Branding Is Not Only For Livestock
Long time ago, humans began the practice of branding their livestock. With the sole purpose of laying claim to their property, warning others “This is my cow, hands off.”
More recently, not only do we brand our livestock, we can brand our ideas, our products, our services, and our person. We are naturally territorial; we want what is ours to stay ours. Perhaps that was the original reason for branding, where you do not want to share what you own.
Modern day practice of branding is not so much about not sharing, but more about reaching more people. When people identify with your brand, they use it, they purchase it, they solicit your services – it means, you’ve branded them! Mind you, people love to be branded, so it has become quite the symbiotic relationship between consumer and brand.
Brands go so far as having Ambassadors, especially for luxury brands. Nike Ambassadors are coveted worldwide, what else, oh yes, Tag, BMW, Estee Lauder, Sony, they have all branded their own Ambassadors. They are all branded.
To be like them, you go out and purchase and sport their brand. You wear their watch, you drive their car, you wear their clothes, you use their service – you are branded.
So how important it is to create a successful brand? Well, who wouldn’t want their brand to be strutted around by others? Spreading like wildfire through the consumer markets. Why miss the chance to brand your own people? When consumers become a fan of your brand, they want nothing more than to help you succeed. This is why, branding is so important, and why it cannot be dealt with a light hand.
Unlike the times of livestock branding, where the cows have no choice but to get branded, they won’t run away from you, but consumers can and will if they do not like you. Therefore it is important that you project a desirable trait to attract consumers, which is where Branding initiatives come in.
Successful organizations are organizations that brand successfully.
It is not enough to have a company name, a company logo, an office building, an outfit or even a website for that matter. Branding involves so much more than that.
A brand has a personality. It is important for a brand to feel human, because personality makes it easier to relate to a person. When a person can relate better to your brand, then they will like your brand more. Branding is consistency. So be mindful that your brand personality is consistent throughout its life. Do not be a bipolar brand. Be a brand that stands true to what it is. The core of what the brand is, its voice, tone, attitude, behavior, values, needs to be ingrained in the minds of your consumers. Only then will you ensure the longevity and fan base for your brand.
A brand has to feel alive. People would like to see your company breathe, to interact with an entity that is involved in the community, it has to grow from year to year, seen as being active, having ideas and opinions of its own. Achieve this liveliness through frequent media coverage, be it on the news, through social media or organized public events. Deploying proper strategic integrated promotional tools to achieve greater brand exposure.
Finally, a brand is about the employees in your company. If your brand doesn’t have your group of brand champions, then it just negates everything your company stands for. When you have a group of employees, wearing your brand on their t-shirt, they should and must be the representative of your brand to the public. They have to walk and talk and breathe your brand! Your employees are essentially the only way your brand can touch your consumers personally. Which is why they need to be trained and educated about your brand. If I walk into a store, and I find out that I know more about your products than your employees, then the impression that I get out of that experience is not going to be a good one.If you can’t inspire your own employees to have the same passion and enthusiasm as much as normal consumers then it means it’s either you’ve recruited the wrong employee, or something is going on in your organization.Your employees must love your brand, they must respect your brand, they must know what your brand values are, and they must know where your brand is going and where it came from. If your brand is of a certain personality, your employees must have at least had a semblance of said personality. Employees are to be treated as the most important factor when it comes to branding.
MWS will be launching its 8th MWS Trainers Kit, MWS Branding in Action, on the 12th December 2012, at the Indonesia HR Expo 2012 , in Indonesia Jakarta.
The latest track provides ideas and workable action plans to successfully build a brand. Addressing topics on how to create, sustain and spread the awareness of your brand or organization. So that people of the public can see, hear and remember you.
