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There’s lots of talk now days about brands. We’re told that organizations and even people have brands and that if you’re not building your brand then you’re so 1998. With all the hubbub surrounding the concept you may be wondering what exactly a brand is?

A brand is the sum of people’s emotional and psychological perception of you as a person or organization. If that sounds a bit fluffy or hard to pin down, you’re right, it is. However, alot of people have found it to be helpful because it makes the intangible important again. It says that every interaction a person has with you or your organization, from a phone call to the print marketing piece you ran in that trade magazine, is either positively or negatively effecting how folks perceive you. The beauty is that over time if you build trust with people they’ll come to love you. That’s why we hear people say things like, “I only drink Starbucks” or “I love my TOMS shoes”. Really, no other coffee on planet earth is good enough for you other than Starbucks? Did you actually just say the word love when connected with a pair of shoes?

Branding goes far beyond pretty logos. It’s the essence of what people feel when your name is mentioned.

Photo Credit: elfsternberg