If you stop and take a look at some of your favourite brands, you should notice a very clear pattern form across the choices you made. Many studies have shown how we like to buy from brands that have personalities distinctly similar to our own. With this in mind, would it not pay to create a definitive and compelling brand personality specifically intended for your target market?
As social psychologist and author, Jennifer Aaker says: “Brand personality refers to the set of human characteristics associated with a brand.” Your brand’s personality exists to encourage a potential customer to have an emotional response towards your business, and reflect on how they feel about your brand.
It’s created through your product’s price, packaging and quality, your website’s design, images and copy will all play a vital role in conveying the personality of your brand.
So let’s take a look at what having a brand personality can do for your business. Humans are interested in how a brand relates to them, and this could be the key to securing that trust and deeper connection with your target market.
Builds a connection with your target audience
Building connections are what bonds you to certain people. When you form an emotional connection with a friend, chances are you will stand by that person no matter what, and this same principle applies to brands.
When a person choses to buy from you, they had an emotional response to what your brand stands for, and as long as you can always maintain a high level of customer service and deliver on your promises, it is more likely you will keep that customer for life.
Building those connections as a result of your strong and consistent brand personality is what keeps your customers loyal to your business.
Differentiates you from others
Just because you’re offering the same products or services as thousands of other businesses, doesn’t mean you have to position yourself with the same personality and branding as everyone else. That will just make you blend into the background and left fighting for survival.
Your brand personality should make you stand out from the pack and reach out to a certain type of person. You’re not trying to be all things to everyone, and you most certainly can’t be. But what you can do is create a brand that speaks on the same level as your ideal customer and tears you apart from the boring and mundane.
Build up your brand persona and brainstorm ideas of what your brand personality would be if it were an actual person. Then, when your target prospect comes across your business, they will feel a connection with that personality and feel more compelled to approach you.
Brings your brand to life
Many businesses fall into the trap of corporate branding, hoping to put across a highly professional and expert image. But on flip side, this can lead to a business with a distinct lack of personality and the customer feeling like they’re dealing with nothing more than a robot.
Don’t get me wrong - that’s not to say the corporate image can’t be put across well. But when your average business attempts to represent itself as such, it can put up a wall between brand and consumer where the customer can’t relate.
Whether your brand personality is youthful/playful or calm/thoughtful, it needs to be a clear and strong representation and consistent across all your branding efforts. Your website, blog posts, social media presence and face-to-face interactions all need a recognised and dependable personality your customers can become unmistakably familiar with.
Standard types of brand personality
According to Jenifer Aaker, there are 5 distinct dimensions of brand personality and these can be clearly identified and deemed desirable by potential customers.
Sincerity– Service is perceived as honest, genuine, cheerful and domestic
Excitement– Customer perceived service as daring and spirited
Competence– Service is perceived as responsible, reliable, efficient and dependable
Sophistication – Customer perceived service as charming, glamorous and romantic
Ruggedness – Service is perceived as strong and tough
Your brand personality should not be an afterthought; it should be a carefully considered representation of your business that can be openly welcomed by your customers. Professional marketers/content marketers/business developers all over the world spend a lot of time and money on getting this right, so what kind of personality does your business represent?
If you enjoyed reading this post, you may also want to check out "How emotions impact whether a customer buys from you"
What's your brand persoanlity? Share yours below...
