5 Steps: How to Create Powerful Brand Messages

The brand message is a statement that defines the relation of your company with its customers. For Apple it’s "think different”, Nike says, "Just do it" and BMW brings in the "Ultimate driving machine." In its essence branding is a marketing function but it is ubiquitous to entrepreneurship and selling as well. Your brand message will be found in your:

• Elevator pitches
• Sales trailer
• Collaterals
• Proposals
• Ad copy
• Website, blog, PR pitches
• Basically, in every business communication.

If you are into entrepreneurial selling then it is critical that you define a brand message. As a salesperson, a good understanding of the concept will help you influence and convert more clients. In this chapter, we will understand the steps to craft a brand message and how should it be used.

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Steps to Create Your Brand Message:

1. Define Your Values:

Your values refer to the qualities your company stands for. You branding efforts start with a self-examination where you understand the qualities of the brand and its purpose. For instance, from the Nike’s Mission Statement - “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world“ we know ‘what they do’ and ‘why they do it’.

You need to define the values of your brand. The best approach is to brainstorm values and ideals is to think - why you started the company, what problem your product solves and why are you still in business.

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2. Differentiate Yourself from the Crowd:

Before you write a statement that defines your company takes a look at the same of your competitors. This helps you understand the market trend. Based on this information you can differentiate yourself from the competitor and help the customer understand your unique selling proposition (USP).

You may have values in your list that define your work but aren’t worth banking on. For instance, if a real estate company aims to provide ‘affordable housing’ it is not a good idea to emphasize it if many competitors in the market also offer the same value.

“If everyone is offering the same value in the market then it is a prerequisite & not a differentiator.”

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3. Appeal to Your Target Audience:

The brand message influences every communication you will have with the world. Hence it is critical that it resonates with your target audience. The personality, likes, and interests of your audience will help you set the tone of your message. Based on the location you might also need to create the message in a specific language.

For instance, Amazon slogan is - "Earth's Most Customer-Centric Company" but to target India they came up with a tagline in Hindi - “Apki Apni Dukan” which translates to “Store for Your Needs.” It is done to ensure that the target market connects with the message. Make sure you keep these things in mind while creating a brand message.

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4. Build Message:

Now it is time to build the actual message. Companies often create distinct brand messages like a mission statement, tagline, mantra etc. A mission statement is a single sentence that tells the customer what your company is about. It is different from the tagline as it gives an in-depth idea of what the company does.

Starbucks has the motto - “To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.” Nike’s mission is - “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world“. Notice that Nike’s tagline - “Just do it” is much different from its motto. You can use a set of brand messages like mission, vision, tagline etc. to cover all the aspects just make sure that the key principles are consistent throughout the company.

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5. Resonate it Throughout Communication:

The above branding statements you just made are ineffective unless they are applied throughout the company. The next step in defining your brand is to educate your employees and customers about it.

For employees, the marketing and HR team need to work together to create an onboarding program and a structure where good brand behavior is rewarded. For customers, you’ll need to incorporate the message in every touchpoint from user experience to customer service and everything in between.

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Brand Message Checklist:

Let's do a quick check to ensure that you have created the right brand message. Simply go through this checklist to ensure that the message satisfies the minimum perquisites:

• Does the message differentiate you from your competitor?
• Are your message simple and influential? Make sure they are not some corporate mumbo jumbo.
• Are your messages authentic? It is common to end up having unachievable goals hence make sure you stand by what you say.
• Does target audience find your message relevant?
• If you have a separate tagline, mission, vision etc. are all of them consistent?

Once you have a proper brand you’ll notice that client communication becomes much more interesting. You can use these values to build trust and rapport in meetings. When the target audience values the company brand it also fairly easy to get a premium price for the product.

Now that you have created your brand logo it is time to move to the next chapter - Creating a Filtered List of Target Market.

Don't miss on the ultimate guide on Sales and Marketing today. The 15 chapter eBook is packed with learning for stage of the buying cycle.