Brand values and brand personality are two components, among many, that are defined within a brand strategy. Oftentimes there is confusion about the differences between them and why a strong brand strategy needs both defined. While on the surface they seem to be very similar, they are actually quite different. The components individually and collectively bring depth to the brand.

Brand values are the core of the belief system that guide the behavior of everyone and everything that is associated with the brand. Brand personality, on the other hand, is the expression of the brand that allows the audience to engage with the brand in a personal way. The personality grows out of the values — from internal attitude to external expression.

We know savvy consumers want to have relationships with brands as they would with a person. The bottom line is that the more the brand is rooted in core beliefs (values) and the more interesting and “uniquely you” it is (personality), the more engagement you can create around your brand.

Here is a comparison between the two that I hope brings clarity:

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Imagine the busiest of executive professionals sitting in a room together using glue sticks and scissors. What are they doing? Answer: The highly important task of participating in a brand workshop.

It can be challenging for even the best of us to articulate the thoughts that feed into the development of a brand platform. It requires us to be visionary and insightful — and to talk about  brand in a language that is, for many of us, not a part of our everyday work lives. At Go East, we’ve found that the best way to help our clients participate in this process and articulate their ideas is to provide tools that bring the story out by allowing them to visualize their brand, their challenges and their goals.

Some of our favorites are:

Coffee cups

This exercise is primarily used for vision or positioning statement development. Participants select a cup that represents their brand today and another that represents who they want to be in the future. The magic is not in which cup they select, but how they use the features of the cup to describe their brand’s attributes.

Characterization of sales process

In this exercise, the client describes their sales process and we illustrate it using diagrams. The power is in seeing patterns and missed opportunities as the participant views the whole process like never before, right before their eyes.

Cartesian coordinate system diagrams

This is ideal for articulating where participants feel their company or product stands in comparison to the competition, both as it stands today and where they want it to be in the future. The key is to label the X- and Y-axis with the correct contrasting categories in order to capture an informative view of the marketplace.

Magazine collages

Using a wide range of magazines, participants build a collage that points to positioning or personality. The sweet spot is not what images they select, but how they talk about the images.

A better brand platform

The benefit of these exercises is that they present information in a way that participants have not seen before and give them a vocabulary to talk about complex ideas in a fresh way. Honestly, visualization exercises may seem like child’s play, but the immersions have ALWAYS been extremely insightful in the shaping of a brand platform. I have yet to have someone say it was not a good use of time.

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When it comes to social media, companies are often puzzled by what they should talk about. Social media content must be deeper than just what the company sells. Content should come out of the brand strategy.

Brand strategy helps a company discover what relevant, credible differentiation it holds as well as what is at the heart of the company. It documents what the company or product is about, and that allows it to stand out beyond features and benefits. Brand strategy brings personality and life.

Bottom line: You simply cannot go into the social media arena with product features and benefits. Believe me, your brand will take a blow if you do. To use social media to focus solely on product features and benefits is like entering a pre-existing conversation and changing the topic to focus on yourself. That’s a big no-no.

Ultimately you are building your brand. So what do you talk about?

Relevancy
What does your community value? What does your audience care about? To determine this, the first step is to LISTEN. Then ask yourself what you can bring to the conversation or experience.

Credible differentiation
Know what is behind your great product. Is it thought leadership that can lead to sharing brilliant insights? Deep expertise that can form great education? Maybe an ingenious spirit that can bring creativity to the conversation? Develop a social media marketing strategy based on how you are positioning your company as outlined in your brand platform.

Sum it up
You have listened. You understand. Now engage, not impose.

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Guidelines are the guidebook or owners manual for your new identity. They are critical to communicating what key players need to know in order to handle your new brand identity properly. The task of developing guidelines can seem overwhelming, though. So make it a little easier and consider these 10 questions; they should prepare you to go into the adventures of guideline development with confidence and ease.

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Trends. Fads. Styles. Innovations. Each brings new ideas, fresh thinking and novel motivations into the marketplace. Consumers track them for new “things” and new modes of self expression. Marketers track them for new ways to communicate with and meet the needs of consumers.

In order to follow trends without sabotaging your brand, you have to monitor their impact, success or failure, and apply that information to your own products and consumers — carefully.

If you can do that successfully, you’ll gain a competitive advantage: connecting with your consumer in a meaningful way.

Here are a few ground rules to keep in mind:

1. Focus on trends rather than fads: Fads are short-lived, while trends take longer to build up momentum and tend to last longer — sometimes years or even decades.
2. Understand that there are different kinds of trends and they should weigh in on your brand decisions differently. Macro, consumer and industry trends each bring unique influences that can not be handled the same.
3. Use trends to help shape and inform new new business concepts, products and services.
4. Use trends to inform the way you sell your goods and services and build better communication with your consumer.
5. Do not use trends to  shape your company’s core.

Making business decisions based on savvy trend watching does not need to be scary. Just think of it as a way to keep your brand fresh and evaluate the way you communicate with your target audiences.

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Trends are shaped by the desires and values of an ever-changing culture. The newest “thing” doesn’t just “tickle” us, it actually helps us to express ourselves.

When times are good, trends follow paths of luxury, pleasure, pampering and rewards. During such times, individuals do not hesitate to impulse shop.

But times are changing.

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There is no doubt that the economic downturn has put many in a place of despair and difficulty. I certainly do not mean to make light of anyone’s personal struggle through this time in America and the world. I am quite aware of the loss of income, heavy debt, increase in cost of food, gas and basic necessities — I’m experiencing them, too.

But you have to admit there is a pause in America to reflect on what we have been doing over the last decade or so and to realize that, sooner or later,  the ever-escalating trends of spending and short-term vision had to come to an end. Just look at the housing market: I purchased a townhouse in 1998 that increased in value almost $50,000 in a little over two years. With that surge, building and home sales skyrocketed. That had to end at some point.

Now, I am certainly not going to try to pretend to be an economist or financial guru, so let me get back to my point.

I am excited about the following trends that are emerging as America and the world wrestle with the current economic crisis:

1.    Unity. The focus is moving from “me” to “we” — as individuals we can not solve the current economic crisis, but collaboratively, we have hope. Times like these put most of us in the “same boat.” The common “enemy” brings unity.
2.    Core values. Where once we spent almost without thinking, now we all have to make choices about what is most important.
3.    Thankfulness. When things become unstable, we reflect on what we could lose, and that process shifts our thoughts to what we have, rather than what we want. Health, home, family and friends become more valuable than entertainment, luxury and the latest fad.
4.    Less waste. Fix it or replace it. Careless or careful. Cash or credit. Need or want. The challenge we are living through gives us an opportunity to positively impact our lives for the better.
5.    Better ideas. When the going gets tough, the tough come up with great ideas. That means ideas for life and business, including better business products and more efficient business management.
6.    Focus on the future. When times are good, one does not worry about what might happen tomorrow. But when things get rough, we build plans and move with purpose.

Finding the sunny side of a desperate situation gives us all something to build on rather than to dwell on.

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Changing a brand mark is not only a costly endeavor, but also one that can change your relationship with customers, key stakeholders and the general public dramatically, for the better or for the worse. So, it goes without saying that changing your brand has to be a strategic decision, rather than a reactionary one — but, how do you know when it’s time?

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