Have you ever felt a fondness, affinity or emotional connection to a brand or business but can’t really explain why?
It’s probably because their purpose aligns with your own.
Brand purpose is a critical part of a business’s identity and success. It defines who the brand is, what it stands for, and how it makes its customers feel. Good brand purpose can also motivate customers to stick with a brand, even when its products or services aren’t perfect.
In an increasingly competitive global economy, businesses must identify and align their brand purpose with their overall business strategy. Doing so can help create a powerful competitive edge and attract the right customers.
To ensure your brand purpose is compelling, your business needs first to understand what it is. Once you do, you can put into place strategies and processes to ensure that your brand purpose remains relevant and effective over time, so it continues to resonate with your customers and prospects and bring them into the journey.
What is brand purpose?
Brand purpose is the overarching reason why a company exists and what it stands for. It’s what differentiates a great brand from an average one. A well-defined brand purpose guides everything a company does, from its marketing to its product design.
A good brand purpose can be simple, like Coca-Cola’s ‘To refresh the world and make a difference’, or Nike’s ‘Just do it’.
However, it needs to give your company a clear focus and direction and act as a rallying cry for employees and customers alike.
Many people think that brand purpose is just a fancy term for a company’s vision or mission statement. However, brand purpose is something different.
A company’s vision and mission describe what they want to achieve, while brand purpose describes why they do it. It’s the underlying reason why a company exists and the motivating factor behind all its commercial activities.
While many companies struggle to articulate their purpose, having a grand vision isn’t always necessary. Sometimes, the best way to articulate purpose is simply to state your mission or core values.
Apple, for example, has a vision ‘to make people’s lives better’. Its mission is ‘to create innovative products that improve the quality of life for people around the world’. Its core values are simplicity, quality, and accessibility.
Brand purpose isn’t something that can be created overnight. It evolves over time as the company learns more about its customers and what matters to them.
Whatever it is, the key is that the brand creates value for its customers and does so in a way that is authentic and relevant to them.
How to define your brand purpose
There are many factors to consider when developing a brand purpose. Some key considerations include what is your company’s unique selling proposition, and what makes you stand out from the competition?
Whatever the focus may be, it’s essential for your business to have a clear purpose that drives all your marketing decisions.
There are many ways to define brand purpose. Some companies choose to make theirs about making the world a better place, while others focus on making their customers happy.
Retail giant Walmart, for example, has always been focused on making its customers happy by providing low prices and convenient locations. In recent years, however, the company has shifted its focus to giving back to the community. Walmart now aims to provide affordable healthcare and food for all its customers.
Another excellent example of a company with a strong brand purpose is Patagonia. The outdoor clothing company is passionate about preserving the environment and has made it one of its core values. Patagonia actively campaigns for environmental reform and recycles used clothing and materials.
Many companies have a stated purpose beyond making money. Branding expert Simon Sinek has famously noted that Apple’s vision is not to make great products, but to change the world. Coca-Cola’s mission statement includes the goal of being ‘a force for good in society’.
McDonald’s strives to become the world’s favourite place to eat. With more than 36,000 restaurants serving nearly 69 million customers in more than 100 countries daily, it’s well on track to living its purpose and achieving this vision.
Purpose provides a focus and direction for a company beyond profit. It can be a unifying force for employees and can help create brand loyalty among consumers. A clear purpose can also be a differentiating factor in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
It’s the higher aspiration that inspires employees and customers alike. A strong brand purpose can help a company weather hard times and remain relevant in ever-changing markets.
Starbucks has a strong sense of brand purpose that attracts employees, and encapsulates its vision and values. The global coffee chain believes that ‘a company must be more than just a place where people work. It must have a soul’. This guiding principle shapes every aspect of the business, from the coffee it serves to its commitment to social responsibility.
When it comes to brand, many business owners think simply slapping a logo on their product and putting it out there will do the trick. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case.
A successful brand is one that has a clearly defined purpose which informs every aspect of its marketing and commercial activity, from its products to its customer service.
So, how do you go about defining your brand’s purpose?
Here are a few tips.
Vision
The first step is to define your vision. This should concisely describe what your company stands for and what it hopes to achieve. Once you have this in place, you can start developing a mission statement to articulate your brand’s purpose in more detail.
Your mission statement should answer the question ‘why does your company exist?’. It should explain what problems your brand is trying to solve and how it plans to make a difference in the world.
Your brand’s mission statement should be an authentic expression of your company’s values and culture and reflect the unique way you do business.
For example, if your business is all about innovation, you’ll naturally want to focus on innovative products and services. Likewise, if your brand has a strong sense of social responsibility, you’ll want to focus on building a positive reputation and being an example for the community.
Values
The second step in defining your company’s brand purpose is to define your values. Values should be both authentic and consistent with your vision statement. For example, if your vision is to be the best company in the world, your values might be ‘to provide products that make a difference to people’s lives’ and ‘to do our best for our customers’.
Knowing exactly where to begin with brand values can be challenging. At QBD, we’ve done a lot of work with staff and customers to define our values and what we stand for, and we’ve guided many clients through the same discovery process to help them clarify their own brand purpose and values. Our values include Honesty, Integrity, Innovation, Curiosity and Passion. You can check out what we stand for and why our values matter to us here.
Culture
The final step in defining your company’s brand purpose is to embed your vision and values into your business culture, to guide your leadership team and the people who work for you. Your business culture – that’s everything from your customer experience and working environment to how your staff communicate and behave – should be consistent with your vision and values. It also has to resonate with your customers. You’ll want your employees to identify with your values and make decisions based on what you stand for, not just on what gives you a competitive advantage or is best for the bottom line.
Remember, brand purpose goes beyond making a profit. It’s about why you do what you do. If you get that right, the customers will follow, and success will be the natural outcome.
Give QBD a call
Building a strong brand is about more than a fancy logo and some nice colours. It’s about creating an authentic look, feel and message for your business that is consistent throughout all your digital marketing activity and resonates with your customers.
We’ve assembled an in-house team of creative and digital experts who love what they do and are passionate about solving our clients’ marketing challenges.
We’d love to hear about your next project. Talk to us today to arrange a free consultation.