By now you know that branding is not exclusively about business identity in the form of a logo or advertising. You might recognize the Nike brand from its iconic swoosh logo. You might immediately think of McDonald’s when you think of fast food because McDonald’s commercials are ubiquitous, but by this point, you know that icons and awareness do not constitute a brand.
You also know that big businesses are not the only brands. Your business does not have to be the size of GM, Microsoft, AOL Time Warner or Wal-Mart. Your business could be run out of your home with you as the sole employee. You could conduct business from a small office with a single assistant, or in a store with several employees. The size, scope, and location of your business does not change the fact that it’s a brand, nor should any of these factors truly impact your brand if you’re focusing on one-on-one relationships.
Businesses are not the only brands, either. Every individual is a brand, as are organizations from non-profits to political parties to social clubs. For example, the Gates Foundation, the Red Cross, UNICEF, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Kiwanis Clubs, Rotary Clubs, Republican Party, and Democratic Party — all are brands. The concept of branding I’ve been articulating is personal, which means everyone needs to develop one.
Each category — from individuals to organizations to businesses large and small — brings with it its own brand development challenges. At the same time, however, these challenges are minimized when you understand your brand identity. Throughout this book, I have written about creating unique and memorable experiences for your customers. Chapter 2 defined a brand in terms of establishing relationships with your customers. Chapter 3 distinguished between types of experiences you can generate for your customers, and differentiated a brand experience from ones that are merely transactional or simply meet customer expectations. Chapter 4 highlighted the importance of changing your perspective to adopt your customer’s point of view, rather than emphasize your product or service. Chapter 5 analyzed the results of changing your perspective. Chapter 6 admonished you to avoid overstating your own worth. Finally, Chapter 7 focused on the ripple effects of your actions. Thus, most of the facets of branding I’ve been articulating since the beginning of this book have emphasized how you affect the customer’s perceptions. In other words, I’ve been talking about the customer’s connection to your brand. Now I’m going to talk about how you perceive your own brand, and about your connection to your own brand. |