Top 10 Brand Truths to Adopt Into Every Day

As a self professed marketing nerd, I am delighted to see how social media has invigorated consumer-brand relationships, adding an entirely new dimension and power shift to this traditionally one-way communication. I am equally fascinated by the agonizing many of us endure in choosing to separate or morph our private and public socially networked lives.

And so in homage to this morphing of personal and professional (and as “top 10” lists are all the rage these days) I present my top 10 truths leading brands know that we could adopt to improve our personal brand communication (and potentially the quality of our lives).

1-Successful brands have a distinctive and comfortable style. They use a specific color and font to communicate who they are and what they do. They do not change this style seasonally with the fashion, they know what works for them and they stick to it consistently through all mediums.

Defining your own personal style – understanding what works for you and what doesn’t will help you shop more effectively and organize your wardrobe into items you can see and wear easily.

2-Successful brands know what their core values are and what they stand for. They are written out clearly, framed and posted on the wall. Everyone who comes into contact with the brand, be it an employee, supplier or consumer, knows and experiences the brand’s values. Click here to see Zappos Core Values

Try this exercise. Write down the 5 core values that are most important to you in your life. Share them with your friends and family – heck, go ahead and post them on your Facebook wall!

3-Successful brands know that values are transparent and have to be “lived” from the top down. Employees and customers will know they are authentic when they see them coming from the Executive level.

Are you living these values every day? If you have kids – can they see and understand them?

4-Successful brands know that passion is contagious and leads to innovation in an environment where thinking and creativity are encouraged and rewarded.

Are you fueling or stifling your passions? What did you love to do when you were 14? Do you still find time for it? Do you periodically break out of your routine and do something completely different and encourage those around you to do the same? Do you do stuff just for fun?

5-Successful brands have a plan. It is not just about annual profit and ROI, there is a broader understanding of “growth” and “value”. There is a column in the spreadsheet that attributes a real dollar value to “our brand”.

Do you have a 5 year plan – a real one written down and referred to? Does it include an intention for personal growth?

6-Successful brands listen and respond. They monitor their industry space, their internal space and their customers. They ask questions and are willing to amend their behavior based on feedback. 

Are you guilty of being “Captain You-should”, always telling others what they should do without them even asking? Are you talking more than listening?

7-Successful brands know that happiness is contagious. So is unhappiness. They know that happy employees will create happy customers, and unhappy employees will create unhappy customers. They know to take care of the people inside their “house” first.

Put a smile on your dial, leave your worries on the doorstep.

8-Successful brands know you cannot take without giving back.

Volunteer your time, donate money. Help someone, pay it forward. It is a required part of belonging to a successful community.

9-Successful brands admit to their mistakes, apologize, fix them and move on.

Everyone makes mistakes, there are no exceptions. Not everyone owns their mistakes and makes amends. Without owning them, we cannot learn from them.

And the number 10 truth that successful brands understand and we could all learn from –

10-What you “do” doesn’t have to define who you “are”!

Be multi-dimensional. Embrace and promote all elements of your existence – not just what someone pays you for. Take a picture, Tweet it out. 

If brands can do it – so can you! 











photo credits: 1) & 3) istockphoto.com 
thanks for all other images to Flickr community  5) Nenad Stephanovic  7)Torsten Kanisch 8)Reslifephoto 9)Dave Keeshan  10)Chicago Party Entertainment