How to Define Your Brand Purpose
Defining your brand purpose could unlock a whole world of new opportunities for your brand, learn how to do it right in this post.
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A clear purpose explains why a brand does what it does, showing staff and consumers what the company hopes to achieve through its work. It allows employees to unite behind a single cause, nurturing better collaboration and teamwork while simultaneously improving engagement and motivation.
There are numerous benefits when you define your brand purpose such as; enabling companies to reach new audiences with strong, engaging messaging that nurtures the emotional connections that keep customers coming back for more.
Despite these benefits, many companies aren’t completely clear about their purpose. And that means they’re not using that purpose when planning marketing and branding strategies.
In this article, we’ll explain more about what we mean by brand purpose to show you why it’s so important. We’ll talk you through the key reasons to define your brand purpose, giving you the tools you need to unlock the opportunities it holds. Read on for everything you need to know.
What is brand purpose?
Brand purpose is the driving force behind any brand. While every team knows what it sells, and most have a clear idea of how they plan to sell it, far fewer understand why they’re doing what they’re doing.
A brand purpose is a way of defining the why behind a brand. The mission statement drives everything a brand does, a brand’s way of making a difference and changing the world for the better.
Brands’ purpose varies significantly, depending on who is behind the company and which industry it’s working in. But a good brand purpose will always provide a way of connecting with target audiences and existing consumers, enabling a sense of unity as brands and consumers work towards a worthy cause.
The importance of brand purpose
Brand purpose is essential because it helps brands connect with their customers. A clear purpose gives consumers a sense of what a brand is about. It’s a part of brand building that allows customers to differentiate between similar companies to find those that align with their values.
A clear purpose also provides numerous benefits in terms of staffing and engagement. A worthy purpose helps brands attract key talent in their industry, enabling a brand to motivate its workforce as staff gets behind the cause in question.
Why you need a brand purpose
There are many reasons why you need a brand purpose. Defining your purpose is a great starting point for any new marketing strategy; you might be surprised at the number of doors your new brand purpose unlocks.
Here are just a few reasons to start thinking about that brand’s purpose today.
1. Nurture an emotional connection with consumers
Today’s consumers are crying out for brands that offer an emotional connection, and when they find them, they tend to return to those same companies time and time again.
Defining and sharing a purpose enables brands to create these meaningful connections, giving consumers and brands a common cause to unite towards. This results in better customer retention and facilitates a reduction in advertising spending.
2. Reach new audiences
No brand can afford to stop looking for new customers, but reaching new audiences is more complicated now than ever. With marketplaces jam-packed with brands selling similar products and services, companies must go above and beyond to get noticed. Brand purpose is an excellent way of doing so.
Shouting about a purpose rather than individual products is a good way of piquing the interest of those hard-to-reach demographics. Many consumers are now much more interested in the mission behind the brands they buy with, and they’ve always got an eye out for new brands that align with their values.
3. Attract and motivate talent in your industry
Achieving success isn’t possible without a team of skilled, experienced colleagues. But thankfully, brand purpose provides benefits where your team is concerned too.
A motivating purpose can significantly affect how well your team works. It will bring groups together as they collaborate on a shared goal and keep them far more engaged and motivated to fulfill their potential.
There’s no better way to get your team fired than giving them a purpose that shows them what a difference their work is making in the real world.
4. Increase revenue
Uniting behind a worthy cause is a noble thing, but of course, we can’t forget about the bottom line here. Revenue is just as much of a driving force as the brand purpose is. And the good news is you don’t have to choose one over the other.
In fact, purpose-driven brands tend to enjoy much faster growth rates and better expansion opportunities than those without a clear mission. That’s because companies that prioritize their purpose motivate staff, attract consumers and reach new audiences far more effectively than those unclear about their ‘why’.
How to define your brand purpose
Defining your brand purpose takes time, but this is an exercise that’s well worth undertaking. We’ve talked about why a clearly defined brand purpose will benefit your business, so now it’s time to take you through the steps you’ll need to follow to reach that ‘why’.
Follow the step-by-step guide below. Before long, you’ll know your purpose and learn how to start sharing that message with your staff and consumers.
1. Revisit day one
If you don’t know where to start, it’s always a good idea to start at the beginning. By this, we mean revisit the first days of your brand.
Start investigating why the brand was launched in the first place to get a sense of the motivation from those who created the company.
If possible, you could interview the brand’s founders to learn more about their purpose when they first started the company. Learn as much as possible about how the brand grew and developed over the years.
2. Think about what makes your brand different
A brand purpose is an excellent way to set a company apart from its competition, so bear this in mind when defining your purpose.
Think about what makes your brand different from similar companies in your field. Consider your USPs, and make a list of the key ways in which you could differentiate your company from its rivals.
Once you understand why your brand is different to similar companies, you’ll be far better equipped to incorporate these points into the purpose you’re working on.
3. Decide what you want your brand to be known for
If you want to get consumers’ attention, you need to be clear about what you want to be known for.
Think about what your brand does, how it does it, and what makes it different. Consider what consumers might say if you asked them what your brand represents, and weigh whether you want to change their opinion.
Deciding what you want your brand to be known for is a key part of establishing a strong brand purpose, so it’s worth investing time in establishing this before you move on.
4. Establish your brand values
Many brands have a set of values they live by, but if you don’t, we’d highly recommend you start working on these.
Brand values are similar to brand purpose, but brands tend to have several different values that are important to them and their team – whereas purpose is usually a single goal.
Work with colleagues to decide what the values of your company are. Take note of the values of companies that you aspire to be like. If you need more clarification, look for inspiration by reading business reviews within your industry.
Typical brand values focus on issues such as teamwork, effective collaboration and diversity. Still, you might want to incorporate many topics into your values.
5. Invite employees to add their thoughts
We always recommend getting as many members of staff involved in conversations about brand purpose as possible. Whether a team member is brand new or has worked with the company for years, they’ll have valuable insight into its purpose.
Conduct a series of meetings that allow employees to share their thoughts on the company’s brand purpose. Take note of all ideas, thinking about how you can best merge the ideas of your workforce to create a single, unifying brand purpose that everyone can get behind.
6. Think about what consumers need
Don’t overlook the thoughts of your audience when determining your brand purpose.
A noble purpose that sounds great to a few members of your team might resonate poorly with your target audience, so you must consider the purposes that will go down best with existing and potential customers before you make any decisions.
Brands with purpose can reach huge numbers of new customers and nurture loyalty amongst existing ones. But to do so, it must be relevant to your brand, realistic, and ultimately it’ll have to be important to the customers in question.
Think about what your customers, and your industry, need, and try to relate your brand purpose to this.
7. Deliver your message
Once you’ve defined your brand purpose, you’ll be able to start considering how you can share the message to get the best out of your colleagues and attract the attention of your customers.
Start working on a marketing strategy revolving around communicating your brand purpose. If it’s successful, customers will immediately know what the driving force behind your company is as soon as you mention its name.
Define your brand purpose and make a difference
Many brands now hope to make a difference in the world. Not only is it a great thing to do, but it also provides immeasurable benefits in terms of profitability and growth opportunities.
Defining your brand purpose is the first step in this process. It’s a great way of bringing colleagues together to motivate them in a way that rapidly boosts the potential of your brand as a whole.
Our step-by-step guide has taken you through the basics in order to define your brand purpose, equipping your team with the skills they need to uncover the purpose behind your brand. So, now it’s just a case of deciding how you’ll reach those goals and how you’ll improve the world we live in along the way.
