Brand Communication. Hit and Miss? Or Spot On?

Around a third of the impact is made via our voice – pitch, tone, speed and quality. Which leaves just a small seven per cent to 10 per cent of impact down to the content and words we use. You might be surprised by this. Many of my corporate clients are. This means that around 90 per cent of brand communication through customer facing activity could be off message. Multiply this figure by the number of employees in your organisation and it becomes very clear that the potential for wrecking brand image could be vast. Today’s business world relies more heavily than ever on the people element. What matters is the service we receive, the experience we had and the satisfaction we obtained, namely, the customer service package. From a customer’s point of view, the person who interfaces with them IS the brand. Customers expect that adequate training is given before being let loose! Companies that have been traditionally enjoying a product-based reputation are no longer able to enjoy that luxury. The fact is that people performance and branding of service is a large and intangible part of your brand image. Companies that invest in training people to live the brand values may think they are doing enough but are they? Probably not is the answer, in my view.

What they need to work on is offering opportunities for staff to maximise their personal brand image and image impact and then manage the personification of a corporate brand, its values and its image. We call this parallel branding. We believe that the alignment and continuity of corporate and personal brand is the determinator for unbridled business success. Service and product delivery relies on people and what affects it, good or bad, are our attitude, behaviour, verbal and non-verbal communication. We are now firmly in the era of ‘branding of service’ in order to match and then maximise a customers’ expectations. Think back to your own recent experiences. When were you last impressed by someone selling you something, or serving you a meal, or by a cold-call business contact or approach? What impressed you? Was it that the person was being charismatic? Charismatic people are magnetic people. In many instances business dealings today are done at highspeed and we have to rely more and more on our intuition and gut-feel. It just always has to come back to people and the impact they make. Personal branding is not about cloning individuals to project corporate brand values in a false way or trying to encourage somebody to be someone they are not.

That would show insincerity and you would soon be caught out. And there isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ personal brand formula. Developing a unique personal brand image means honing your personal brand qualities and values Our visible package and verbal eloquence and delivery will convey important messages about us. And, if we want people to buy into us, work with us or buy from us, harnessing our potential in this way is a necessary business tool. So let’s now look at how others might see you. Ready? Ask yourself the following questions, and also acquire feedback from people you trust to give you a straight answer:

• What image do I project?

• What impression do I make when meeting new people?

• How do clients and colleagues react to me?

• What one behavioural trait might be worth changing?

• How do others see me?

• What positive values and attributes do I portray?

• What do people most remember me for? Now audit yourself candidly in each of the following areas, make notes and obtain feedback:

• Voice quality, tone, pitch and speed

• Written and non-verbal communication skills

• Presentation skills

• Listening and empathy skills