Last issue’s article was about truth — so this might be a good time to talk about values again. We all know they matter.

If you know anything about me and my approach to marketing and branding, you know that I’m all about values and authenticity. I believe that basing brands on an organization’s values is the only way to create brands that are authentic to the organization. And that’s the topic of this issue’s feature article.

I just got back from Alexandria Brown’s fabulous Online Success Blueprint Workshop in LA, where, in addition to learning tons about online marketing, we discussed being authentic, too. Ali shared one of her favorite quotes on the subject:

“Be who you are and say what you feel.
Because those who mind don’t matter.
And those who matter . . . don’t mind.”
         — Dr. Seuss

More about my online marketing workshop experience next issue!

Until next time,

Marcia E. Hoeck, President, Hoeck Associates, Inc.

There’s something magical about a brand that works. Good brands make us feel like we’re doing business with an old friend, a friend we understand and trust. They’re reliable, steadfast, and dependable. When correctly developed, company brands reflect the company’s values. They stem from identity. They flow from what the company truly is, at its core. That’s good news for those developing brands for organizations, because developing a brand is a chance to show the organization’s authentic self, to put its best foot forward. Just keep in mind that it still has to be the company’s actual foot — it has to be genuine.

Brand flows from values
The truth is, a brand — only part of which is its look and logo — is only as good as the organization is. Customers are smart; they can always tell when a brand isn’t based on values.

In his book United We Brand, Mike Moser gives an excellent historical example of branding: the United States of America. Back in the eighteenth century, the Founding Fathers laid out the values that would govern the new nation: “... that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Statements like these gave the leaders of the new USA a set of bedrock guidelines to follow. The Constitution would flow from these core values. The Bill of Rights was crafted around ensuring, at its core, Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. And when the nation faced crisis in the Civil War, President Lincoln returned to the core values in his Gettysburg Address: “Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” Boom. Straight back to the values set forth in the Declaration of Independence.

Is a great new logo enough?
Consider instead, says Moser, what might have happened if the Founding Fathers had concentrated on creating the nation’s flag — its logo — first. They might have hired Betsy Ross to design a wonderful, eye-catching flag, and then toured the colonies, using the great new design to inspire men to rebel against the British, to fight and to die. Without being backed by values, the flag was — and is — just a piece of cloth. Amazingly, this is what many companies do today when they embark on a new “branding” campaign.

What values does your organization’s “flag” represent? When seeking to make the important choices for the United States throughout the centuries, American leaders could always look to the values on which the country was founded for guidance — and the flag was developed later, to represent those core values. So too should your company’s leaders have a set of bedrock principles to turn to. An organization with defined values won’t need to constantly reinvent itself, to change in the face of new trends, new challenges, or even new leadership.

As time goes on, trends come and go. Your brand, if carefully and honestly crafted, will not. Your brand values will be your anchor.

Did you find this article useful? Why not forward to a friend or colleague?

Greetings, Marcia, Thanks for another enlightening “Marketing Tips” edition. “Truth”, what an appropriate topic for our age! Especially for us in the marketing field, but really for any form of service, communication and/or production. What honor can there possibly be in achieving any goal, regardless of the magnitude, if done so by deception, cheating, or lying? What a sham, what hollow victories. An issue worth addressing again, and again . . . and again. Thanks for sharing. Kind regards, Scott Hamaker Creative Services Mgr. Cenveo-Toledo We love to hear from our readers! Send your letters and comments, or just say hello, to marcia@hoeck.net.

"Good creative without a strategy isn’t anything. Creative is relatively easy to find. Consistent creative that builds a brand and a look that transcends a period of time is a bit more difficult. "Hoeck will take the time to get to know your business, and understand the business model, and the dynamics of your organization, and they’ll deliver what you want the first time.” Jay Achenbach Libbey Inc.

Be sure to check out our blog at Meaningful Marketing.

ABOUT HOECK ASSOCIATES
Hoeck Associates is a leading strategic branding and marketing firm. We translate intangible company, product, and service attributes into meaningful communications that connect to your customers. We believe that instead of focusing so much on promoting products and services, organizations need to start revealing more about “who” they are as a company and how that relates to the product or service, so that customers can connect with them on an emotional level. Hoeck Associates offers marketing communications and branding services, free reports, and other resources to organizations that want to truly connect with customers and gain a competitive advantage. Learn more now at www.hoeck.net.