Consistency Creates Brands

While we could spend a few pages discussing what a brand is and isn’t (check out this blog for that discussion), we can likely all agree that a brand involves the feelings and thoughts of a customer. If, when a customer sees your brand name or product/service, they have a positive response that tells them this brand is good, trustworthy, ahead of the pack, reliable, high quality, valuable, etc., then their chances of buying from that company immediately or in the future are higher. But what creates those customer feelings and thoughts? One of the main factors is consistency.

• Consistency of Value: Choose a value your company wants to be known for – one you can deliver. Will it be quality? Innovation? Service? Don’t try to be all things to all people. Pick one.

• Consistency of Communication: Make sure every member of your company knows what the brand represents – that one thing. Sure, you’re good at other stuff, but that one thing will never fail! Train everyone from the CEO to the shipping clerk so they know this message and deliver it consistently. Every communication that touches a customer needs to reinforce the brand value.

• Deliver Every Time: No matter what else happens, make sure that one value doesn’t slip. Are you the company known for quality? Make sure your quality is high for everything – products, people, service. If you fall down once, apologize and explain how you plan to get back to the top.

• Don’t Get Bored: It’s so easy to decide you’ve done enough of that message, let’s try something new, more creative. NO, no, no. A brand isn’t a slogan or a logo or an ad. It’s what the customer thinks or feels when they see your name. It’s hard to gain real estate in a buyer’s mind. Once established, you don’t want to try to rip out that value from the customer. Just keep delivering over and over. If you want to grow it, do it over years by addition, but don’t let it go.

There’s lots more to say, but let’s keep it simple. This message is so easy to forget.