01 Feb Brand positionings are dead. Create a purpose worth following.
The concept of ‘positioning’ a brand for an external market seems so alien in today’s world of brand transparency. It smacks of the days when advertisers would hoodwink people into believing their product or service was something they couldn’t live without. Not a world where people can and will find out everything about your product or service before they buy and then expect a consistent value exchange when they do.
If you look closely at the businesses we all admire and secretly want to be like, they have one very powerful thing in common; they have a purpose which attracts people both inside and outside their organisation.
Zappos delivers happiness.
Google helps organise information.
Lorna Jane encourages women to move, nourish & believe.
Gone are the days when we have one set of language for motivating staff and a different set of language for attracting customers. They are both people who want to be led, informed, entertained and rewarded in some way, so why should we treat them differently?
A strong purpose drives your communication, inspires talent and attracts customers. So, kill brand positionings and create a purpose worth following.