Defining Brand Values
In crafting a brand positioning, it’s important to not only think about what are your product benefits, but it’s also just as critical to articulate what your brand values are. Why is this? Because values are what make brands stand out in a world of sameness. It gives brands a distinct perspective on the world and helps shape their communications.
Every strong brand has values that it will fight for, which makes them distinct from other brands in their category. Not only do strong brands have values, but they also fight for those values. Equally important are the values that brands fight against. If your brand doesn’t embrace its values, then perhaps your brand positioning isn’t as strong as it could be.
Here are some examples:
Method fights for Conscious Cleaning, and it fights against Dirty with products that are eco-friendly and made consciously. Not only are they ‘clean’ products, but they also have beautiful packaging, which makes cleaning kind of fun (okay maybe not ‘fun’ - but at least you don’t have to look at a drab cleaning bottle).
In my post on Hello Kitty, I mentioned its strong brand values: Hello Kitty fights for friendship, and she fights against arguments. She has adorable friends like Mimi and Melody whom she cherishes. The Adventures of Hello Kitty & Friends show, which features Hello Kitty and her many friends, tackles the themes of happiness, family and friendship.
Dove fights against the unrealistic ideals that modern women face, and it fights for women embracing their unique strengths. Dove launched their Campaign for Real Beauty to challenge damaging beauty standards for women. They also focus on empowering young girls with their Esteem Fund. They stay true to their values by featuring women of all shapes, sizes, ages, and ethnicities in their advertising.
Developing brand values help marketers in many ways:
1. It drives your brand communications – Brand values helps marketers develop communications that speak to their consumers in a relevant way. If your brand fight is of interest to them, they are more likely to listen. When Dove illuminates how women’s views of themselves hurt their self-esteem, I listen. Check out this video where Dove tackles its brand fight:
Dove Real Beauty Sketches
2. It informs your brand’s tone and manner - In looking at how to deliver your message to your consumers, brand values can help inform how you communicate to consumers. Is your brand voice going to be authoritative and experienced or chatty and approachable? Hello Kitty’s tone is cute and friendly. And while Hello Kitty targets young girls, it also appeals to adults who adore everything the brand embodies. Just check out #hellokitty on Instagram with its +10 million posts.
3. It sets guardrails for product development – When you know what your brand values are, you know how to design your products. If you commit to making ‘clean’ products, you will make your products with non-toxic, natural ingredients, use recyclable, minimal packaging, and focus on reducing the carbon footprint of your products. When you fight against unrealistic ideals for women, you are not going to produce dietary supplements or market fat-burning procedures.
4. It sets the culture of your company – In a perfect world, your company will adopt and live the brand's values. Not only will it help drive communications and product development, but it will also seep into your work ethic and your interactions with others. Think about Google's value of innovation; it affects the way the company hires, compensates employees, and designs its offices. Google even allows employees to set aside time to work on innovative ideas. When a brand value becomes a lived value of the company, that is the icing on the cake in brand design.
A few years ago, my friend shared this video with me called “Dear Brother.” It was a spec ad made by two filmmakers for the Johnny Walker brand. It brilliantly captures the values of the brand – comradery and friendship.
“Dear Brother” by Directors Dorian & Daniel
These guys weren’t even brand marketers or advertising creatives - they were film students at the time. Clearly, these students understood the values of the Johnny Walker brand because the brand has longstanding ones. When your brand has clear values, others can recognize it immediately.