I was watching a child load a trophy into his mother’s car this weekend, and I swear the trophy was almost as tall as the child.I have no idea what it was for; I was too far away to see what the gold fellow on top was doing, but I would assume that this young gentleman came in first.
Branding your business is similar to that 4-foot monster the child was wrestling into the back seat.Your business must be built in a similar manner to that trophy.We start at the bottom, and work our way up.
In order to sell a product or a service, you need to tell the world what you are all about.That’s where the gold plate comes into play.The plate represents your mission statement, which is a testimony of why the company exists.It is here that you want to concisely state what your company is all about.A trophy’s plate simply states who won, what they won, and when; it is not a book, page or paragraph.The mission statement, in the same way, should be short, and tell anyone who reads it who you are and what you do to “win”.On the trophy, it tells anyone who reads it who is the winner.In business, it should do the same.
The pillars of the trophy come next.Those pillars are the values used to build your business.If you had to summarize your business with only two or three words, what would they be? Those words are the pillars that you must build your brand with to be successful.Be wary of using the wrong words.If you are using the word “Price” as one of your pillars, but your pricing is not extraordinary, you are weakening your structure.Make your pillars strong by focusing on reality, not simply what you think your customers want to hear.As you can see in the picture above, there are no words on the pillars of the trophy.You don’t need to announce these words to the world, but you need to make sure that YOU know what they are to remain focused.
The other characters on the trophy, like the eagles above, would be words that form your company’s brand messages.Highlight words you would want other people to use when describing your business.Though your marketing campaigns, you help associate these words with your product or services.When people think of Toyota, what words come to mind?Most say reliable, long lasting, dependable.They are not necessarily the same words that you use as the pillars of your business, but are essential characteristics of your business.They add depth to your branding, and are extremely important.You cannot sell a product without being able to describe its features and benefits.The same is true for your brand messaging.
Anyone looking at your business needs to see the logo, and it helps if the logo illustrates what you are all about.The martial artist atop the trophy, pulling off a complicated kick, allows anyone who sees the trophy know what it represents.Notice, the guy atop the trophy isn’t reading a book.Anyone seeing this trophy knows that its owner practices martial arts.The logo must fit your business, both in what you do, and the spirit of how you do it.
Build your business in this manner, and you will take home first prize.
