Customers Are the Key to Your Brand

Everybody seems to be on the “Brand YOU” bandwagon these days - and with good reason. Many convincing arguments have been made to support personal branding as both a pragmatic and commercial idea. Business guru Tom Peters says, “Survivors (in the marketplace) will market themselves like a product …and think like a
brand, exhibiting a clear-cut distinction at…something.”

Branding is more than a one-way conversation

In an attempt to create distinction, many solo-prenuers have jumped on the “Brand YOU” bandwagon in full regalia, taking the “live your passion, be your values” to the extreme. They have allowed their personal brand to become a cacophony of personal passions, idiosyncrasies, lifestyle choices and cause-related issues cast alongside a laundry list of services, credentials and business associations.

My experience of these brand efforts is like watching “floats” passing by in the Rose
Bowl parade: big, colorful attractions that are fun to watch, a marvel to behold, but with no point of access for a customer to participate. The result is a monologue of sorts, a one-way conversation.

Scott Bedbury, who helped brand Nike and Starbucks says, “A great brand taps into emotions … A brand creates a powerful connecting experience. Its an emotional connection-point that transcends the product … A great brand tells a story and creates the emotional context people need to locate themselves in a larger
experience.”

What is “brand?”

Your brand is no more than the tapestry of feelings, words, associations and images that your customers hold in their “minds-eye” when they think of you. Because the most obvious goal of your brand is to attract your customers attention, it is imperative that you understand the words, thoughts and images that most capture their minds, their hearts and their imaginations. If your brand efforts dont touch
people at an emotional level, your power to attract is diminished.

Branding is an emotional bridge

The first job of branding is to craft an emotional bridge between your company and the customers you serve. Lets face it, at the end of the day your customers care less about what associations you belong to; they care more about whats in it for them. They want to be assured that your company “gets it,” that you understand their pain, their fears, their aspirations and their longing - and that you have the experience and the ability to meet their needs.

When you craft your brand story you must hold both sides of the equation and speak from that special place of overlap between your “gifts, passions and values” and their “desires.” Everything your company does contributes to the brand-building process
and the long-term success of your brand. Marketing doesnt sit outside of, or in isolation from, your companys products, service, passions and values, nor should it sit far from your customers dreams.

By including your customers as an integral part of your brand story you create a more complete and compelling message for your business. Think of your brand as the bridge to your customers hearts and as the glue that holds all of your marketing efforts together.

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This article was originally published in “fuel," the newsletter of marketingu.net. Debra Valle is the founder and president of Marketing U,
a virtual university and resource center providing emerging businesses a supportive environment to incubate, create, and transform ideas and dreams into opportunities.

About the author.

Debra’s background includes an eighteen-year career as a marketing and advertising executive with Fortune 500 companies. Working in both corporate and agency
environments, she was responsible for brand positioning, strategic planning, advertising and direct marketing for companies as diverse as Michigan Opera, Chrysler and Nestle.

customersarekey@sendfree.com
http://www.marketingu.net