Every brand might have a set of values that is promoted either internally throughout its workspaces or externally through marketing material. Having values can help audiences (whether customer or employee) to relate to your brand and see an idea that they want to support, and it can also help you to stand out from your competitors.
However, much of the time, you might find that the way brands integrate these values into themselves is in such a way that’s more about them than the value. If, however, you could align the values of your brand with your actions more closely, you might stand out as a genuine force for change.
Here’s a guide on how to align your brand values with your actions.
Set Goals That Are Independent of Your Marketing
It can feel strange in business to take action without the direct intention of making your audience aware of what you are doing. However, this might be what happens when it comes to certain areas such as the charities you partner with or the action that you take independently to promote your values—actions that cement your brand as being committed to the cause, but would perhaps be lessened by drawing constant attention to it.
In some ways, it’s the same concept as the way in which you might approach an area like security. You might ensure that you’ve got the strongest security possible with the help of an MSSP, but that isn’t necessarily the type of information that you’ll immediately promote on social media due to the internal nature if the matter.
Take an Integrated Approach
Using sustainability as an example, it might be that the value of a particular concept cannot exist independently of your operations. If you’re hoping to be the most sustainable brand among your competitors, then you’re going to need to consider this throughout every stage of the product-designing process.
At this point, the integration of sustainability becomes a process that’s completely inseparable from your brand, and that means that you also need to take it into account when thinking about your logo, your brand aesthetic, and the ways that you might be acting in other areas that contradict your central mission.
For example, brands you partner with that take a radically different stance might end up drawing some scrutiny your way, meaning that the integrated approach is one that requires a great deal of care and awareness.
Define a Road Map and Expectations
This relates to the wider matter of learning how to communicate effectively with your audiences, and towing the line can help to avoid creating a situation where you stray too far from expectations they might have of you.
When you do have lofty ambitions for your brand that relate to these kinds of values, it can sometimes be beneficial to let audiences know exactly what kind of shape these plans are taking. Getting too specific might ultimately feel pointless when there’s so many factors that you can’t predict, especially if it’s too far away from where you’re currently at to be worth guessing. However, being clear and thorough with what kind of change you’re hoping to make, how you’re going to do it, and how customer support helps that can all work in your favor.