With so many businesses competing for space, it can be hard to get people to connect with what you offer. A business is a business. A construct of systems and processes that make up a functional whole. But customers have a desire to connect. To feel that their values and the core values of your business align. Knowing what product you offer is easy, defining what you stand for is a more complicated proposition.
Your brand identity is key to developing and informing the strategy, communications and messaging of your brand. Your brand identity is the “why” of what you do. And it’s to that emotional core at the center of your business that people will connect, whether it be customers, investors, or employees. This brand identity functions not only as an external motivator to drive people to purchase or consume your offering, but it also helps you to define how it is you function internally. It is an internal motivator as much as it is an external force for growth.
But how can you define that identity?
You can define your brand identity by asking yourself some of the following questions.
What is distinctive about you and your brand?
What are you really good at and what makes you better than your competition?
What do you promise and what are your core values?
What value propositions can you communicate through your messaging that will be aligned with your company culture?
Synthesizing your answers to questions like these can help you drive the mission, culture and values of your business.
But if you’re still unclear as to what you should be examining during brand development there is, luckily, a tool that you can use to define the different qualities of your brand, and that can give you a solid base to help you create a narrative about your strategy and what you stand for. This tool is the Brand Identity Matrix.
What is the Brand Identity Matrix?
The brand identity matrix is a structured set of questions that examine aspects of identity related to your organization's mission, culture, competences, values, and other defining characteristics.
How do you use it?
The matrix consists of nine interrelated components. Answer each, and then also examine how the answers interact with each other. By examining the relationships between your answers you can build a clear picture of what your brand propositions are and how they function internally to define your company's strategy, and externally to communicate the value of your brand and build trust and recognition in the market.
Why does answering these questions serve you?
What you are trying to establish by answering these questions is consistency and clarity. Both are key to building positive relationships in the market. Clarity about what you are offering and consistency between what you offer and the image you are projecting of your brand. A strong brand identity makes you memorable. And being memorable will make you stand out from the crowd.
If you need help with your company's branding let us know!
Get your free download of the Brand Identity Matrix below.
Sources
Greyser, Stephen A, and Mats Urde. “What Does Your Corporate Brand Stand for?” What Does Your Corporate Brand Stand For?, Harvard Business Review, Jan. 2019, hbr.org/2019/01/what-does-your-corporate-brand-stand-for.
Monroe, Ken. “BUILDING AN IDENTITY MATRIX – A NEW APPROACH TO ALIGNING CULTURE & COMMUNICATIONS.” Bostrom, Bostrom Solutions, 21 Nov. 2019, www.bostrom.com/building-an-identity-matrix-a-new-approach-to-aligning-culture-communications/.
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