Building the Architecture Part 3: Pinky Promise
A promise can be a powerful thing, as long as you stick to it. When communicating with your audience, your customers base their purchasing decisions on many factors. One sphere of that communication involves making that emotional connection and identifying with your brand. The other sphere is more analytical – say what you do and do what you say. That is the essence of the brand promise.
Though this approach should not be confused with a simple tagline or slogan (though it can double as this in many cases), it is the simplest and most direct aspect of your brand message that must be communicated.
“Identify the single most important thing that you can deliver 100% of the time.”
It’s a task that seems simple, but the challenge lies in defining “important” and following through on the promise of consistency.
Below are the four factors that go into a meaningful brand promise:
1. Be unique among your competitors
If your brand promise is not unique, you’re missing out on a prime opportunity to differentiate from the competition. Study the competition and what they’re putting out into the market. Even in the most crowded competitive landscape, there is something unique about what you do or how you do it.
2. Be valued by your target audience
Differentiation is vital, but it only works if that difference is something that matters to the market. Nobody is clamoring for the fastest steakhouse or the most luxurious fast food joint.
3. Be true to your archetype
As explained in part one of this series, your brand must be identifiable and consistent. Do the work to determine what archetype relates most directly to your brand and use it as a filter for all of your marketing communication.
4. The promise must be kept
So simple, yet so challenging. Once you identify a unique benefit to your customer base that is truly valued and consistent with your brand, you have to deliver 100% of the time. The benefit is brand loyalty that you can’t buy. Not only is the fulfillment of that promise likely to lead to repeat business, it is the single most important motivator for the best kind of marketing: word of mouth. Couple a solid marketing communication strategy with a vocal audience that is singing your praises and you are on the path to success.
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Tags: brand analysis, brand archetype, brand promise, communication, customer base