Cultivating the Right Brand Position and Defining Your Brand Heart

According to Philip Kotler, the father of marketing, brand positioning is “the act of designing the company’s offering and image to occupy a distinctive place in the mind of the target market”.

Simply put, positioning is how your brand sits in the minds of the consumer.

For the versed, when thinking of branding, the first thing that comes to mind is Kotler’s 4 P’s — price, place, product, promotion. Brand positioning is the P that precedes Kotler’s 4 P’s when it comes to laying a foundation for your brand’s identity.

It’s a revolutionary marketing idea, created by Al Ries and Jack Trout, as it adds consistency to all the 4 P’s.

brand heart >> brand positioning >> brand strategy.

Every brand holds a basic set of beliefs that affects everything they do. These core beliefs form the heart of your brand. It’s what defines your brand from within.

Like your heart, these core beliefs pump life into your brand position (the body), which forms the strategy used to set your business apart from the rest.

This blog focuses on the first step of building your brand strategy — finding your brand heart.

Defining your brand essence

The key is to define what your brand represents, and why the consumer should pick you. To get there, start by asking yourself these six imperative questions.

What position do you hold in the mind of your prospect?
This means you have to think about your message and positioning from the consumer’s point of view. Keep in mind that changing the minds of prospects is hard, so you have to work with what’s already there.

What’s your desirable position?
You can’t have it all. It’s important to narrow the focus of your specialty and establish a unique position instead of trying to please everyone’s needs.

Can you afford it?
Once you have established your position, you will need brand equity to hold it. It’s important to get attention and for that, your operations and expansion need to be strategic.

Do you fit into this position?
Know everything about your customers, their problems, and your product. When your brand is credible, the consumer will be loyal.

Can you be persistent?
Can you stick to your position over time? No brand positioning strategy works unless it’s done consistently over a long period, no matter how good it is.

Elements of brand heart

This heart, like ours, is made of four elements: purpose, vision, mission, and values.

As humans, our heart keeps us alive. The brand heart does exactly that for your brand.

You should be able to define these brand elements based on the information you gathered from the above questions. To ensure you hit the spot, let’s understand what each element defines.

Let’s look at Volvo’s brand heart as a reference.

Purpose: This is the company’s “why”. It is the reason for the existence of your brand’s identity beyond profits.

To define your brand's purpose, think about your social responsibility, who you really are, the future, and the consumer’s perspective.

Volvo, for example, has been a brand that focuses on a better future. They want to provide the freedom to move in a personal, sustainable and safe way.

Mission: This is the company’s “how”. It defines the purpose, objective and action plan. Compared to the vision statement, this is more short-term.

To define the mission, briefly describe what your company does and how your company does what it does using its core values.

Volvo’s mission is to make life easier, better, and safer for everyone.

Vision: This is the company’s “what”. It defines the brand goals, objectives, and approach. It defines the long-term impact.

To define the vision, think of the next 10 years and where you aspire to be. Using your values, create a brand statement that inspires.

Volvo aspires to be the most desired and successful transport and infrastructure solution provider in the world.

Brand Values: These are a set of guiding principles that shape all other aspects. These core values are what dictate the message, identity, and personality of your brand. They help shape the culture and community.

To define the brand values, analyze what matters the most, how you want to relate to the consumer on a deeper level, and what you can consistently provide. The most common values are product leadership, operational excellence, and customer relations.

As an organization, Volvo has five sets of beliefs, which include customer success, trust, passion, change, and performance.

These four statements will be the pillars of your brand. They reflect you, your ladder to success, and the basis of your relationship with the consumer.

For the sake of inspiration, let’s look at a brand that nailed its brand positioning and created a powerful branding strategy.

Dollar Shave Club

The most obvious reason behind the Dollar Shave Club’s success can be seen in its tone towards the consumer. Besides having the advantage of cost-effectiveness, their brand message aptly tells its consumer that THEY are a priority here, not the company. This emphasis on consumer research helped them sell a product that isn’t a necessity.

Dollar Shave Club makes you feel like you’re part of something young. They use their name to their advantage.

Other than that, DSC also sells a lifestyle with its product. An experience that is cost-effective, smart, and playful.

Compared to other razor brands in the market, they have set themselves apart in terms of tone, personality and aesthetics.

The primary learning here is that you have a reputation whether or not you foster it. Creating a brand positioning strategy can help you control this reputation and your brand’s image.

P.S. Today, consumers don’t want goods and services, they want relations, stories, and magic!