Why nailing your brand personality matters
Brands, like people, should have personalities. Your brand personality helps you stand out amongst a crowd – it makes you memorable and unmistakable. A brand without one is just taking up space.
WHAT IS YOUR BRAND PERSONALITY?
This seems pretty straight forward and something everyone should be able to answer. No one knows your brand better than you, right? It may come as a surprise that most brands struggle with this, especially when they’re starting out. They can’t articulate what it is they want to stand for. Getting to work on the rudiments of your brand is where it all starts. At Tickety Boo Creative, we work with our clients to help define what their brand purpose, DNA and ultimately their personality is. Doing this work first makes what follows more impactful and powerful.
THE BIG FIVE
If your brand is up and running (or even just an idea in your head), it’s likely that it’ll fit into at least one category of the brand personality framework:
Sincerity
Think foodie or family focused brands. They’re down-to-earth, honest, authentic and cheerful. They build trust with their audience and, if they’re really clever, turn that audience into brand advocates.
Excitement
Daring and spirited, trendy and imaginative. These are notably fashion or beauty brands, they speak to their audience in a very human and real way that’s full of enthusiasm and inclusivity while giving the sense of a cool club or clique.
Competence
Reliable, smart, hard-working. Technology or solution-based brands often need to communicate complex ideas succinctly and with broad appeal. The no-nonsense approach is what speaks to this audience but getting the balance right is important so it doesn’t land cold.
Sophistication
Feminine, expensive, glamourous. The luxury market is the home of sophisticated brand personality. It’s inspirational and evocative yet full of charm so as not to alienate a more casual audience.
Ruggedness
Masculine, outdoorsy, tough. These brands are form over function, yet still have a very strong identity when it comes to personality. They’re performance-driven and speak directly to their audience in a way that is direct without being brash or soulless.
WHY IT MATTERS
64% of consumers form relationships with brands whose values they align with. A huge part of communicating those values is in your brand personality. It provides a real focus for your messaging, which helps create credibility and inspire trust.
Customers love consistency. It makes brands instantly recognisable and creates a feeling of familiarity, so if your communications reflect your brand personality this will resonate with customers, even if they’re not fully aware it’s happening. Harvard Business School professor Gerald Zaltman says that 95% of our purchase decision making takes place in the subconscious mind.
And it’s not just customer facing communications either – inspiring colleagues matters just as much and consistent messaging, rooted in the foundations of your personality, makes it easier for everyone to articulate what’s special about your brand.
BRINGING BRANDS TO LIFE
We’ve helped a whole host of brands define and redefine their brand personality including well-loved brands like Winn-Dixie and Mercato and smaller, niche brands like The Botanical Baker and Sad Girls Club.
Whether you’re an established brand with a large customer base, or a small business starting something incredible from scratch, take the time to consider your brand personality and make sure it reflects who you are. If you’d like to talk to us about redefining or creating your brand, please do give us a shout.
Links to stats : https://learn.g2.com/branding-statistics