From BORING to REMARKABLE; the journey your brand needs to embark on.
“Be genuine. Be remarkable. Be worth connecting with.”
Seth Godin, in the book ‘Purple Cow’
The concept is direct and simple, if you are wondering about your brand being boring, it probably is.
A boring brand is nothing but a name without a direction. Positive branding is both exciting and daunting.
When co-founder and CEO of Dropbox Drew Houston came up with the idea of an online backup and storage service, in theory, the topic sounded pretty blah. But with their uncluttered design, cute emailers, and personalized emoticons, they made the act of cloud file storage more fun!
So where does your brand stand?
When you are in an industry driven by competition at every nook, you need to reflect and re-envision your brand strategies regularly. You may be in an industry that sounds less interesting that Jay-Z’s latest track, but then you are not here to impress everybody.
Branding is what people say about you when you are not in the room, and if they aren’t saying anything at all you’re in trouble.
Stop selling and start helping
‘Consumers do not buy products, they buy product benefits’. — David Ogilvy
Think clear and far, what do you want your brand to be? It’s a no-brainer; your brand has to be authentic, fun and personalized. People don’t care about your business; they care about their problems.
Stick with providing an effective solution to their problem while making it a memorable experience.
Be you. Be different.
A very fine blurry line separates being different and being unique. Interact, engage and educate your customers about your product. For example, Dominos with their slogan: Pizza delivered in 30 minutes or it’s free. Sure the tagline is catchy and great, but it is the solution that separates them from their competitors in the market.
After you place the order, you know your food will be there in 30 minutes or else it’s free! A win-win experience is what drives customers back.
Weave a story
In a world of homogeneous marketers if you want your brand to be heard you need to make a roar. Stories resonate and connect with customers. Of course, the story has to be authentic or your brand could lose some serious credibility.
Using Seth Godin’s quote ‘Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories that you tell’ as its gospel, Airbnb is all about the customer.
As a brand they allow their customers to weave the plot and tell their stories through their experiences. Because at the end of the day isn’t that why you created your brand? To be 100% for and about the customer.
Uncluttered Behavior
The first impression of a brand is extremely important, especially if you are in a mundane industry. Insurance. Finance. Health and likes are not typically exciting topics that lure general audiences.
But clean communication design, strong emotional messaging and staying relevant to problems of your users can do wonders to alter brand behaviour.
In Conclusion
In a real-world scenario, if your audience has the typical ‘millennial-attention-span’. There is a harsh truth you must face. They get bored fast, really fast. You have to remain interesting, you have to build connection and you have to be remarkable.
