Connected brand experience is the ability to shape consistent experiences across all customer touch points. At Grey Coffee we really believe that your customers’ brand experience starts way before they interact with any brand touch point and lasts long after that initial experience.
Understanding how and where customers interact with your brand is critical in being able to deliver consistent brand experience.
As part of this process the key to success is being able to really try and dive deep into your customer journey and see first hand what they (your customer) see, feel and experience which will then enable you to start defining and shaping your brand experience.
How do we create consistent brand experience which enables us to create deep and meaningful relationships with our customers?
The key challenge that brands face is usually this idea of disconnected experience. As most of our projects start with discussions around brand the disconnect usually comes when you have multiple touch points whereby you want to shape this experience. Most of the projects we work on have a key interior focus (retail spaces or interiors) as a key customer touch point but in today’s connected world we cannot ignore any of your online or physical products too.
Naturally as your business grows things change, your brand evolves and what may have been relevant when you first started may not totally align with your brand goals and business objectives for the future.
It also begs the question when did you last review all of these touch points? Quite often any brand assets that are created at time of creation are not reviewed, modified or adapted to align with any of your more recent brand assets or wider business objectives.
When did you last have a ‘brand’ conversation with your team?
Alongside any brand changes your business will have notably evolved. Whilst the founding team is consistent the notable difference will be the team that has joined you along the way. As many of you already know your core team is invaluable in helping and supporting you to deliver on your bigger brand vision.
Your team is usually a key starting point; this is where we can explore these ideas of brand clarity. When was the last time you spoke collectively as a team about your brand?
One of the key things we like to do at Grey Coffee is to get your executive team to individually write down your core purpose in 12 words or less. Give it some thought, can you describe your core purpose in 12 words? If the answer is no then there’s a pretty good chance your customer or audience may struggle to understand what it is you actually do and how your brand solves their challenges as a consumer.
The results in some cases can be pretty aligned however in most cases this is where we find the disconnect. Each response tends to be different and slowly the lines start to get a little blurred. This is perfectly normal for many of the brands we are working with, the reason they are talking with us is because they probably feel a little disconnect across the team and any brand touch points.
All good brands need a strategy
All decisions you make as a brand, any visual you create, any experience you shape, any communication you make, any social media you post, all have an impact on your brand and audience. So the first question is how do you ensure all the decisions you make are perfectly aligned with your vision, values and purpose? How do you ensure that each and every experience you craft for your customer is deep and meaningful? The answer is simple and it comes back to brand strategy.
Think of brand strategy like a brand compass or some may call it a brand platform. It provides you with something tangible that everyone can see and most importantly agree on. It brings clarity around what you do, how you do it and why it’s important, but it also explores personality, values and other key brand attributes. Only then can you truly start to move your brand forward with clarity.
As you start to explore your key customer touch points you can really start to break down the experience and see for yourself if you live up to your values and purpose. Are the visuals on your website in line with your personality? For example if as a brand you consider yourself to be sustainable and creative but reflect this with a terrible stock image is this really the experience you want to create for your end user? Do your products and packaging align with what your website says? Does your in store experience align with your values?
The only way you can really answer these questions is if you have a clear understanding of your brand, your audience and what really matters to you moving forward.
Why is connected brand experience important?
As brands we all want to create deep and meaningful relationships with our customers. To achieve this as brands we have to be authentic and consistent in our approach. If we are able to connect with our customers on a deeper level and provide a connected brand experience you will not only have more happy customers they will be more loyal too.
At the heart of consistency lives clarity. Brand clarity more specifically holds the keys to your brand’s success especially when it comes to connected brand experiences.
