Author: Karen Maxwell

Sometimes brands die. It can result from a number of causes— accidental, poor care, infection, senility. Like people, brands have a lifespan. Although we might try to fight to sustain a brand indefinitely, at times it’s better to accept that it’s time for it to pass.

End of life is something we don’t embrace in western culture. We’re taught not to think of it. Death is feared as a terrifying process of loss. It can be unimaginable to consider the inevitable truth. We will all one day die.  But eastern philosophy is quite different, due to a fundamental belief in reincarnation.

Think about your brand’s incarnation today. It’s more than a logo. Your brand is incarnated as an identity; a superset of all your visual communications combined with the perception of your position in the market

Reincarnation is the belief that the “soul” of a living being starts a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. It’s an existential shift of perception. If your essence is immortal, then death isn’t quite as frightening. In fact, it encourages the use of this life to prepare for the next through learning, compassion and good deeds. In terms of branding, it’s important to generate good Brand Karma today.

> Rebranding is like a corporate reincarnation. 

When brands are no longer viable, they too must die. But the consciousness that inspired its existence is eternal. That spirit can live on, to be reborn anew. That new brand carries forth the awareness legacy. It’s informed by the knowledge, experience and accomplishments of the past.

1. Dignity – although your brand is at the end of its life, your customers, employees and stakeholder will live on. Their memory of your choices today will influence your legacy. Aim to honor commitments, settle debts and maintain your composure through difficult times. It raises the likelihood for improvement in your brand’s next life through the law of Karma.

2. Acceptance – coming to terms with the conditions that caused your situation releases negativity that could affect your decisions. By letting go of resentments and feelings of anger for your current condition, you’re more likely to make healthy choices that will lead to a better legacy.

3. Farewell – when you know the end is inevitable, use your remaining time to say goodbye to the people you love. It can be difficult to admit your brand’s mortality, but it helps others process the passing. There are people who might be brought to tears, but the relationships will benefit from the intimacy.

4. Intention – put forward a vision for the future now. Imagine what you could do if you were freed from your current constraints, but still armed with your life experience. Setting goals for how you’ll be reborn could help improve your chances of realizing it.

Past lives are the other facet of reincarnation. Some believe it’s possible to gain insights on life by attempting to access fragments of prior incarnations. Meditation, hypnosis and other guided therapies are designed for this purpose. Many people find enlightenment through these efforts.

Your brand had a past life too— founders bring their life experiences to new ventures which are informed by earlier success and failures. This is why the branding (and re-branding) process begins with facilitated workshops. These sessions help stakeholders reflect on the past, in the context of the present, to recognize important beliefs that will influence the brand in the future. These explorations fuel brand authenticity. Brands must reflect your spirit in order to be sustainable. Maintaining a false identity is exhausting, dishonest and likely to deteriorate over time.

When it’s time for Brand Reincarnation (rebranding) find a methodology that’s defined and proven. Flux Branding crafted the IDEA Method to help lower risk and improve results. Great branding isn’t the product of chance, it’s the result of thoughtful and strategic action.

> The IDEA Method is a 4-step process that reveals brilliant brands. 

      IDEA = Ignite + Distill + Energize + Activate

Step 1:  IGNITE {Brand Discovery} 

A comprehensive look inside and outside your company to establish a deep understanding of your offerings, the competition and market trends.

Step 2: DISTILL {Brand Positioning}

The findings are summarized into a strategic document that clearly defines a brand position to differentiate you in the market.

Step 3: ENERGIZE {Brand Identity}

Design and develop a visual system for an authentic brand identity that intuitively communicates the brand position.

Step 4: ACTIVATE {Brand Expression}

Deliver your message to the world by leveraging the brand in communications and campaigns that build awareness and motivate action.

Brands are like human spirits. They’re complex, unique and enigmatic. But through discipline and practice it’s possible to develop great awareness of how they function. It’s a worthwhile undertaking. Branded goods are more desirable by customers willing to pay more for the perceived value they provide.

Finding insights into the current existence and the potential afterlife of your brand will help keep your marketing messages focused. This returns dividends by maintaining relevance with your core audience through an authentic identity that has soul. When you find it, there’s a chance you’ll become the market leader.

Branding impacts more than sales and marketing initiatives. It is also a powerful influence on a company’s internal culture, and can dramatically impact how your employees think and behave.

“Culture” is an umbrella term that encompasses social behavior and norms, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities and habits of individuals. We acquire culture through learning; by being taught or influenced. It doesn’t happen spontaneously.

Fortunately, businesses are finally recognizing that a strong culture is key to a great workplace. Healthy company cultures lead to motivated, efficient personnel and overall clarity of vision. A well-crafted brand can be the catalyst for your company’s culture — and when released in the right environment, the results are transformational. 

          –Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos 

> Your Brand is Brewing

The process of fermentation has been used for over 90 centuries across countless civilizations. By introducing a starter culture (also commonly referred to as a “mother”) to certain foods, they can be converted into something wonderful. Even today, fermentation still produces many of the most important—and desirable—foodstuffs worldwide, including:

Different starter cultures catalyze different chemical reactions, resulting in unlimited varieties of fermented food and beverages — each with a distinctive flavor profile. There’s a transformation that produces another, more desirable outcome. Similarly, brands act as the “mother” when it comes to fermenting company culture. When your brand is ingrained across all of your company’s operations, it can produce delicious results that attract the right people to your team. It can also repel people who don’t have the same taste, helping sort out people who just don’t fit.

To catalyze the right kind of culture, you first need to have a powerful understanding of your brand’s values. It’s an important effort that requires special attention.

> Values. Brands. Culture.

Authentic brands are founded upon honest values. Consumers can sense inauthenticity from a mile away, and are repelled by it. In his Harvard Business Review essay Make Your Values Mean Something, business management author Patrick M. Lencioni (The Five Dysfunctions of a Team) explains that “Most value statements are bland, toothless, or just plain dishonest. And far from being harmless, they’re often highly destructive. Empty values statements create cynical and dispirited employees, alienate customers, and undermine managerial credibility.”

In his article, Lencioni outlines four types of values. Understanding these can help you with shaping more meaningful values — ones that can be used to create a potent brand culture starter.

Out of all these, core values are what truly great brands are based on. They represent the fundamental beliefs that must be shared by all people in your organization. When wrapped with the context and visual language of branding, core values present a real opportunity for cultural transformation.

> The Culture Code

But how do we begin to transform our culture? The Culture Code, by Clotaire Rapaille, provides strong insights into how brands operate culturally — and how changes to this need to start at a fundamental level. 

Rapaille suggests that brands rely on “imprint” experiences that are so deeply felt, emotionally, that they trigger unconscious reactions. This is why products must be positioned to appeal to local cultural norms, rather than relying on universal beliefs. Coffee, for instance, is perceived differently in Asia than in Europe, and must be marketed accordingly. 

Likewise, your brand provides a way to imprint your values. By leveraging the intelligence of a well-crafted brand, there’s a consistent and reliable process to influencing culture. You are not just shaping the minds and opinions of consumers with your brand. You are shaping yourselves, too, every single day. 

> Keeping Culture Alive

When it comes to fermentation, the starter “mother” is just that — a starter. The environment must be suitable for the culture to thrive, or else your efforts might be in vain. Keep your attention focused on four concepts that provide the right climate for your culture, all of which have parallels in the fermentation process.

Temperature:
Think of your brand as a living organism. If it gets too hot or too cold, it could perish. Similarly, check on the health of your organization regularly to see if it needs to be (metaphorically) heated up or cooled down. Is everything working? Do adjustments need to be made?

Mix:
Great results come from the right mix of ingredients. Make sure that you have the right people at the table, representing all departments of the company. If everybody has a voice, spreading culture becomes a ground-up collaboration, and not a command from on high.

Time:
Fermentation can take days, weeks, or even months before achieving perfection. Be realistic about how long it will take to achieve your cultural goals. Don’t give up at every set back. Stick with what’s working,  and adjust for unexpected challenges. On the flipside, don’t take too long or you run the risk of spoiling.

Protection:
A small fleck of contamination can ruin the whole batch. Toxins are extremely dangerous, and could undo all your hard work. Observe any potential threats and shield your culture, especially when it’s young. If poison does get inside, confront it ASAP before it infects everything.

Branding can start a cultural revolution. However, the proper conditions need to be maintained to ensure it will thrive. There must be buy-in across the whole enterprise, but it starts at the top. When great brands influence corporate culture, and simultaneously resonate in the minds of customers, a recipe for legendary results has been crafted.

> Is Your Culture Alive?

Drop us a note to tell us all about it.

There are two schools of thought behind this. One is that organizations tactically recruit unified types of people. The other is that organizations strategically create certain types of culture. Either way, the intent is to develop a brand that touches the hearts and souls of your employees, generating a deep sense of loyalty that’s almost spiritual.

This is brand spirituality, the corporate religion, the pledge of allegiance to the company that successful organizations seem to be able to create within the employee population.

As a fledgling executive, a friend was hired to work for a large entertainment corporation. As training, he was required to wear a character costume and walk around the theme park posing for pictures for a full day. The idea was that everyone in the executive offices needed to understand the emotional connections that people felt with the company and its icons. It was important to have first-hand knowledge of what it feels like to be a part of the brand.

Think about the barista who made your espresso this morning. Was she welcoming? Did she flash you a smile? If the answer is yes, you might have been at Starbucks — they put a premium on brand spirituality.

The value of brand spirit is seen through the eyes of happy employees who work passionately and tirelessly. It infuses the workplace and the products with a joy that leads to successful customer experiences.

Brand spirituality is an important consideration for training and keeping good people. It’s also your calling card for recruiting. It just makes for a better work-life experience. And shockingly, it has very little to do with money.

1. Law of Attraction – Any company is only as good as its people. Brands that have a strong, positive, internal spirit tend to attract the best employees. Infusing brand spirituality into your HR package provides an extra edge to your company’s ability to recruit top talent. Brands like Nike, Patagonia and Facebook also have reputations as great places to work.  It’s no wonder that they are all extremely successful.

2. Environmental Awareness – The physical and emotional environment of your place of business will naturally follow the tone of your brand. This can be extraordinarily effective in managing office costs. It’s not about the expense of the furnishings, but about the passion of the people who work there. I have seen amazing brand spirit in start-up garages and really poor attitudes in fancy corporate headquarters.

3. Brand Ambassadors – Happy, spirited employees are your best brand ambassadors.  They can be lead generators whether they work in the sales and marketing department or not.  They are pitching to colleagues, friends and family through their passion, honesty, attitude and commitment. Their stories seep out – especially through social media.  Good feelings within a company have great value in the marketplace.

4. Keep the Faithful – Retaining talented people is as important as finding and nurturing them.  Brand spirituality breeds loyalty, which begets desire, which feeds the appetite for a long-term commitment to an organization.  That creates a sense of comfort, support and contentment. Many people have left happy places for more money and regretted it.

5. The Right Thing – Spirited organizations capture the hearts and souls of the people that work for them. Those hearts and souls do the right thing when it comes to your brand.  They think about the impacts to that brand when they make decisions, and want to preserve it. Naturally, they act on your behalf. Everyone pulls in the same direction. The strength of your brand depends on that kind of spiritual dedication.

Brand spirituality is strong medicine in maintaining the internal health of your organization. Companies that take a holistic approach to the spiritual health of their brand find, retain and embrace a great talent, which leads to superior production and increased sales.

The 4-part process we use at Flux Branding is called The Idea Method. It’s a time-tested methodology for success that leads to the greatest possible reward: People who are emotionally connected. With emotion comes passion and a desire to satisfy personal need.

Passionate people forge a bond of loyalty with the brands they love. That connection transcends issues of price, specs or features, because life just isn’t the same without the products and services you provide.