Elevate Your Brand.
How many times have you read this phrase in a marketing brochure or on a web site: “We will meet or exceed your expectations.”? What, exactly does that mean? The problem with this kind of canned marketing language is that not only does it do zip to build your brand — it’s a real buzz kill. Words and phrases like this do nothing to distinguish you and, therefore, elevate your brand. Think about it. This common phrase can be (and unfortunately is) used by virtually any business or service organization. I could say it as an Ad Agency,(in fact, a lot of marketers do use this phrase which is not a good sign for what you can expect in terms of creative product), the law firm around the corner, the caterer down the street, the florist across town, the salon, the landscaping company, the bank, the insurance agency, the auto body shop — you get the idea — can all use this phrase. The fact that it can be used by anyone renders it virtually meaningless from a brand marketing standpoint. The whole point to establishing a strong brand is to determine what makes you different. AND, to find a way to express that difference to your audience. It doesn’t have to be clever necessarily, but it does have to be unique.
Part of establishing and elevating your brand is showing (not telling) your tribe what their experience with you will be like. Apple is a brilliant example of this. Their TV spots literally “show don’t tell” you what you’ll experience when you purchase one of their products. Set to catchy tunes with barely any voice over, after just thirty seconds you come away thinking, “I want one of those (iPhones, iPads, iPods) – it looks like so much fun.”
One of the hardest things to do in marketing is to say a lot with a little. It’s the real trick of branding. Empty words are like empty calories, they just take up space and make you look puffy. Boil it down to it’s essence and then push it out there in as many places as you can. Do your best to stay away from language that pretty much anyone and their brother could use with the same drab, meaningless tone. Above all, don’t be afraid to be uniquely you. If you’re quirky and you know it, be quirky. It has much more brand power than being a clone.
DARCI Creative
Total Brand Agency
