Keeping your brand on the straight and narrow will be easier if you can avoid the situations below. None will totally kill a brand, yet any one will weaken its effectiveness.
Reducing your brand name to initials
We call this monogram branding and it’s the surest way to drop into the oblivion of alphabet soup brands.
“Everyone calls us that, anyway,” you say. Not your next new customer who will remember you far better if it’s a distinctive name. Look at this way, you wouldn’t introduce yourself to anyone using just your initials. Why do that with your brand? If your name is too long, shorten it. Just don’t turn it into a three-letter code.
Copying your competition
“We’re just as good as the leading brand,” has never been a successful brand strategy. The world doesn’t need a duplicate of an existing brand. It’s looking for something different, and better. I’m not talking about product or service features. You certainly have to keep up with those. But using similar messaging or product naming, or even mimicking a leading brand’s color scheme are errors that will dilute your brand and set you back.
Trying to be all things to all people
Brands seeking growth may be tempted to reach beyond their core promise to gain some incremental revenue. Still, you won’t see Rolex offering $75 watches to compete with Timex. BMW is a brand that is focused on performance. It just so happens that many BMWs offer superior fuel mileage as well. However, you won’t see them focusing on that message because it doesn’t jive with the image of a performance-based brand.
Leading with how old you are
Ask yourself this: Have you ever bought a product (a car, smart phone, cereal, anything) based on how old the brand is? No. Because you don’t care. Would you buy a Honda because it’s older than Toyota? No. (They’re the same age) So, please resist the temptation to lead with “Since 1934…” or “…with over eight decades experience…” It’s simple. No one cares (and, if any, maybe very few). What they care about is what’s new. Talk about that.
Making promises you can’t deliver
Let’s say you’re in the food business and you want to build a brand around eating healthy. Yet your products are high in sodium, fat calories and/or sugar. Sooner or later (these days probably sooner) your customers are going to figure out that your products are not that healthy after all. On the other hand, if you position the brand as indulgent, you just might succeed.
Speaking in clichés
Lines like “We provide solutions” are generic. Every brand is a solution to something. “Our people make the difference” is another tired phrase that is virtually impossible to prove. Develop messages that set you apart, not ones that sound like everyone else.
Faking authenticity
This is less about the brand promise and more about the brand story or heritage. If you concoct a good story that isn’t really true, you’ll probably get busted. Claiming locally sourced ingredients has gotten Chipotle into trouble since only a portion of their produce comes from local sources. They have had similar questions raised about their claims of sustainability. Building a brand around a noble goal is fine, but make it real or get ready to play defense instead of offense.
Not communicating with your customer base and other friends of your brand
Keep them updated on what services or products you have available and changes to delivery or service policies. Let them know if you have special offers. Just be careful not to inundate your most important audience segment with excessive communication. The temptation to “send another email” may be greater than ever, but keep an eye on your open rate and dial back your frequency if it is falling.
Begging for customer support
Appreciating your customers is always a good idea, but asking them to patronise your business in ways that may make them feel uncomfortable should never happen. During the global COVID-19 crisis, some businesses won more people with their sensitivity while many lost out to insensitivity. Some companies downplayed the risk of transmission that existed with doing business with them. Even if they were right, they inadvertently alienated otherwise loyal customers who didn’t feel the same way.
‘Mis’treating your employees
Salary cuts and layoffs are never happy moments but finding ways to show compassion for your employees can have a positive effect on your brand and how it is perceived. Demonstrating shared sacrifice and recognising the hardship that staff and employees are experiencing could go a long way.
Last line
Brands make targets. As a company creates brand strategies for public consumption, you should be sure to evaluate your ability to deliver on that image, especially when the public attempts to pull back the curtain for a closer look
