectives from earlier. Do they feel
cohesive? Or are they suffering from multiple personality disorder?
Stanford
professor Jennifer Aaker’s “Dimensions of Brand Personality” can help stabilize
any wobbles and strengthen your stance.
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Aaker’s
studies find that most brands have one dominant trait among these five: sincerity, excitement, competence,
sophistication, ruggedness. Consider:
- Which trait fits your brand best?
- What conversational style flows from that pick?
- What design choices boost that image?
Are
you hearing voices in your head? Good.
You’re
discovering how your brand personality speaks. Make note of what he says and
how he says it. When you’re really onto something great, taglines, marketing
ideas, employee recruitment messages and more will all start bubbling up.
Don’t
be surprised if your brand personality takes on a life of its own. Some
companies even name their persona and use him/her as a decision-making tool. Hmmm. This new gizmo is quite innovative,
but would Nigel use it? Seems out of step with the portfolio.
Find
what’s true about your brand – and stick by it.
Perception: Drive It or Be Driven by It
Once
you’ve gone to market, people will
judge your brand. Their perception will become your sales reality. That’s a
fact.
Your
choice:
- Do you want that perception left to chance – and to later react to their response?
- Or, do you want to drive that perception by presenting a strong, clear, consistent brand personality – attracting like-minded customers straightaway?
Exactly.
Go
to it.
First published October 2016 by Veromo – an Australian start up that helps entrepreneurs start up.
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