DIGS is the premiere luxury real estate lifestyle magazine serving the most affluent neighborhoods in the South Bay and Westside of Los Angeles, California.
Issue link: https://uberflip.westsidedigs.com/i/1092382
10 DIGS.NET | 3.15.2019 Warren J Dow | Publisher wdow@Southbaydigs.com | 310.373.0142 I love analogies. I love marketing and branding. Let's give this a go. Your brand is a tree It starts as a seed (idea), needs receptive soil (market), and water (revenue) to grow roots. Trees think long-term, and if conditions are right are built to last. Trees are patient, nurturing in nature, and give back to their community. And, trees don't take shortcuts – they have a well-tested plan and know that slow and steady wins the race. Brands can learn a lot from trees. A brand's roots should run deep A tree's root system comprises the all-important water- collecting mechanism that makes life possible for trees. If a tree's root system doesn't run deep, it's unlikely that the tree will grow, and even if it does, might not reach its full potential. Same is true with brands. If your brand is a commodity, your roots don't run deep and it's unlikely that your tree will be seen as important, useful, or dominant. It will be just another tree, standing among similar trees. A tree knows its purpose – why it exists It's embedded and coded into the seed. Let's review Simon Sinek's "Start With Why" for inspiration. Sinek's 2009 TED talk was groundbreaking and introduced a powerful concept, calling on business leaders to "Start With Why." His book with the same name carefully demonstrated why companies guided by this concept will succeed more often than those that don't. Much like a brand, a tree's roots are where their "Why" lives. Your roots contain the DNA and biology of your purpose, your cause and why you exist. Starting with the "Why" means clearly articulating why you do what you do – it's not about the result (i.e. profit), but more about what drives your brand to "get out of bed" in the morning. Brands that "Start With Why" stand out in a forest of trees. Sinek cites Apple as an example, saying that Apple is technically no different from its competitors, but Apple communicates and starts with the "Why." Apple's "Why" is to challenge the status quo and empower the individual to "Think Different." Challenging the status quo is in Apple's DNA and is evident in all they say and do – which is the reason why consumers perceive Apple as truly authentic. YOUR BRAND IS A TREE P U B L I S H E R ' S M U S E Trees grow faster the older they get Brands and trees like to grow. After all, success begets success. Like many brands, the growth rate of trees increases continuously as they get bigger and bigger. While trees will stop growing taller at a certain point if their life, they continue to get wider and pack on additional mass the older they get. For trees, the additional mass is fortifying and strengthening, (i.e. building muscle like a bodybuilder). For brands, this can go both ways, if unattended to, the added mass can be fat and generally not good for the health of the business. Successful brands know how to leverage their position in the market. They take nothing for granted and continue working on their "trunk and root system" in good times and bad. You never know when the weather will change, and the water supply may look different from season to season. The only constant is change It's important to know what's happening with your brand – does your tree need pruning, more water, or fertilizer? A tree has a built-in tracking system – good years have wide rings (lots of water), and the bad years have narrow rings. It's all recorded. Brands, at a minimum, should check their growth rings annually. It's vital that companies track and monitor their results, look for patterns, and analyze what's working and what's not. The focus should always be on the customer, their needs and what you can do to continue to elevate your value proposition. Trees are remarkable in their ability to create repeatable, growing, and sustainable results. Brands should be more like trees. Until next time ~ Like trees, brands should celebrate their unique and natural beauty The core of Simon Sinek's "Start with the Why" is his discovery of the Golden Circle and the three parts within – Why, How, and What. For the tree, the "how" is why the fruit tastes better. It's "how" you differentiate and deliver your unique value to the market. The best brands are authentic and choose to stand for something versus everything. Brands, like trees, are a commodity when they don't understand and can't articulate their unique selling proposition to the market. Finally, the "What" in Sinek's Golden Circle is what you do or the result of "Why." It simply represents the tangible products/services that serve as proof of your "Why". Trees need water to grow A tree's root system will go in all directions to find water and taps for future supply. Once a tree finds water, the focus changes and is all about growing the trunk upward. The operative word here is focus. Brands need revenue to grow. But those that stay in their lane do best. Too many brands get distracted once they begin to have success, they lose patience and try to diversify and "find more water sources" before they have optimized the existing business. They focus on launching and selling more products instead of taking care of their customers and finding more ways to add value to the relationship. Back to Sinek's "Why, How, What," – brands get in trouble when they lose sight of their original "Why." Remember, too much water can kill a tree. The best growth is controlled and measured, allowing you to execute and deliver on your original "value promise" you made in a repeatable and sustained way. WHAT HOW WHY Why are we doing this? What is the purpose? Why does this exist? How do we do it? What is the value proposition? Benefits? What we do. Serves as proof of what we believe.