brand strategy and storyline series 3 · september 14, 2022
Does Your Brand Have the Guts to Succeed
Consistency and repetition are essential to building your brand.
“Part of courage is simple consistency.” –Peggy Noonan
I’ve spent over 30 years in the business of branding. Besides making me feel more than a little old, it has given me perspective on what causes brands to succeed and fail. I tell my clients that it takes three things to ensure your brand’s growth, head, heart, and guts. And it’s when a brand lacks any one of these that it fails.
Staying true to your authentic brand promise daily requires courage and discipline, the ”guts” I’m talking about. Becoming inconsistent over time is the biggest reason most brands get lost. Someone adds a new color, tweaks the tagline, alters the brand story, social media takes a turn, and in a million little ways, it veers off course and loses its way.
In the best branding companies, there’s always a brand manager responsible for keeping all the strategy, stories, content, and communication consistent and “on-brand.” They know the Brand Strategy and Target Audiences better than anyone else. But most importantly, they ensure the entire organization and agencies understand it. Doing this role takes a lot of courage, but the results are worth it. Because a solid, consistent brand built over time is the best guarantee of future earnings.
But don’t just take my word for it. Look to this article in Forbes Magazine. “Brands are built through consistently delivering the brand promise through all stakeholder touch points. It is the consistent, desired experience that builds trust, and trust is the foundation for loyalty and promotion.”
Define what your brand stands for, its core value, and tone of voice, and then communicate consistently in those terms.
–Ranal Currie
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brand strategy and storyline series 3 · september 14, 2022
Having consistency across the board is important because you don’t know which specific touchpoint your target audience will see. We all know that we’re bombarded with messages all day long. Back in the 70’s, it was reported that the average person saw between 500 to 1600 ads per day. Now that number is around 10,000 and growing. You can only break through to people through a consistent and repeated message over time.
Many companies don’t necessarily have a brand manager, and the number of touchpoints there is for customers and potential customers continues to escalate. So, this is where I try to help the company's leaders embrace the brand and advocate for consistency.
But what empowers this consistency is educating and energizing your employees, especially in customer-facing roles, to remain vigilant and consistent in the use of the brand. That’s because they are the face of your company and brand. Think of them as your brand managers in the field.
So having the “guts” to remain steadfast in your brand, story, and commitment will make all the difference to your customers and employees. And this will enable your brand to last for generations.
We’ll delve into the guts it takes for brand success in future posts in this series on Strategy & Storyline. Including how to maintain a consistent brand in the marketplace to maximize your return on investment. In the meantime, check out the free e-book— Brand Strategy & Storyline on how to build a brand that grows your business for years to come. Just go to the Resources section on our website.
And remember, Branding Changes Everything.™
Without courage we will simply accumulate a collection of good ideas and regrets.
–Andy Stanley
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