Re-Post: What Is Your Brand's Story #BackToBasics

Everyone has a story to tell and so does your brand. You can use your brand's story as a way to connect with your audience and show them how you and your product are different.
People buy mainly based on emotions, so sharing your story can communicate with them on an emotional level. Your audience wants to find out about who you are, why you are doing this, how you are doing this and what they will gain. Don't be afraid to become personal, being human is not a flaw, it's reality.
If you made a mistake at the beginning don't just admit it, talk about how you went the extra mile to make it right. If you always have satisfied customers, don't just say "Satisfaction Guaranteed", talk about how you did everything that was possible to deliver to a client on the same day because they needed your product or service.
This story can also motivate and guide your company internally. Use it along with your mission statement, so everyone in your company knows where the brand came from and why it exists. It will help you set out goals and ease the communication of how things are done around here.
Finally, work hard on spreading the story and letting everyone know why you are doing this. You created this brand because it meant something to you so tell it's story.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Don't Sell Features

People make buying decisions based on emotions. Yet most startups, and especially web startups, try to sell their product by promoting their feature set and technology.

If you want people to buy your product or service then you need to create an emotional connection with them. If you don't and only use features to persuade them to buy from you, then you are risking creating a commodity (which means comparison based on cost) and putting yourself against bigger companies with more experience.

This doesn't mean that you shouldn't mention the features at all. You should first grab their attention by an emotional proposition and then when you have their attention talk about your features. An easy and popular way to do this is by "hiding" the features. Apple does this by having the spec details in the 3rd or fourth sub-page of a product, the first pages talk about how awesome their products are and how fast you can work by using them.

Don't fall into the trap of just selling features. Especially if you are in a well established industry where your features will be similar to your competitors'. Instead, push the emotional buttons of your customers and get them to buy your products and services because of why you're doing this and who you are.

Posted by Helen Amygdalaki // Lelou 

Simple, Emotional and Powerful Messages...

Your messages are too complex. You focus on the data, the technology, the research, the process and you forget about what will make people love your brand and chose you over your competition.

People buy based on emotions. They want to know how you will make their lives better by helping them with something, or solving their problem, or addressing another need.

Spend time on all the detail and the complexity. Put it in paper, documents, spreadsheets or wherever they fit. At the end, take a step back and ask yourself "Why choose me?". Answer the question as simply as possible. Forget the research and the function, think about what emotions will be used to chose your product or service. Once you've found that, make that your message.

If you absolutely have to include the details, include them but in a smarter way. "Hide" it or group it so it's accessible but it's not the first thing people see.

Always keep the bigger picture in mind and what makes you the best.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

What Is Your Brand's Story?

Everyone has a story to tell and so does your brand. You can use your brand's story as a way to connect with your audience and show them how you and your product are different.

People buy mainly based on emotions, so sharing your story can communicate with them on an emotional level. Your audience wants to find out about who you are, why you are doing this, how you are doing this and what they will gain.

Don't be afraid to become personal, being human is not a flaw, it's reality. If you made a mistake at the beginning don't just admit it, talk about how you went the extra mile to make it right. If you always have satisfied customers, don't just say "Satisfaction Guaranteed", talk about how you did everything that was possible to deliver to a client on the same day because they needed your product or service.

This story can also motivate and guide your company internally. Use it along with your mission statement, so everyone in your company knows where the brand came from and why it exists. It will help you set out goals and ease the communication of how things are done around here.

Finally, work hard on spreading the story and letting everyone know why you are doing this. You created this brand because it meant something to you so tell it's story.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis