7 Steps to Branding Success: Step 6 - Make it yours
by Jonas Blake on May.27, 2009, under Social Upgrade
There are five major car companies in Germany, and to the outside world they could easily seem very similar. After all, they are all “German Engineering,” they are all luxury models, high quality, and stylish. In fact, they all have rather similar symbols, all of them based around a circle in some way.
However, each different manufacturer has a different brand. BMW is about sporty, classy, and fast. Mercedes is also classy, but more about luxury then sport. Audi is young and hip, but with sophistication. Volkswagen is a more affordable brand targeted at young people. And there’s Opel, which I had never even heard of until I started looking into German car manufacturers.
The point is, each of these manufacturers has a distinct brand image. And more importantly, they have a distinct brand image that is known by their customers, and different then their competitors. Someone who has a BMW did not buy it because it was cheap, or because they liked the color. They bought it because it is “the ultimate driving machine”, and they want everyone to know that they have they ultimate driving machine. They want the image that is associated with having the ultimate driving machine.
The client should know why they chose you, instead of one of your competitors. They should know why they chose you. They should know why you are a good fit for them. Why you define them as a person. They like the way that choosing you made them feel.
Now, I have written this entire series as though you are a business person talking to your clients, but as I mentioned in the beginning, all of this applies just as well to other social situations. As a highly stereotypical example, let us assume you are a guy, in a bar, trying to pick up a girl. She has many options. There are many guys that would like to talk to her, to get her phone number, etc. And she knows this.
In order for her to choose you, and feel good about it, she has to know why you are different from the other guys, your competition. She has to recognize your personal brand, and realize that it is different from the personal brand of the last 20 guys she met today. Remember, you have a personal brand whether you know it or not, and the last 20 guys she met all did too. You have to be able to project, by your image, your brand, why you are different. Why later, when her friends ask why she is dating you, she knows the answer. Because you are the “ultimate driving machine” of men. Or whatever your personal brand is. It just has to be different from everyone else.
