9 PRIMARY ASPECTS OF BUILDING AN ESSENCE CENTERED BRAND:
Identify the MVV of Your Brand… Your ESSENCE:
As with any important activity and asset, you must first start with a solid foundation. The foundations of your essence are crucial to public and customer perceptions, now and in the future. What is the purpose of your company? Your identity’s message must coincide with your company’s mission, vision, and value (MVV). Maybe honesty and openness. Perhaps eco-friendly and sustainable materials. Maybe strength and stability.
What impression do you want to make on current or potential, clients and customers, and in general, the public at large?
Determine Who Your Target Market / Audience Is:
Research and define your target’s persona. What do they want and need? What products or services are they purchasing? What social media accounts do they follow and engage with? What are their passions?
Get into the minds of your customers and audience…
then make your brand speak to them.
Differentiate Your Identity, Above the Competition:
How can you stand out from the competition? How is your brand distinctive and relevant? What advantages do you provide that others don't? What is the tone of their brand? Are they successful in their marketing and perceived the way they want to be?
Identifying where you are and where you want to be in the market will set you apart from the competition and contribute to the awareness of your brand and who you are… it’s beyond brand awareness, it’s essence awareness you should strive for.
Develop your Brand's Voice:
What do your customers and the public see and hear in your brand? How do you want your customers to feel when they think about your brand?
How do you wish to inspire them?
Witty / Straightforward / Genuine / Powerful / Expert / Compassionate
Design a Visual Identity:
When people think of the word “brand,” they most often think of a brand’s logo. Some of the world’s most recognizable logos include Amazon, Apple, Nike, Target and Starbucks. You probably see those logos in your mind when you hear or read their names.
All aspects of a brand’s visual identity are important. It’s likely to be the first impression you will give a new potential customer and the public.
Create a Catchphrase, Slogan or Tagline:
When used consistently and extensively, your slogan can make an impactful statement that can endure for a long time.
“Just Do It?” – Nike
“Eat Fresh” – Subway
“What’s in Your Wallet” – Capital One
Develop Impactful, Relevant & Consumable Message:
Great messages deliver a clear promise and impact. Communicate in a way that you cannot be misunderstood. Make a clear promise. Your message should be simple, make an emotional connection, and sell the benefits, rather than the features of you product or service.
When you create a clear message it ensures your team is fully aligned and in sync. This gets everyone on the same page, moving in the same direction and creating consistency for your customers.
Be Dependable and Consistent:
It’s important to assemble and blend the many aspects of your identity and essence, and put it into action by promoting your business through all relevant and available platforms: collateral materials, websites, social media, videos, email signatures, product packaging, specialties, etc.
Developing brand guidelines will facilitate efficiency, efficacy and visual coherence. The capacity to recognize a brand depends on consistency, ubiquity and relatability. Plan your exposures / impressions to get to recognition quickly and thoroughly.
Cultivate Trust:
"How can you develop trust?" Say what you mean and mean what you say. Hold fast to your principles. Building trust fosters loyalty, and loyalty encourages sales.
Consider why you personally trust the brands that you and your organization trust. Why do you believe them? How can a company lose your trust and how can you lose theirs? When determining how to develop trust inside your brand, you know what’s right, follow your moral compass.