Have you noticed that the best brands rarely change? Many big brands that we know and love today were around before we were born. We interacted with them as kids, they become ingrained in our lives as adults and we still engage with and love these ubiquitous brands. You may think that people would get bored and opt for new products and services, which of course does happen, but often these successful brands just keep growing. Why? 

Have you ever wondered why restaurant dishes like ‘butter chicken’ and ‘pad thai’ are still some of the top selling dishes? It’s because when people spend money, they want confidence they’ll receive what they know and expect. When a brand delivers quality products or services, and achieves this sense of satisfaction and confidence, customers will pay for it many times over. This is why big brands keep growing, they have perfected on delivering brand promises. For instance, McDonalds always delivers the food we expect quickly. Nike shoes will always make us look cool and feel great. These companies deeply understand the universal human values they tap into, and their branding continues to powerfully reflect their purpose. 

These ideas speak of our understanding being about more than a logo. Branding includes how an organisation communicates through every interaction with it’s audience, including products, services and advertising. Without the visual logo, people wouldn’t be attracted to, recognise or remember the brand. Without great products or services, brands aren’t loved.

At Elevate, we see this as we work with schools, ministry organisations and small businesses each day. Good branding has an natural attractional quality. Without any direct experience with an organisation, people will first be attracted by good visual branding such as the logo, website, social media, or signage. But it’s those organisations that deliver on their brand promises in the long-term that will win word-of-mouth advocacy and brand-reputation amongst their communities. They will become the type of brand that becomes more ubiquitous, a household name amongst the communities they seek to serve.

#brandbites