Does Your Brand Have a Personality?

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If ever there was space to show and express yourself instead of telling people about it, this is it. Over the past decade marketers and organizations have discovered, sometimes painfully, that a brand’s personality and identity can prove to be more important and valuable than just brand recognition.
A positive display of brand identity and personality tend to encompass a wide range of factors, especially those pertaining to the intangible side of marketing. How ethical are your corporate decisions? How much do you value a human connection with your customers? How much of an emphasis do you place on expedient, polite and resourceful customer service? Can you gauge how much goodwill you’ve created amongst your customers?
Don’t know? Then it’s time for a soul check for your organization. Whether you realize it or not, your clientele is personifying your company’s performance, and words like “trendy, “innovative,” “friendly,” or worse, “boring” are being tossed around when you’re not listening.
If you’re just beginning to discover your brand’s personality, your litmus test might be your own employees. You may think you’re “caring” and “involved” but the reality may differ vastly from your own perception of yourself.
Why?
Well, why not? Your brand’s personality is what sets the tone for every interaction that your organization will have, beginning with frontline staff. It’s the point where you begin to determine everything from your communication materials to your visual style. For some brands, edgy and risk-taking is always better. For instance, imagine a Ferrari dealership extolling the virtues of playing it safe and coloring inside the lines.
Tools for Testing
If you’re ready to dip your toes into evaluating your personality, it may help to arm yourself with a few tools that might make the journey easier. If the most you can do is aggregate anonymous responses, The Financial Brand has a list of adjectives that you employ.  Be warned, however, that this exercise may expose a few brand gaps of perception.
If you’re looking to delve deeper, exploring marketing archetypes might be a good idea to get started. Keep a pen and paper handy, however. You may find yourself redrafting your image very soon.

Tiffany

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