Three cardinal virtues of business: creativity, building community, practical realism. -Ted Malloch
Welcome to the final part of the Brand Standards Series. This series has emphasized the connection between your brand framework and your brand standards. The key aspects of your brand can be an excellent guide for setting your business brand standards.
Standards are vital for conducting your business. When you have clear standards and remain aware of what they are and committed to them, your actions and your organization display a strong brand to the world.
And what’s the simplest and most effective way to set and adhere to brand standards? It’s to let a framework, like the Brandview Framework be your guide.
If you’re familiar with the Brandview Framework, you know that there are five pillars that make up the foundation of your brand. They are: Vision, Village, Voice, Visual Identity, and Values. Each of these is interlinked. And each is essential to laying a strong foundation for your brand.
Today, we’re looking at how your brand village/community influences and shapes the standards for your organization.
We’ll explore how to tie your village engagement to your brand and how to set it as one of the pillars of your brand.
Your business centers around your community and the connection you have with the members of that community.
You don’t sell products and services. You make connections. Connecting with your community is what you do.
Think of your community as your brand village, a supportive, interactive group that you’re connected to. You make the choice as to who is part of your community, but typically, these include your customers, collaborators, employees, and sometimes investors.
“Human beings need community. If there are no communities available for constructive ends, there will be destructive, murderous communities…”-Peter Drucker
This is a powerful quote about community and reminds businesses that community building is one an aspect of business growth.
Since the five pillars of your brand are an effective way to shape your brand standards, let’s see how village ties in.
When we look at companies and organizations who’ve successfully implemented and maintained thriving communities, we can see the rewards are evident.
The concept of building and supporting a village, a community, highlights the essence of a brand as more than just a company that sells things. You aren’t just exchanging goods/services for money, you’re building a village. And how do we treat members of a village? What type of interaction do we have in a community? What are the specific, unique methods of support and engagement we have when belong to a community? The answers to these questions will help set your overall standards.
Community engagement and building are valuable aspects of your brand. They are part of the key framework that sets your brand on solid foundation and helps it to stand apart from the competition.
Remember, this is one aspect of your standards. Your brand standards sit on a foundation of five different brand aspects (vision, voice, visuals, values, village). When you align all five of these with your brand standards, you can protect yourself from a possible brand identity crisis. You also stake your claim in the marketplace, set your reputation, and allow your brand to do your marketing. This is a powerful way to lay the foundation of your business branding for market distinction.