When we give love, we get love!! …. A sound marketing strategy to deepen your connections and relationships, across everyone that interacts with your brand: staff, customers, suppliers, board members, investors, communities, etc.
Given the vast number of brands vouching for attention, connection and dollars – it’s never been more important to lead in this way. There’s a catch though… the love you give needs to be honest and real. It needs to come from an authentic place. People are smart, they will sniff out ‘token gesture’ and it will have a detrimental impact on your brand.
So where do we start? Before we think about how we show love, we need to take a look inside and understand who we really are. It’s the combination of what we do, how we do, why we do it, where we do it and who does it – the reason why someone chooses to invest in your brand, work for your brand, innovate with your brand, support your brand or buy your brand!
Your Brand truth.
Who are you?
Glow
The knowing is the most important. We all have the knowing, it’s the reason why we do what we do. Sometimes we don’t know, we know. Sometimes we become distracted and have lost the connection to our knowing. Other times we cannot find the words or a means to simplify the message / story.
When we have reconnected / realigned with our knowing, it’s important to then embed this into everything we do. This is the building of brand. We are forever building our brand – as we evolve, as the world evolves, as life evolves. We are also forever sharing our brand – with people that will one day see our brand as an important part of who they are.
so we better get started!
Firstly know that there is a difference between brand and branding. Brand is the who we are and the meaning we bring to people’s lives, Branding is the words, symbols, images, sounds, movements that represent the brand. They remind us of what the brand stands for.
Brand is a long game. It never ends. You are continually building and evolving. It’s not a one person job. It involves everyone who connects with your brand. This is the fundamental reason why getting clear on who you are is so important. Otherwise you will be pulled in all different areas, creating inconsistency and confusion and missing the opportunity to convey your true value.
The beautiful thing about building a brand is that the more connected people become, the more they feel a sense of ownership of the brand. It becomes a part of, not just their lives, but who they are.
Like the legendary Johnny Farnham, Celeste is The Voice. Not entirely sure how to label her as she straddles a number of fences around bloody big paddocks. Sales, marketing, print, online, e-commerce, thought leadership and campaigns.
It’s rare to see someone light up in equal amounts on delivering strategy and execution, and I think this is why Celeste has the X factor.
When I started working with Celeste, I had no idea of what the difference between brand and branding was. I thought I might be getting a shiny new logo but what I got was so much more. From our initial consultation and exploration, through to the production of my brand manifesto, she has taken me on a journey of discovery of myself, my clients and the impact I want to make in the world.
Celeste is an inspirational business and thought partner. She is fully invested in me and my success, and cares deeply about my work, my brand and my message. And it’s fun. Our conversations and planning days are punctuated with lots of laughs, whilst getting the work done.
I would recommend Celeste and Run Partners without reservation. Her commitment, experience and creative talent is the difference that is making a difference to my business and enabling me to level up.
Frankly, I just love working with her.
The perfect business to down-load on. They then slice, dissect, rebuild, and present back – a processed approach that includes both business and creative thinking with clarity.
Nothing is ever too much. I find them highly attentive.
Brand Next Level! – Our latest post
Are you driving with your eyes closed?
Marketing without data is like driving with your eyes closed – Dan Zarrella
Opinions can be interesting/enticing, but when not backed by solid evidence, can be dangerous.
The wrong information can spread like wild fire, leading to strategic decisions based on opinions – not facts.
It can spread so far and fast that everyone assumes it’s a fact, but no one stopped to ask. Before you know it, you have gone so far up the garden path, returning feels impossible, but in some cases inevitable:
In 1985 Coca-Cola replaced its original formula with “New Coke” based on taste tests, underestimating customer loyalty to the original. The backlash forced them to bring back “Coca-Cola Classic” within months.
In 2009 Vegemite named its new product “iSnack 2.0,” assuming it would appeal to younger audiences, but public backlash led to a quick rebranding to “Cheesybite.”
In 2019 Peloton released an ad portraying a woman receiving a bike from her husband, assuming it would be seen as motivational, but it was criticized as sexist and tone-deaf, leading to stock drops and backlash.
Marketing is a science. It’s not a stab in the dark (guesswork).
What’s ‘stab in the dark’ marketing look like:
- Target audience assumptions
- Creative campaigns driven by personal taste
- Channel selection based on whats trending
- Ignoring negative feedback
- Pricing strategy based on intuition
- Geographic expansion without market research
- Assuming brand loyalty
- Relying on anecdotal success stories
- Marketing budget allocation based on past experience
- Ignoring competitor activity
No matter where you are right now… more stab in the dark, less science perhaps…it’s never too late to move into a place of making smarter, informed choices. This shift can completely transform your business culture for the better.
Questions that can aid better decision making:
- How do we currently make decisions? What’s the process / framework and who is involved?
- What information or data do we have to assist in making this decision? Is this data reliable, relevant, and up to date? Are there gaps in the information?
- What are we missing in our understanding or data, and how can we fill these gaps? Are there additional resources, tools, or perspectives (e.g., customer feedback, market trends) we could access to inform our decision?
- How do we evaluate or review our decisions after they’re made? What criteria do we use to measure performance, and how frequently do we conduct this review?
- What is our process for learning from past decisions to improve future ones? How do we document and apply lessons learned, and can this process be refined to ensure continuous improvement?
If you don’t know where to start please talk to me.
At Run Partners, we’ve created a Marketing Dashboard that puts real-time, data-driven decision-making at your fingertips. This all-in-one tool centralises your marketing data and is available 24/7, making it easy to access instant insights.
Celeste
