I spoke recently before a meeting of construction professionals and got a card from a man who distributes Tyvek, the material used to wrap buildings during the construction process. The card itself was made from Tyvek, giving a fun, tactile brand experience. I’m sure it starts a number of conversations for him as well.
That cool card is a brand touchpoint, a place where your brand and your prospective client meet.
Other brand touchpoint examples are:
- You! Your appearance, personality, photos and social media profiles;
- The brand experience delivered by your product or service;
- Your office, shop or physical location clients might see;
- Your website and anything else bearing your logo, like stationery, packaging, advertising and marketing materials;
- Less obvious: voicemail messages, phone manner (of everyone who answers the phone on behalf of your brand) and the appearance of vehicles and staff.
Everything Communicates.
That’s a principle of enlightened marketing I teach. Everything, from your business card to your actual product or service, says something about your brand – and it’s your job to know what it’s saying.
Enlightened Marketers approach branding with intention.
That means you:
- Decide what you want to be known for.
- Articulate a specific brand message about why you are the best choice for your intended audience.
- Find a look-and-feel, personality and voice that are right for your brand.
- Radiate that message outward through all the communication channels available to you.
That which is not intentionally branded
may be accidentally branded.
Should my local sandwich shop be responsible for the brand experience I get when I drive by the building and see their cook out by the garbage smoking? My impression of the brand is tarnished with an unappetizing memory. Next time we look for a place to get a sandwich, I may be disinclined to go there.
One company that gives me a fabulous brand experience through all brand touchpoints is Marriott. Their web sites are easy to use, the rooms are always exquisite and the people are amazing. I can’t get over the fabulous interactions I’ve had with Marriott staff around the world. The complimentary coffee and tea in Marriott rooms are premium brands I love: Starbucks and Tazo. That attention to detail across every brand touchpoint reinforces the brand as being “for me.”
We don’t have Marriott’s zillion-dollar budget, but who needs money when you have bright ideas? Here’s your branding opportunity:
1. List YOUR brand touchpoints. Brainstorm expansively. What about your ringtone? Do your clients hear it?
2. Decide how you could best communicate your brand message through each one. For instance, if one of your differentiators is efficiency, you might return calls within two hours, have a value statement about efficiency on your business card and strive to provide tools through your web site that help your clients increase their efficiency. What’s an efficient ringtone? The William Tell Overture? Have fun and be creative as you think about this.
3. Begin implementation of your ideas. And remember to follow through fully with each idea. It’s better to take on a few new initiatives you can do easily than to try 50 new things that fall apart after a few weeks. “Task 1: Update all materials to same look and feel. Task 2: Download William Tell ringtone.”
4. Reap the rewards! Well-branded companies enjoy clients who appreciatethem more, pay premium prices, refer their friends and are more loyal, all of which leads to lower marketing costs and higher profits.
Work those brand touchpoints, and they’ll work for you…
… by delivering a fuller brand experience to your clients. If you’re unclear about your brand or what’s being communicated through your touchpoints, get in touch with me today for a no-cost, no-obligation consultation.
Touchy photo by John-Morgan
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
An efficient way to catalogue your consumer-serving business’ touch points is to conduct an Exposures Audit. That is to video the most common paths that people take, from first line of sight, as they walk or drive by and inside, noting the multi-sensory touchpoints/moments and rate them on a continuum of positive to negative. Then review the sequence of points to see what you can do to either eliminate or alleviate the negative and increase the number and intensity of the positive. This second part is called Storyboarding. Here’s how here:
http://www.movingfrommetowe.com/2008/08/02/like-a-movie-director-storyboard-the-experience-for-us/
I like your Tyvex example in the business card. So often in business we are only about sight and sound, not the other senses. Using untapped senses (like cookie smells in a bakery) are well known to increase sales. I hadn’t considered some of the additional senses for branding and marketing in the same way.
Thanks for posting,
Chris
@Kare, thank you for adding the concepts of Exposures Audit and storyboarding brand experience to this discussion. I have followed people around stores (see this post: http://www.enlightenedmarketing.com/2009/11/a-day-in-the-life-of-your-ideal-client/) for that purpose! I’ve also been at resorts, spas and hotels that planned (maybe even storyboarded) the guest’s experience beautifully. Thank you for stopping by!
@Chris, ooh smells! Good one. Smells, music or sound, textures, fabrics … smarts touchpoint to ponder. We just came from a fabulous restaurant tonight, whose decor I described as Flintstones meets Interview with the Vampire. Very memorable brand experience.