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Aimee is the CEO and Lead Visionary of Madison Taylor Marketing. Click here for details.
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Think about today’s biggest brands. what makes them different from others? What are the “it” factors that keep customers coming back?
Since time immemorial, companies have tried to answer these questions. They leverage market indicators, consumer interest research, and strategic marketing campaigns to grow a loyal customer base and strong brand awareness. But despite their best efforts, many companies struggle to find their own “it” factor. What these companies don’t realize is that the most popular brands don’t succeed because of their products or strategies alone.
The Growing Importance of Authenticity in Marketing
In today’s market, credibility can be a determining factor for brand success. In fact, not only do 90% of customers report that authenticity is a key factor in deciding which brands they like, but Millennials and Gen Z (nearly 140 million) are now , prefers brands that are ‘genuine and organic’ rather than ‘perfect brands’. and well packaged. To help businesses build authentic brands, speaker Simon Sinek breaks brands down into his three key questions.
1. What does your company do?
2. How do they do it?
3. Why do they do that?
Most companies know their job. They know the products and services they sell. Few companies can articulate how their value proposition and business processes deliver value to their customers. And only a select few can articulate the ultimate reason why a company exists in the first place.They understand not only what they do and how they do it, but why they do it they do it in the first place.
Focus on the “why”
What sets the most successful brands apart is their ability to start with their “why.” You can dig deep, identify the ultimate reason for being, and align everything in your business with that purpose. Rather than simply trying to attract customers to purchase their products, successful brands focus on building genuine relationships with customers who share the same values and beliefs. These companies appeal to customers based on their core identity and purpose rather than the products they offer.Successful brands have a WHY At the heart of everything they do.
When brands lead with a ‘why’, they harness the true magic of marketing and business to deliver improved revenue, increased brand awareness, and increased levels of consumer satisfaction and trust.
In a 2019 study, researchers found that brand credibility is associated with self-enhancing assets. In short, brand credibility can gradually strengthen and improve a company’s competitive advantage with its customers. Brand authenticity helps businesses build better customer relationships, foster brand intimacy, and drive purchases. The customer relationships that are formed are repetitive and regenerative, so companies reap exponential returns over time.
For example Patagonia. Since the company’s inception, the brand has been dedicated to developing quality products that encourage savings and minimal consumption. In 2022, the brand owner announced that his 98% of the company’s shares would be donated to a non-profit organization dedicated to saving the planet. Following this bold, full-scale move, customer perceptions of the brand skyrocketed. He 42% of adults who knew the brand reported being more likely to purchase Patagonia products in the future after learning about the donated stock.
Create a “why” statement
Developing a “why” statement requires the company to identify an existing core purpose and do so in a clear, concise and actionable manner.
Companies can often identify several reasons for their actions. The challenge here is to focus on the larger purpose underlying all these reasons. To do this, companies need to work together to identify and list their brand’s reason for being. From here, they can work to identify common themes, with the ultimate goal being to build a golden thread of purpose that ties all those reasons together. A company can operationalize it by creating a clear, concise and actionable “why”. Remember, your “why” statement should inspire both employees and customers to take action and believe in what they are doing.
Build a full-fledged strategy that embodies the “why”
Defining and establishing a “why” statement should make organizational decision-making simpler, more rational, and more consistent. In fact, the “why” statement embodies the existing corporate DNA. Verbalizing a brand’s core identity makes it easier for companies to audit their functions, capabilities, and processes to ensure alignment with that identity. To do this, brands should ask:
“Do this [process, function, competency, etc.] help support [“why” statement]? ”
If the answer is yes, brands can move forward with confidence and authenticity. If the answer is no, or if the ‘how’ behind it is unclear, companies need to revise and refine their strategies over time. The ultimate goal is Everyone how to ask questions within an organization allSupport your brand’s “why”, from big initiatives like product and service offerings to smaller items like blogs and social media posts.
It’s important to remember that companies cannot bend or manipulate the “why” to suit their actions. Everything a brand does must start with the “why” and go from there. Simply doing something because your competitors are doing it, or because market trends are pushing it, doesn’t build authenticity. Making exceptions or justifying your actions based on competitors or market trends ultimately devalues your brand.
final thoughts
Brands must intentionally establish strategies and processes rooted in their “why”. By clearly defining the ‘why’ behind their actions and questioning how their various activities support its core identity, the company becomes truly engaged in its business and consistent with its brand. build a relationship and be able to publicly support his marketing efforts.
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