Consistency

Whether your brand is large or small, one thing is certain. You need to be consistent.

In every interaction, your customers need to have the same great experience every time and everywhere. Your entire identity needs to be consistent and reflected the same way on every channel.

To get there you need to be commited and get your entire team on board. You all need to work together to understand what the brand stands for and share the same goals and vision. Every team member needs to reflect the brand's values in their work and always strive to provide the customer with an unforgettable experience. We've all been victims of inconsistent brands that disappoint you in just one area and ruin your relationship with them.

Gather your team, agree on what you stand for and make everyone an ambassador of your brand. Be consistent and provide the best experience to your customers.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

A Mouse in a Salad and Owning Mistakes

About a week ago I was listening to a Freakonomis Radio episode called A Mouse in the Salad. What’s the Worst Restaurant Experience You’ve Ever Had?

To cut the story short, what happened was that at the restaurant where Stephen Dubner and James Altucher were having lunch, someone found a mouse in their salad. The shop where this happened is called Le Pain Quotidien, and it's famous for a selection of organic food and well crafted beverages.

When something like this happens, it really challenges the values of the brand. The reality was that this was a mistake, and a big one. What brands usually do when this happens is try to pay their way out of the mistake and keep the noise to a minimum level. What did Le Pain Quotidien do? They acknowledged their mistake. They explained their thinking, stayed honest and really tried to make sure this will never happen again.

The lesson to learn from this is that we are all human and mistakes happen. How we deal with them can make or break our brand. If one of your values is honesty (organic food can be associated with honest food) then when a mistake happens you need to acknowledge it and discuss with your customer why it happened and how you are going to make sure it won't happen again.

How did this play out for Le Pain Quotidien? Not only did it not stigmatise their brand, the lady that had the incident still eats at their shop on a regular basis.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

It Doesn't Matter What You Say

Brands have always grown and lived in the customer's mind. It doesn't really matter what you say about your brand in ads or other media, at the end of the day your customers will use their gut to make their own decisions.

What you can do, is create the right environment and foundation so that your customers can come to the same understanding as you on what you stand for. To do this you need to put your customer first, don't forget that you are doing this for them so treat them like they deserve.

Then you need to communicate your values and more importantly practice what you preach. Amazon became so well known for low prices and quick delivery not because of ads but because they delivered constantly on those two promises.

The customer will always be king, as they can make or break a brand. Deliver to what you promise and what they need, and they will follow.

Posted by Helen Amygdalaki // Lelou 

What Does Your Team Think?

Since the people in your team is one of the most important elements of your brand, then it is critical that you all share the same view about your brand.

You need to make sure that everyone in your team/company shares the same values, ethos, mission and vision. You all need to agree why you are doing this and how you will go about doing it.

The best way to do this, is with a whiteboard session. Gather your team and have everyone write on the whiteboard what they believe about your brand. If everyone is honest, you will soon realise that not everyone has the same view. Continue working on what you have written on the whiteboard until you are left with your core elements, which everyone agrees to and believes in.

Sharing the same view is essential to your brand, especially if you are starting up and haven't been established yet. Take the time and do this exercise, the results will pay off for the day's work.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

It's All About the People

And I don't mean people only as an audience and customers. Your people are one of the company's most important components and can make you better than your competition.

They define your brand and a lot of the interactions with your brand happen when someone speaks to one of your employees and representatives. So are you going to leave it to luck and individual commitment and excellence?

As part of your branding strategy, you need to decide what your values, mission and message are and then reflect it in every interaction. If 'friendly' is one of your values, then every employee in your company needs to go through training and guidance on how to be friendly. By everyone I do mean everyone. From the lowest to the highest rank, all your employees are valuable and could meet with a potential client.

Don't leave it to luck, decide how you want to be perceived and then present your company this way continuously and consistently.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Stand for Something

What does you brand and/or company stand for?

This is a critical question. This will make you different from the crowd and bring you the customers that believe in you.

When you answer this, you then need to keep to those beliefs and values. They need to be the same at every interaction with your brand and they need to be well communicated.

What you will gain from this, is that the people that agree with what you stand for will gravitate towards you. It will give you the opportunity to become a leader in your niche. Take it.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

It's Good to Say No

Learning when to say no is something very valuable for your career and your company.

We grow up learning to say yes and taking on all opportunities that come our way. Learning to evaluate these opportunities and saying yes only to the ones that matter is very important to your success.

As a professional, you need to say yes to what is important and no to anything that will take up time that would be better used in achieving your goals. Learn to say no frequently and doing the best job in the projects that you take on.

As a company owner, when an opportunity arises you need to be sure it fits your ethos, values and promise. When you are in the dilemma of what to pick, say yes to the one that reinforces your values an no to the one that goes against them.

Whatever you decide to answer, always be mindful of your time and resources. Say no frequently and build the right expectations.

Posted by Helen Amygdalaki // Lelou