What is Your Brand?

If you were to ask fifty people the question, ‘What is a brand?’ you’d likely get fifty answers. I know, because I have asked that question, hundreds of times. And I often hear these and other responses: ‘A brand is a logo’ ..or.. ‘an ad campaign’ ..or.. ‘our sales force’ ..or.. ‘the sum total of all impressions’ ..or dozens more.

All of the above are symbols or elements of a brand. But the brand, itself? Sorry. None of the above quite hits the mark. Here’s the answer:

A brand — your brand — is a promise to your customers that your products or services will meet or exceed their expectations each and every time. All of these other elements — the logo, the website, the sales force — are merely distributors of the brand promise.

Companies with strong brands work very hard to integrate the brand promise throughout every aspect of their organizations, so when customers have an encounter or transaction with the brand, that promise is continually reinforced. And then that continual reinforcement ultimately creates a belief system among customers.

BMW owners, for example, have bought into the belief system that BMW is ‘the ultimate driving machine.’ And that promise is reinforced every time they drive, by BMW’s precise handling, quick acceleration, exacting engineering and fine appointments. John Deere owners have bought into the brand promise of durability, because ‘nothing runs like a Deere.’ The consumer who enjoys a Budweiser has bought into the belief system that Budweiser is the ‘King of Beers.’

Bold promises (backed by facts) create strong believers. And strong believers create strong brands. What do your customers believe? What’s your brand promise?

Mark’s email address is markt@mediacross.com