The value of brand.
Every email you send. Every click on your website.
Every post on social media, your business cards, what you wear, the way you answer the phone — all of these, and a lot more, together become your brand.
People buy from people they trust.
Your brand is your personality. Just like when you meet someone new and make a quick judgement on them: are they like me? Do they share my values? Will we get on? Your first opinion is made up of dozens of obvious and less-obvious signals, from the sort of shoes someone wears to the words they use, or how they treat others. Customers do the same with your business.
Aside from the obvious — providing good service — you can build trust in a number of ways, several of which begin before the customer is even a customer.
Recognition.
People trust businesses they recognise, even if there is no other information to back-up their decision. And in some cases, even if there is conflicting information.
You build recognition by putting your business consistently in front of them, in the right way and in the right places.
Consistency.
Recognition is built through familiarity: the consistency of your messaging, it’s tone and purpose. Or making sure you use the same logo and colours on your website and in your emails, creating documents in the same format each time (many don’t!), the way you answer the phone or send invoices, through to making sure all your marketing, advertising, PR and brand exercises are in sync.
Values and integrity.
People — increasingly — buy from brands who share their values. Those values might be social, environmental, or even just a way of doing things (my word is my bond).
We try to make sure our values are evident to all. We’re honest, straightforward and direct: if we believe something is wrong, we’ll tell you, even if that’s less profitable for us.
Above all else authenticity and consistency are critical to achieving brand recognition. If you look at your business through a customer’s eyes and those boxes aren’t ticked, there’s work to do. And we’d love to help — get in touch.
We are proud to be celebrating twenty-one years of helping amazing clients to build stronger brands.