Day two of The Gathering 2016

Brand is not owned by you, it is co-created with everyone who encounters it.

After another packed day of invaluable insights, Brian Solis’ keynote on brand experience was a great way to wrap up the conference.

Moments that your customers experience with every facet of the business ultimately defines your brand. Have you ever gone to a website that was so cluttered and hard to navigate that you didn’t know where to begin to look for what you needed? Or have you filled out a form and had to retype the date several times because it was unclear what format was required? Those seemingly innocent things can leave a customer with a bad taste in their mouth, and ultimately chip away at your brand.

Have you measured or optimized your service journey lately? Talk to front line people in customer service, audit your website, listen to the tone of your communications, and reflect on your value statement to see how everything aligns.

Every interaction is an opportunity

Consider the fact that 90% of smartphone users are not certain of the specific brand they want to buy when they begin looking for information online. This is a huge opportunity to win business with your brand. This goes beyond simply optimizing for search with the right keywords; your messaging and how it is presented needs to tell the story of your magic. If you have a cluttered website with inconsistent brand elements, poor quality photos and copy that was written for print, consider how your audience is receiving that. This probably isn’t the way you want to be remembered.

Make impressions instead of buying them

Molson Canadian has gone far in creating meaningful experiences for customers, above and beyond print and digital advertising efforts – they are making impressions instead of buying them. Anyone remember that I Am Canadian commercial, with Joe from Canada? That spawned an allegiance of loyal consumers that identified with the brand story. After a lull in recreating that same kind of brand experience, Molson reinvigorated its marketing efforts under the direction of CCO Scott Cooper. A beer fridge that opens only with a Canadian passport or the words “I Am Canadian”? Genius. Or how about a hockey rink created on the top of one of Canada’s tallest buildings? This sparked conversation before Molson even began advertising the campaign. While not every company has the budget to achieve these extravagant feats, we can all aim to create these types of brand experiences with our customers.

Aim high

If we can leave you with one thing it should be this: In this digital age, where information is abundant and customer expectations are high, businesses can’t afford to squander brand opportunities. In every chance you have to create your brand story, aim as high as possible, and continue to listen to your customers to optimize.