What is brand personality?

As customers, we regularly have exceptionally-solid and extremely personal gut feelings about brands-the same way we do to specific individuals. We see promotions, social media posts, and news stories and think, “I have a positive feeling about them,” or “something doesn’t add up about them that I simply don’t like.”

These emotional associations straightforwardly affect deals and business. As per Harvard Business School, 95% of buying choices depend on sentiments rather than rationale. 

Individuals will generally pick the brands that allure their inner mind, or “gut,” so companies that depict themselves as personable and intimate do better than brands that rely on statistics or rationality. In other words, having a great product or service isn’t enough; it also needs a great brand personality.

But what is brand personality?

It is the characteristics of your brand in the eyes of the customers. How do you think your brand would be in a group of ‘brands’? Will it be friendly? Or serious? 

Will it be the kind that gives practical solutions? Or the type that hypes you up?

So basically, I am talking about the brands’ reputation – a “felt sense.”

Let me give you an example. 

 My younger brother and I were deciding what to eat – we wanted burgers, but the question was Mc Donalds or Burger King.

That’s when my brother said, “not burger king; We’ll go to Mc Donalds” I asked him why, and he said, “I don’t know; even though they have excellent reviews, I don’t like it.”

I did not think much about this when it happened. But while researching for this article, it came to me. Mc Donalds probably has a better brand personality than Burger King – at least according to my brother’s opinion. 

So, what makes a brand personality successful – I have a few pointers here. I will not write about what they meant because you might already know. The thing you need to do is figure out how to implement these traits into your brand. 

Your brand should –

• Be trustworthy
• Be authentic
• Provide value
• Be authentic
• Be memorable

How to find out and develop your brand personality?

Cater to your target audience 

Have you heard of the brand Rolls Royce? Its sophisticated and exclusive brand personality has served it well for nearly a century since it fits impeccably with the highly luxurious sense of its objective clients; however, assuming you attempted that brand character with a bargain brand like Dollar Tree, it would be an enormous fiasco.

The first concern in your brand character is meeting your objective client’s preferences, significantly more noteworthy than your inclinations. In a perfect world, you now have a solid handle on who your clients are and what they need.  

Yet gathering quantitative customer data can reveal insights you would never have guessed on your own.

Make a list of adjectives that describe your brand.

Three to five words are suitable for the start. For this, you may need to take your team’s inputs and, if possible, your existing clients too. 

Nothing too much, a quick poll, and you will already have a small sample set in your hand. 

Posting words like “young,” “enthusiastic,” and “passionate” can assist you with focusing on the more prominent character, and phrases like “inexpensive,” “convenient,” and “easy to use” can help you with setting your worth and cut out a spot in your market.

Make sure to remember your objective clients, explicitly their inclinations and assumptions. The words on this list should interest them more than you.

Here is an example list of adjectives for a brand :

How would your brand be if it was a person?

I know this is a little too much. But it helps you visualize in a better way.

If you can’t decide what direction to take your brand personality, try to imagine that your ideal brand is a natural person, and you’re meeting them at a party for the first time. Ask yourself these questions:

Do they give you an enthusiastic “Hi, how are you?” or a nonchalant “‘sup”? Do they shake your hand formally or go straight in for a hug?

Does your brand get straight to the point? Do they like to crack jokes? This can help you understand your brand voice.

Are they dressed for appearances or comfort? How many accessories do they have? What colours do they have? This can provide valuable hints for shaping your visual identity.

How individuals see your brand is subjective and can vary from person to person. In any case, that doesn’t mean you need to take a chance with it. By effectively understanding and forming your brand’s personality, you can assume control over your brand reputation.

Knowing the brand personality that turns out best for your brand is one thing; however, interpreting that personality into your logo, website and product is another. 

When you realize what you’re attempting to accomplish, you can rejuvenate your brand personality in all parts of your branding.