What’s in a name?

I love working with a brand named after its founder because they make my life much easy. The majority of brands still communicate merely what they’ve got (their products, their services, or their features.) Only a small number of brands communicate their “promise”, which is definitely a better marketing strategy. A promise is the universally-accepted definition of a brand. But… Even that communicating your promise is not enough anymore. Today, brands need to communicate their purpose as well as their promise, because people are looking for “meaning” these days. And there is no easier way of creating meaning than telling a compelling story about the founder of a brand.

When you look at the beginnings of any brand you see a recurring theme: An entrepreneur sees an opportunity in an area where s/he is passionate. S/he faces obstacles, almost fails yet finds a way to overcome hurdles. Right there you have so many stories. You can figure out the personality of the founder, the roots of his passion and tie that story to the values of your brand. For instance, if your university is named after its founder, then find out more about his life. Was he a creative person? Has he ever invented anything? Then, you can tie it to the inventions of your students and alumni. Or maybe he was an avenger, who had the guts to challenge the status quo because he believed certain things in the world were wrong. Tie it to your social stand. Or maybe he was on a journey looking for a better world, better life, and better people. Tie it to the endless options you offer to your customers. Such mini stories can be used to inspire your workforce and provide them with purpose in their day-to-day tasks. You can also use them to provide meaning to your customers.

The above process can be used for any brand. But most employees might not know the name of the person, who founded the company they are working for. The advantage of working with a brand named after its founder is that it is easier to tell an authentic story about an individual, whose name is at the door.

Actionable tip of today: Find out about your company’s founder. Read his/her history. Learn why s/he was passionate about that line of business. Figure out the obstacle s/he faced and how s/he persevered. All those things will help you rally your troops and provide meaning to your customers.