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[ JUNE 2007]
10 Ideas for Building a Kick-Ass Brand!
by Michel Hogan
As presented to the Churchill Club. Melbourne, Australia
In no particular order…
# 1 – Brand is much more than your logo. Think about
your whole company as being part of your brand – all
the way down to how you answer the phone, help your customers,
hire employees, ship your products etc. Like the devil – brand
is in the details!
# 2 – It is almost impossible to change your brand downstream,
so make sure you start the way you mean to continue. Do it
on purpose, don’t let your brand be something you discover
by accident.
# 3 – Be authentic. Just like it is hard to pretend to
be someone you are not, it is impossible for a brand to pretend
to be something your company isn’t. Take the time to
understand what is true.
# 4 – Brands are defined by people. Your employees
are on the frontlines of how your brand is seen by your customers
(and other stakeholders). What they see is fundamental to
either
building or destroying your brand.
# 5 – Sing one song. If everyone inside the company is
saying something different, to each other or even worse, to
your customers, then it is impossible for people to have any
idea what your brand stands for. Get the story straight and
stick to it – consistency matters.
# 6 – Don’t confuse who you are with what you
do. Enduring brands stand the test of time and while products
and
services can will and should change, the underlying brand
ideal stays constant.
# 7 – Be passionate. No one will care if you don’t
and all great brands share passion for something at their
core.
# 8 – Know who you are talking to. Without someone
at the receiving end brands are a bit like the party that
no one
comes to. Make sure you know who your customers are and why
they chose you.
# 9 – It’s a commitment…not a campaign.
Strong brands cannot be bought. They take time to develop,
take root
and grow. Perhaps one of the most overlooked principles of
brand is patience.
AND # 10 - Do what you say
you are going to do. Side-to-side, products-to-people. If
you can’t do it, don’t
say it. Period. If you do say it, live it.
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