You know you’ve got one. That hidden “survival bag” you’ve got tucked away for the zombie apocalypse, so that when the time comes, you can grab it and make haste to safer ground. And with today’s current climate and all the natural disasters going on, that hidden survival bag becomes even more important.
But did you know you also need a survival bag for your brand? Call it your “must haves” when it comes to building a brand that sticks and resonates with your ideal audience.
In this post, we’re going to cover four brand essentials, and wrap up with six more brand essentials next time, so stay tuned.
Authentic Story
People (especially customers) appreciate people. Not bureaucracy, not red tape, not automation. They want to connect with other people, and do business with those they know, like, and trust. So it’s important to humanize your brand and give people an authentic story they can relate to. 
Social media is a great tool to help you do this, provided you use it appropriately and don’t just spam your followers. Share small peeks into your “real” world, not just into your business, and people will connect with your brand in a way they can’t do with just a logo talking at them. At the end of the day, everything boils down to how we relate to each other.
Street Cred (AKA Social Proof)
Your credibility is important. People need to know that others have worked with you, and been happy with the experience. They need to know that when you talk the talk, you also walk the walk, and that you can be trusted. Fit Bit does a great job of this, letting others tell the story of how awesome they are on their website.
Awards, accolades, endorsements by other respected individuals and brands help to elevate your brand in the eyes of the public. Don’t ever break trust with your customers and audience by giving yourself credibility you don’t actually possess.
It’s very difficult to come back from something like that, and if you aren’t a large operation to begin with, that kind of reputation could tank your business before you really have time to grow.
Beautiful, High-End Design
You want visitors to feel good when they land on your website. It’s an investment into your brand image, and it should be clean, nice to look at, and easy to navigate. It should also convey visual elements unique to your brand and the story you want to tell.
Likewise, your actual brick and mortar space should do the same. Don’t skimp in this area, because first impressions are everything. You also need to make sure that both your online space and your offline space are complimentary.
There’s nothing like visiting a business that is well-designed and appears profitable, only to visit their website and find content and design that’s over a decade old, not mobile-friendly, riddled with broken links and unwieldy navigation
Place to Engage
To really unite and build company culture, you need a place where your employees can gather together and relate to one another. In other words, you want your people to get along and become friends, or at least friendly colleagues.
Call it the “water cooler” or “the lounge” or “the gazebo”… whatever moniker suits your company’s tone and vibe. The point is to have that space, because it helps to bring your people together so they become more like family than mere coworkers.
That’s a Wrap
That’s it for today’s blog post on branding essentials. Stay tuned for part two and what else to pack in your brand survival bag. I promise it won’t be spare fingers or toes.
Isn’t prepping for the zombie apocalypse fun?
