When a brand touches a person at an emotional level and makes them feel good about themselves, it is almost certain that the brand has created a lifelong friend. Some of the biggest consumer brands in the world are known for the simplicity with which they connect to people. When you see an Adidas, Nike, Cadbury, CNN, BBC, Google, Facebook in any part of the world, you feel a sense of homecoming… the place feels a little less formidable and a lot more like home. This connect does not happen by accident or chance… it is perpetuated with deep thought, vision and built with diligence and care.
Most business owners want their product to be known. While they are the closest to the product, often times they neglect that their brand needs to speak for itself and make the connect with a larger audience which may not necessarily share the same perception or taste of the owner. Often times we either oversimplify the branding process thinking of it just in terms of logo, colours, fonts and designs or we confuse it with marketing and sales. There is a creative science behind branding… one which is honed through understanding, study and experience. The communication that is created to link a product to its target audience is a sensorial experience that touches at a deeper level. The brands attributes are created carefully through the brand narrative… and the connection between the human and the commercial starts as an idea and transforms into a relationship.
Perhaps the best way to understand a brand is to look around and see what we identify with. Why do we fall in love with some brands, and why do we hate some. What influences our choice and what connecting with them says about us.
Standing out from the pack is harder today with the amount of information floating in every aspect of human life. The sure shot way that a brand connects with a person is in the ability to differentiate itself and to make the person feel something! Ultimately experiences are more meaningful than things… the key is to find the right emotional response. It’s the ability of the brand to make you laugh, cry and create a connect.
