There’s lots of advice around about how to build a better brand – have a fantastic, user-friendly website, engage on social media platforms, provide regular, relevant content, know your target audience and connect with them where they hang out – and while all of that is true, the one number thing you need to do is…
Throw out the hype and be authentic
Audiences don’t want to be fed a line, they don’t want to be sold to, they don’t want to be taken for granted and they certainly don’t want to be duped.
Gone are the days where all the bells and whistles will get your brand attention and customers. Today’s consumers are much more savvy, and much less tolerant. Go back to basics, determine your core message, develop your brand’s core principles and tell your story.
If you lie, embellish or ‘jazz it up’ you will be caught out. Someone, somewhere, at some time will reveal your subterfuge and all the time, effort and money you have invested into building your brand will be for nothing and the damage to your reputation may just be irreversible.
Anchor your brand in authenticity. If you’re a new business – be honest about that, chances are if you’re seen as a breath of fresh air people will take a chance on you. If you source products from overseas – don’t claim to be locally made – a simple internet search could prove your undoing – let people know the truth and back it up with the reasons why you engage in such practices. If you are a small team – don’t pretend to be anything else – use it to your advantage and tell people why a small team will work in their favour.
Whether you are connecting in person, via your website, through social media platforms or on online forums – be real, be authentic and you’ll build a better brand in the long term.
