Does Your Brand Have a Vision?
When I started my career in marketing, I worked for a nonprofit organization focused on pairing at-risk youth with caring and attentive mentors. While I never expected a career in marketing to change the world, I realized from the start just how much good it can do for individuals. It’s the way many people hear about organizations, products and services that improve their lives. That make everyday tasks easier. That give them more free time to spend with their families.
I’m often surprised how quickly companies are to dismiss the significance of what they do. Just last year, we walked a regional bank through VI’s Brand Dig process – not only to determine a new name for the company and uncover the space they occupy in people’s lives but also to help them articulate what they want their brand to become. It’s what we call a Brand Vision.
A Brand Vision is not simply what a company does – the products and services they offer. It’s what they do for people; it gets to the root of why they really exist and the purpose they serve in people’s lives.
The bank initially thought customers only viewed them as an errand. But having fast, easy access to your own money isn’t some inconvenient task; it’s fundamental to how people live their lives and take care of their families. Having a bank’s capital and expertise to start or grow your business makes dreams possible you couldn’t accomplish on your own. That is not what I would call an errand; it’s giving people the resources and confidence they need to realize their financial potential.
Helping clients understand the true value of what they do – why they matter in customers' lives – that’s not only my favorite part of the VI Brand Dig; it’s my favorite part of marketing.
