Using your brand strategy to build content is often considerably complex. Sometimes it’s because that strategy has not yet been ascertained. Or sometimes it’s because a brand hasn’t found their unique POV yet. But we see it most often become more difficult because of one common misconception: Branding is not about you or what you sell. It never was.
Yes, you may be the founder or owner of your business – and you may have been very hands-on in developing your brand identity – but your brand cannot be focused on you.
Instead, branding is all about your potential customers. A strong brand consistently delivers value to its customers, not itself. When the two are confused, we usually offer one piece of advice: Create an experience.
This experience doesn’t have to be some guerilla warfare style pop-up experience. This experience could be utilized by simply playing into your brand’s unique value it offers clients. Again, it’s using that brand strategy.
Think about it your most recent purchase. Was that purchase influenced because of the brand’s company leadership? Or was it influenced by what the brand promised to offer with the investment of its product.
Using your brand’s own, well, branding, you can create campaigns that are focused on conversions.
Refocusing From You to Them
Brands don’t win loyalty by focusing on their product features, the new app they just launched or their CEO’s credentials. The truth is, successful brands focus less on themselves entirely and more on creating experiences that include customers. These brands create a connection by tapping into the one factor that greatly influences customer behavior: emotion.
Think about your favorite brands, the ones you return to time after time. Do these brands focus solely on products and pricing, or do they make you feel understood by focusing on the problems and feelings you may be experiencing?
Apple, ranking third in the 2020 MBLM Brand Intimacy Study, does an incredible job of focusing on the emotions of new and loyal customers. The brand doesn’t concentrate on selling iPhones or MacBooks. On the contrary, Apple zeroes in on how we feel. Apple’s branding makes its customers feel like they are part of creative, cutting-edge technology that promotes harmony and connection across the world.
Tapping into these needs and emotions not only makes customers feel understood and seen by your brand, but it also increases price resilience and brand loyalty, and creates brand champions.
The European flower delivery company Bloom & Wild caters to more than 2 million customers and operates under the motto, “We don’t just send flowers. We help you care wildly.” Instead of focusing on selling their fresh bouquets, they offer a flower experience that gives customers a chance to be swept up in the romanticism of a flower delivery. And who doesn’t want to be a part of that story?
(matter) understands the importance of forming a connection between your brand to your target audience. We use real-time analytics and data to propel campaigns forward, refocus brands and create connections with your customers. Take a look at this very successful nation-wide Leap campaign that garnered a seven point increase in ad awareness and more than 300 million social media impressions, and then reach out to us to get your own brand refocused and reconnected!
