How do you make your brand story stand out?
Differentiate.
Differentiating is the key to branding.
Your brand has characteristics and strengths but it is the differentiation factors that make it unique and carve out its identity and story.
This 4-step mini-guide is crucial to know and understand your Brand’s Identity and Story.
1. Humanise The Brand
When creating brand values, characteristics and objectives for companies, I normally start with a fact-finding drill to unfold the humanising process. That is the first layer for me to understand what exactly the brand stands for and the values it is built on—it is similar to analysing what makes a person tick. What is the reason your company was started, your a-ha moment or how has your business pivoted within the changes taking place in the respective industry. This process of humanising a brand is essential in this day and age to make sure the brand’s distinct attributes are known and understood by you, your co-workers and consumers. If your brand was a character, who would it be? Where would he or she go for leisure? Are they loud and in your face or more reserved and formal? Ask yourself these questions so you can conjure up a brand with a real personality to act as your persona so you know how to position yourself. Your brand has to be an active, self-aware character who knows who he or she is. Only then can your messaging be clear, simple, effective and most importantly, HEARD.
2. Personalise The Customer
Once you have your Brand ID sorted, the next step is to identify your Ideal Customer Avatar (ICA). I want to know who he/she is, how old they are, what sites they visit most often, what socio-economic bracket they come from and what their dreams and aspirations. What makes your consumers special? The list is long and extensive. Are they on Instagram or Facebook? Trump or Obama? The more specific, the better. We need to dig deep. Then personalise your communication to this specific group of people. Communicate like you are only talking to this specific group of people in their lingo.
3. Contextualise The Industry
Read, research, gather data on the industry and your competitors to further fine tune your narrative and communication so you can further differentiate your brand and make its characteristics stand out in a big picture way. You have to know your industry inside out to make a difference in your offerings.
4. Guide The Consumer
Remember, don’t take over—GUIDE THE CONSUMER. Once you communicate your differentiation factor clearly, you will not only attract the customer you want, your community will gather and build organically because you are speaking their language and addressing their specific problems. Your brand or product should play the role of a guide to your consumer as opposed to taking over—the empowered consumer of this era needs to know they are still in control and the consumers are now the hero in your story.
Want to get your Brand Story sorted so your business communication is smooth and effective? Join my Brand Story Clinic and let’s talk it out. It’s a 60-minute face-to-face session where I consult and flesh out your unique brand characteristics, values and identify the ideal customer avatar so your business narrative and story is crystal clear. E-mail [email protected]