• 614-488-4400

“The quotable brand”

1000 667 Wayne Lewis
  • 1

I’m a big fan of historical quotes. The good ones are usually uttered by those smarter than most of us. They have a way of distilling complex thoughts and ideas into a memorable bite. That’s the hallmark of effective marketing – making your brand easy to understand. So here are a few quotes to get you thinking about your own brand…

Brand is just a perception, and perception will match reality over time. Sometimes it will be ahead, other times it will be behind. But brand is simply a collective impression some have about a product.
– Elon Musk, co-founder PayPal, Tesla Motors, SpaceX

Perceptions can created quickly but are often difficult to change. That’s why being honest about your business and its real value to customers is so crucial. For business owners or its employees honesty can be a tough thing to come by. Not because it isn’t desired, but because it’s tough to see from inside the business bubble. You know who will be honest about your business? Your customers and competitors. Seek them out. Get perspective. It’s the only real way to see through the cloud of self-confidence that surrounds most our own endeavors. Great brands are authentic. Honesty is the first step toward authenticity.

Presentation skills are key. People who work for you represent your brand. You want them to present themselves – and represent you – in a certain way.
– Marc Benioff, founder Salesforce.com

In our industry, our company has a front-row seat to the creation and destruction of brands and businesses. One of the most common failings we see is poor customer service. It’s the hardest thing to perfect in a business and truth be told, we’re not without fault. But too often we see businesses with great products that simply overlook the entire customer experience. Call it a failing of company culture or the false security of relying only on having a great product, people are the real heart of any successful business.

In fact, I argue that the future of advertising, whatever the technology, will be to associate each brand with one word. This is one word equity. It’s the modern equivalent of having the best site on the high street, except the location is in the mind.
– Maurice Saatchi, advertising agency luminary

There is beauty in simplicity. It’s a universal truth. Yet most businesses struggle mightily to achieve it when communicating their brand. It requires deep thought and equally deep understanding of what the business is – what it means to its customers. Nationwide Insurance doesn’t sell insurance policies any more than Apple sells electronic devices. Nationwide sells safety, Apple sells culture. While you may not be able to distill the value or perception of your business in just one word, less is always more.

 

 

AUTHOR

Wayne Lewis

All stories by: Wayne Lewis