A great brand exists in excellence. It also understands that this tenet is imperative for success. In order to do this, you must create a fireball of branding touch points and messaging that connect with your audience while simultaneously pulling them in your direction for a long-haul relationship.
You don’t just focus on a one off, or one product and think you’re going to become a millionaire overnight. You focus on growing a family of supporters, customers, and cheerleaders who believe in your brand, and will stay with you no matter what or who comes along with a similar idea. This type of loyalty takes time and effort that’s out of this world. But it’s possible. Once you have their allegiance, now it becomes your job to meet their demands on a regular basis. Those demands come by way of the products you offer, the social media posts you make, the events you host, the look and feel of your website or customer experience, along with the conversations you have with your audience through forums, groups, events and more.
The most important thing to note is that once you have them, you must meet those needs over and over again with the same vigor and excellence as the very first time. No one wants to buy into a brand that is great one day, and then flaky the next. If that’s your approach, then you’re asking them to enter a dysfunctional marriage that works some days, and then feels like a prison the other days. You didn’t build this dream to be fickle or have a fickle following. You built it to sustain and surpass your wildest dreams.
When you have someone’s attention, you don’t waiver on your excellence. Your goal should always be the same; continue to improve your product or services while always reassuring the audience of your excellence and distinction in order to maintain their continual commitment.
Examples of great brands include: Apple, McDonald’s, Home Depot and even MTV, which ironically stands for Music Television, even though they no longer play music videos or really offer music programming as their main backdrop. But get this, somehow they were able to migrate their loyal audience towards their new direction in light of no longer spinning Beyonce or Fall Out Boy music videos in regular rotation. How? Because their brand is centered around creating innovative programming for people who love the culture inside of music, celebrity, and the luxe lifestyle. As long as their audience gets the same euphoric feeling one used to get from watching a really cool music video, then they’ll stay committed to tuning in on a daily basis.
When thinking about the approach to creating your own a great brand, you must think about the brands you love, and break down why you love them. Then take that formula, mix it with the desires and needs of your audience, and deliver on this 100% of the time.