If a potential customer walked up and asked you what your company’s brand is – essentially, what you’re all about – would you have a good answer without preparing?
Do you feel confident your employees or coworkers that interact with customers can do the same? Will they have an answer that is not only as good as yours but also consistent?
Something I read recently got me thinking about branding. I admit, when I think of branding the first things that come to mind are a logo, colors and other visual representations of the company or organization. But a brand is so much bigger than that.
It’s important to recognize every interaction with your company plays a role in your brand. One marketing expert says a brand is “expectations, memories, stories and relationships.” How the initial interaction with a new customer goes is a part of your brand for that person or company. How you react when a customer has an issue affects your brand. How long it takes your team to get back to people is a factor. The answer you give a customer is one thing, but you then have to live that brand.
It starts with determining what your company does and what sets it apart. Why do people want to work with you? If you have a very clear answer, then everyone in the company needs to communicate that through words, body language or any other form of communication. If it’s authentic – something I’ve written about in a previous post – and consistent, you have done your part to leave a favorable impression.
Once you’ve created brand ambassadors, they’ll talk with others, especially today with the amount of platforms that allow for sharing and user-generated content.
So, what’s your company all about?
Kirk Stelsel
Director of Communication & Marketing, NPCA
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