When someone asks you what your brand is really about, do you light up and launch into an articulate sentence that sums your business up neatly? Or, do you waffle something non-committal about your values, wishing you had ChatGPT to help?.
(I will concede that even the most articulate brandmeister has an excuse to waffle in this billion degree heat, but let’s park that for now)
If you’re a waffler, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Defining a brand is not easy, not when you consider how much it drives a business, and the communications. But get it wrong, or ignore it completely, and you’ve got a problem. You run the risk of becoming a bland.
Nobody wants to be a bland.
Brand messaging 101
Contrary to Canva’s advice, brand messaging isn’t just a logo, a font or a colour palette, although they absolutely have to be taken care of too.
Even before you delve into the designing tools you need to really consider your brand’s values. What do you offer? Who is your core customer base, and importantly, why do they need you in their life? For example, my key brand value is bringing corporate style-comms to small businesses. Small businesses are my key client base, comm is my offering and getting a corporate-level bang for their buck is a good reason to have me on their team!
Understanding your customers needs from the start will help drive your values (read more about that here), and help you develop a tone of voice that resonates with them.
Without these? Who knows what your brand is all about. Least of all your customers!
Positioning: Where even are you?
Positioning is all about how your organisation is viewed in relation to everyone else.
Are you the budget-friendly option? The luxury expert? The quirky outsider?
If you’re putting out mixed messages (risqué one minute, corporate the next), people get confused. If they are looking for a highly corporate option, but your latest LinkedIn post is you leaping up on stage at the Moulin Rouge and joining in with the cancan, changes are they won’t take a punt on you being the ‘safe pair of hands’.
Confused customers don’t engage, they slowly back away into the arms of a nice reliable competitor…
Be your own brand ambassador
Your brand should be everywhere. Yes, I do have a Polly Rivers PR mug and t-shirt, I practice what I preach!
On a less linear note, if you’re polished and professional on your homepage, but your social posts are chaos, you’re sending mixed messages. Likewise, if you are a zany bunch in the office, but your digital presence is giving grey suit and cufflinks… well, that’s confusing too. It just makes the brand look like it’s been hijacked and held to ransom, and loses all authenticity that you’ve developed.
Consistency isn’t boring, it’s reliable and builds trust. People like to know what they’re buying into.
Own it
People connect with people. Brands that feel human are far more comfortable that a faceless corporate powerhouse.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with injecting your personality into your brand, as long as it is done authentically. Don’t try and create ‘quirkiness’ that isn’t there just for the sake of it, it’s transparent and people will cringe on your behalf.
Just be yourself, and allow that to be apparent in your brand messaging – forcing a square peg into a round hole isn’t going to be comfortable for you, or anyone else involved, after all!
TLDR:
- Can you describe your brand clearly in one sentence?
- Does my brand state the value I bring to customers?
- Are the vibes of all your messages consistent?
- Does my messaging reflect the organisation’s ‘personality’?
- Am I marketing the brand I’ve got, or the brand I think customers want to see?