Almost all of marketing depends on a deep understanding of customers, and how they interact with your company. If people are not aware of your brand - they can't consider it. And if they can't consider it - they won't buy it. As a result, it's critical to understand those who might have an interest in your brand, so you can send them on a journey from blissfully unaware to becoming a happy customer.
But there is one time when you get to empty your mind of consumer data, and focus purely on yourself. That's when you're doing the first part of either building a brand, or re-building it with some sort of rebranding or repositioning exercise. The reason for this is simple. Before you talk to customers and assess the competition, it helps to start with what you actually want your brand to be.
Whether it's about the founding mission of the company, the story of the founders, and the heritage of the brand, this is always the starting point for any brand building exercise. The reason for this is that because (in truth) most companies sell similar products. So the differences between companies often come down to their unique personality or approach. There are built-in differences that you may should bring to the forefront of your marketing efforts to help you stand out.
But all this begs the question; where do you start with yourself? What should you look for and where in the archive do you dig for the right nuggets of info?
Place
The first place to start is quite literally where the company was born. The location of a brand can make a big difference to how it projects what it sells to the outside world. For example IKEA is just a furniture store. But through its consistent references to its Swedish heritage in its logo, its language, the way it designs products and even down to using unashamedly Swedish names, the brand has a clear sense of place. Which goes a long way to making it stand out from other brands selling the same stuff.
Heritage
Next, take a long look at the heritage of the brand. Very often, by taking a look at the archives, you'll find interesting themes, stories, and even visual inspiration. This can come from the most unexpected places, including previous advertising, but also long-lost documents, newspaper articles, quotes and even photographs of old buildings. One of the biggest branding trends of recent years has been the return to brand roots. Whether it's the Co-Op resurrecting their 19760s logo, or Branston rolling out their "Bring out the Branston" strapline for the first time in years, don't be afraid to go back to the future.
Founders
Finally, take a look a the founders themselves. While the business is important, usually that business came from the vision from one or more people. And people help us tell stories about why our brand might matter to them. By learning about them, we can understand what shaped their life, and the reason they started the company. This origin story will have had an impact on almost all aspects of the company.
Founders are deeply connected to the origin of the business, and their vision will likely have a very human story and motivation behind it. For example, Virgin is a corporate mega brand with all kinds of products and services. But most people will know of Richard Branson and they may even know the story that this corporate giant began life as a humble mail order record business in the 1970s. Branson's ethos has shaped the story of Virgin and it still plays a huge part in shaping how the company is perceived by customers. Like him, all business leaders actions set the tone for the company culture and how it interacts with customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders.
Loyal Customers
Now you have a basis for the brand, of course it makes sense to broaden this out and take a look at the competition and your customers too.
Customers are integral to the process of creating brand positioning, but like our heritage and founders, it pays to start close to home. The first place any brand should go is to look at the people who have stuck with the brand over time. Your loyal customers can give you invaluable insights into what the brand could be to everyone. This feedback loop can help you refine your messaging and make sure you are on the same page as the people you'd like to be your customers in the future.
But it's important to remember these people will be unrepresentative. If they like or even love your brand, they are unlike the sort of people you need to target. You could even consider them to be insiders, as they are likely to be biased to your company. But their closeness to your company may meant that they are help you understand their decision journey (including juicy tidbits on the other companies they considered.) They can also tell you about what they thought was a strength of your offer and your weaknesses.
True North?
When you put all of this together, you should end up with a much better understanding of what your brand positioning is, what it could be, and whether the internal view of the brand is something shared by customers. When customers feel that a brand truly understands and meets their needs, they are more likely to develop a strong connection with your brand. And at the end of it all, it's customers who decide how your brand is seen in the marketplace.
Yet another reason then to remember that while customers are the decision maker, telling an authentic story about your brand and where it came from can help make your brand more compelling.
