brand strategy and storyline series 2 · august 30, 2022
Promise, Proof, Trust—How Your HeadStory™ Builds Loyalty
How to build a brand that grows your business for years to come.
“Don’t Talk, Just Act. Don’t Say, Just Show. Don’t Promise, Just Prove." –Kushan Proverb
I started with a strange background for a Brander. However, it’s given me a strategic advantage to the foundation of my work. I’m trained as a scientist, so everything can be boiled down to a hypothesis to prove. I then spent my first decade working in Finance at Procter and Gamble, where I was always looking to understand and strengthen the return on investment in our brands.
There I learned that your highest ROI comes from the loyal customers that buy your brand. They buy your brand even when the price increases or someone else offers a lower price. Once you have loyal customers, it’s tough for the competition to take them away. They become your best advocates and ambassadors, driving both your top and bottom line, because nothing is more potent than a recommendation from somebody we know and trust.
That’s why I put the HeadStory™ into our Brand Strategy Model. Your HeadStory™ will help you stand out and win versus the competition. It provides proof that you can deliver on your promise and forms the pillars of your brand—the things you do better than anyone else and the core of your reputation.
Customer satisfaction is worthless. Customer loyalty is priceless.
–Jeffrey Gitomer
brand strategy and storyline series 2 · august 30, 2022
You’ll end up with three pillars of your HeadStory™, no more, no less. Words grouped into threes are more appealing and easier to remember.
Our brains are constantly looking for patterns, relationships, and meaning. Three is the smallest number we need to create a pattern, the perfect combination of brevity and rhythm.
You’re building the core of what makes your brand believable and, over time, trustable.
Here are some critical questions to ask yourself when building your brand HeadStory™:
- What do we do better than anyone else?
- What did we build our reputation on?
- What has been our repeated patterns of success?
- Why do customers stay with us?
- Where are we at our very best?
Then, boil this down to three separate, simple sentences and give them a memorable title.
We’ll delve into much more about your brand’s HeadStory™ in future posts in this series, including how this is critical work for B2B and Professional Services Brands. In the meantime, check out the free e-book— Brand Strategy & Storyline on how to build a brand that grows your business for years to come. Just go to the Resources section on our website. You can also signup for a complimentary consulting session if you have questions.
Don’t promise prove. Your results will speak for themselves.
–Jim Kwik
