YOU ARE THE BRANDS YOU BUY.
You’ve heard the saying that you are what you eat.. Have you ever considered that you also are the brands that you buy? Wiki tells us that “A brand purpose is essentially a brand’s reason for being beyond making money. … A brand promise may give the buyer an idea of what to expect from the product or service, but the brand purpose goes way beyond that. A brand purpose connects with consumers on a more emotional level”
Harvard Business Review writes about “The Brands That Make Customers Feel Respected” and the Journal of Consumer Research found that students tended to have positive associations with brands that reflected images that were consistent with their own identity, such as “conservative,” “hippy,” or “athletic.” and that the reflected image also influenced how others perceived them
These studies confirm the notion that the brands that we choose to align with, influence what others think about us.
Now, take a virtual look in the mirror and imagine that the brands you most often support had their logo & brand purpose around you. Apple, Lululemon, Sage, Patagonia, and Nespresso, etc. Do the brand purposes you see reflect who you are?
Can the same conclusion be assumed for businesses? Do the business relationships and partnerships secured influence how other businesses, employees, or prospective customers perceive you?
As an example. If a restaurant, hotel, café, or office chooses to partner with Nespresso Professional, does it influence what others think about the priorities or brand purpose of that business?
We are well aware that Nespresso’s identity has been rooted in exceptional quality coffee, and ensuring the climate and the over 100,000 farmers cultivating the perfect bean can be a part of their industry-leading sustainability program called The Positive Cup.
Do I then, as a prospective hotel guest or hungry restaurant patron or job-seeking employee feel that if establishment partners with Nespresso, then too must stand for premium quality and an unwavering commitment to protecting our environment?
It is my belief, that the answer is unequivocally a YES.
I encourage you to take a virtual look in your organization’s mirror and imagine your partners, vendors, and suppliers’ brand purpose was visible. Do the brand purposes you see align with your brand purpose?