When searching for the essence of your brand, you may be surprised to find that it is not what you thought. You may think that people know your brand or visit your brand or buy your product for something quite obvious when indeed there is a much deeper connection.
Clothes don’t make the man; they enhance the man in the clothes. All people that wear The North Face technical gear don’t climb mountains every weekend, but they like the outdoorsy / slightly athletic image that wearing that brand projects. So, while the shorts with the carabineer loop are designed for a climber, people connect with the implied sense of adventure.
People don’t necessarily visit New Orleans just because of the French Quarter, they visit for the no holds barred / thrill a minute attitude you are allowed and even encouraged to have in New Orleans. Their trips are remembered for what they did and what happened to them and their friends while in the French Quarter.
People don’t buy Cascade dishwashing powder because it cleans better; they buy it because they don’t want spots on their glasses when serving their family and friends. Serving clean glasses means they are a conscientious homemaker and that is the image they want to project.
These are just three examples of looking beyond the surface for the essence of your brand and finding the emotional connection people make with it. Armed with this information, you can create much more persuasive communications.
