A wounded gazelle can never lead the herd

Your brand is no different

4 surprising ways you are hurting your brand.

(and how to fix them)

 

1) Not living your values

Your brand values are important.

They say what type of brand you are.

Who you serve.

And why you are better.

 

Most brands approach their brand values the wrong way.

Write and forget.

This will only end up hurting your brand.

 

Your customers won’t know what you stand for.

Brand values are a key part of building trust.

Trust leads to loyalty.

 

Write your brand values and then use them to influence everything your brand does.

This will demonstrate you do what you say.

Actions speak louder than words.

 

If you are writing your brand values for the first time read this. 

 

2) Not delivering on your brand promise

Like it or not your brand is owned by your customers.

It exists solely in the mind of the people.

All you can do is influence what they think.

 

How do you do this?

Read on.

 

Imagine ordering a cookbook so you can have friends around for dinner.

But then it arrives late, the pages are damp and the cover has a stain on.

Not what you wanted.

 

The brand has not met your expectations.

You now place the brand on a mental ladder.

And it’s right at the bottom.

This is what happens when you don’t deliver on your brand promise.

 

Influencing consumers boils down to one thing.

Expectations.

 

When they aren’t met your brand will suffer like our poor wounded gazelle, limping through the savanna constantly worried that it will be eaten by predators.

Or in your case, competitors.

 

Luckily for you, it’s easy to save yourself from this fate.

Let me explain.

 

Map out your customer journey.

Every step, every touchpoint they have with the brand.

From start to finish.

Then analyse and track.

Do this regularly and you will pick up on the parts that don’t meet the expectations of your customers.

 

Your brand messaging also plays a critical role.

Make sure whatever you say is backed up.

Align your messaging to your offer and service.

 

3) Offering & Mission Contamination

Your mission is what you give.

What you contribute to society.

 

Everything you offer needs to be aligned with your mission.

When you start to offer something to consumers that isn’t aligned with what you fundamentally do there is a disconnect.

Your customers will suddenly start to think less of your brand.

 

Imagine if Nike started selling toothpaste.

Weird right?

 

Be guided by your mission.

Let it influence your offering.

 

4) Customer dissatisfaction

When a customer has an issue with your business.

You should see this as an opportunity to go above and beyond to resolve the issue.

Then ask questions and learn what went wrong.

 

Customers are actually very forgiving.

You just need to deal with the situation correctly.

When you know what happened integrate the fix into your process so it doesn’t happen again.

This is low-hanging fruit but most brands get it wrong.

 

In Summary

• Put your values into practice

• Ensure you meet your customer’s expectations

• Use your mission to guide what you offer

• Use customer issues as an opportunity