Personality: The famous advertising agency Young and Rubicam conducted a six-year study of 50 brands and found that businesses strongly aligned with single archetypes (personalities) gained economic and market values at a rate of almost double those that had no clear archetypal alignment. What this means is that in order for a business to be well branded it needs to choose one personality type and consistently align itself with it. There are different sets of archetypes that have come up throughout history. Carl Jung’s archetypes is one of them. Based on Jung, Carol S. Pearson created a set of 12 archetypes that specifically relate to brands. You need to build the personality you choose into the very fiber of the company, mimicking it in every way possible; its focus, ethics, values, disposition, temperament, creativity etc. When choosing a personality for your business, keep in mind that a brand as a personality interacts and is judged by its target audience in five ways. 1) As a friend- Do you enjoy spending time with this personality? 2) Inner feelings- What feelings do you have while interacting with this personality? 3) Trust- Do you trust this personality to generate a level of performance you expect through this purchase? 4) Personal Association- Is this a personality you wish to associate with? 5) External Association - Is this a personality you want others to see you associated with?
Value System- A brand knowingly or not, stands for some kind of value. Business by its very nature, is here to help people in some way, shape or form. It might be promoting higher quality, speed, health, knowledge, convenience etc. Instead of just monotonously going about offering whatever goods or services it sells, it needs to embrace the underlying benefit or value it gives to the world and extend it to all areas of interaction. In 1975, when Bill Gates declared “a computer on every desk and in every home”, he stood for the value of the individuals of the world utilizing technology to enhance daily life. In his own words (perhaps words his marketers told him to say), “Every day, we're finding new ways for technology to enhance and enrich people's lives.” The value your business embraces should be articulated in its vision statement.
Differentiation- Branding is about lodging your business in the minds of consumers so that your business becomes their adoptive “go to” place. This is called “mindshare”. The greater share of mind your business owns in its target customers heads, the greater the chance that they will bring their business to you. Consider this: If business A and business B are identical in every way possible, you will automatically go to the one you always went to, simply because there is nothing motivating you to change. The only way for a new business to win you over is by superimposing itself in your mind as being better or more relevant. This is accomplished by differentiating itself in a way that connects better and resonates stronger within you than its competitors. There are many ways to differentiate, some subtle while others more drastic. It is worthwhile to recall the 4 p’s of marketing: Product, Price, Place, Promotion as they are all possible areas for differentiation. Other areas are the other three pillars of branding we are discussing now: Personality, Value System and Innovation. “Different strokes for different folks” is the idea here. A variety of different targeted audiences can appreciate your product or service. Pick which one you want to target and find a differentiation factor you can assume that’s connects and resonates strongly within them.
Innovation- There is two types of innovations a business must be engaged in. First, as the world progresses, it is imperative for a brand to constantly stay abreast and follow the trends, or else it becomes irrelevant. In the past 15 years alone, the world has progressed commercially, in ways that are truly mind-boggling. 15 years ago, most people didn’t own a cell phone, forget about a BlackBerry. 15 years ago, film was costly and needed to be inserted into cameras in order to take pictures. Today with digitalization, we snap thousands of pictures without ever changing a roll of film or spending a penny. 15 years ago, we needed to carry a bag of tokens in order to drive on the parkway. Today there is EZ pass. 15 years ago, we would consult maps and atlases before taking a trip. Today we turn on the GPS. 15 years ago, data was transported via fax or mail. Today we use email, instantly getting the exact file in the exact condition and the same clarity as the original. The world keeps on innovating and unless you do too, your business will be left out in the cold. The second innovation a business needs to maintain is its own internal, goal-oriented innovations. It needs to find extraordinary ways to promote the ideals it stands for. Let’s say your business takes on a Sage personality, you should be exploring innovative ways to educate customers. If your brand personality is that of a Jester, consider innovative ways of making people laugh. If your businesses value is quick- in and out service, consider innovative ways to cut down or eliminate peoples wait times. If your business value is promoting communication between different groups of people, consider sponsoring networking events. Constantly innovating in ways that reinforce everything your brand stands for is the best way to create and maintain brand name status.
Yaacov Weiss is a brand strategist and founder of Tug branding, in Lakewood, NJ. If you’d like Yaacov to position your business, call 732-276-6432. You may also email Yaacov at yaacov@tugbranding.com.
