What is a Brand Personality? The Secret Ingredient of Successful Brands

What is a Brand Personality?

Much like a human personality, a brand personality paints a picture of how a brand behaves, communicates, and relates with its audience. It is intricately woven into all a brand does – from its advertising strategies to customer service interactions and product design.

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A well-defined brand personality differentiates a brand from its competitors, creates a distinctive identity, and builds a deeper emotional connection with customers. Think Apple, often seen as innovative and cool, and Jeep, perceived as rugged and adventurous. According to branding expert Jean-Noël Kapferer, a brand personality serves a psychological purpose, providing consumers with a means to identify with the brand or project themselves into it. Simply put, a brand’s personality is a crucial aspect of its identity and an indispensable tool for forging meaningful customer relationships.

The Significance of a Brand Personality

Consistency is paramount in brand strategy. Every facet of a brand — social media, website, partnerships, and press releases — needs to harmonize and amplify the same story. A lack of a distinct brand personality can result in a muddled image, puzzling consumers and making it challenging to establish a meaningful connection.

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Moreover, a brand's personality must resonate with its target audience. It's about more than just representing the brand; it's about appealing to and engaging the right people. If a brand's personality doesn't strike the right chord, nurturing meaningful connections becomes an uphill battle.

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In a world rampant with copycats, a brand's unique personality serves as its armor. A strong personality fosters a robust bond with customers, nurturing their loyalty. Statistics support this, indicating that customers who feel a connection with a brand are 64% more likely to remain loyal, and 76% more likely to choose it over a competitor.

Brand Personalities that Resonate

A potent brand personality that strikes a chord with target customers can significantly influence the business. Let’s explore a few successful brands:

Duolingo

Duolingo is fun, vibrant, quirky, and a little sassy. And in some cases, a little unhinged - like when they proposed to Dua Lipa on Tik Tok or made fun of themselves for being a little pushy in the app. Duolingo’s magic lies in creating fun content that isn’t always about its product. They’re great at chatting with followers and making them feel connected without making it feel like a sales pitch. This unique style helped their TikTok followers skyrocket from 100K to a whopping 6.8M.

Red Bull

Red Bull’s adventurous spirit permeates every aspect of the brand - from their slogan, “Red Bull Gives You Wings,” to their sponsorship of extreme sports events and even incredible stunts like Felix Baumgartner’s supersonic free-fall. But what sets Red Bull apart is not just the energy boost it provides; it’s the feeling that with Red Bull, anything is possible. Their focus isn’t on the product in their ads; it’s about promoting a lifestyle that pushes limits and makes the impossible seem within reach. This bold and daring personality resonates strongly with their target consumers - the risk-takers and daredevils - making them not just customers but ardent fans of the brand. The proof is in the numbers, with Red Bull selling over $4.9B to date.

Wendy's

Wendy’s boldly adopted a unique, sassy brand persona on Twitter, often engaging in playful banter and taking jabs at their competitors. Not only did they successfully form a connection with customers through direct responses, but they also spurred high engagement rates and a massive surge in their follower count. As a result, they gained 3.7 million followers on Twitter, contributing to an impressive $64 million boost in profits

A common element across all three brands is their focus on genuine engagement with their community rather than just pitching their products. This fosters a mutual connection, allowing consumers to connect more deeply and understand the brand’s personality beyond just the product they offer.

Creating a Brand Personality

There are various approaches to crafting a brand personality, with Jennifer Aaker’s personality model being prominent. In her model, Aaker categorizes brands into five dimensions: sincerity, excitement, competence, sophistication, and ruggedness. Each dimension is characterized by a unique set of traits, such as being down-to-earth, daring, spirited, and so on.

There's no doubt that Aaker's model is rooted in extensive research. However, it might fall short in guiding brands on how to effectively engage with their customers. After all, establishing a robust brand goes beyond just having a personality; it's also about forging meaningful connections with your customers.

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That's why I'm a fan of a more personalized approach to brand development. Imagine someone you know who embodies the qualities you want your brand to have. Then, translate those traits into business strategies. This method can be a more relatable and intuitive way of shaping a brand personality. What's more, this approach makes the brand's personality easily understandable for everyone in the company, allowing all team members to embody and personify the brand effectively.

Emulation Exercise

Let’s say we’re developing a defense company, with governments as our main clientele, and we want our brand to emulate Captain America. The following is a snapshot of how we could translate his traits into our brand attributes - an illustrative example, not a comprehensive rundown.

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Captain America characteristics: 

• Underdog, but not afraid of a challenge. Willing to put in the work.
• Stuck in the ice for 70 years.
• Purpose-drive. Won’t do anything that doesn’t align with personal values. 
• Will do what he believes is right even if it ostracizes himself.

Beware of the Pitfalls

Just as people show different sides of their personalities in different situations, brands should do the same. It’s all about knowing when and where to flex your brand’s unique traits. For instance, you might need a more professional tone for customer service and meetings but go all-out fun and wild for a social media post on TikTok. Your brand should have the flexibility to adapt its voice to suit the situation. It isn’t about changing who you are as a brand but understanding how to context-switch while staying true to your personality. It’s the key to standing out and connecting with your audience on different platforms and in various situations.

Conclusion

Crafting a strong brand personality is a must-do, not just a nice-to-have. It helps your brand resonate with your audience and stand out in a crowded market. We've explored what a brand personality is, why it's crucial, and how you can develop one that's both authentic and adaptable. But remember, it's about more than just selling - it's about connecting. Creating that genuine bond with your audience can be a game-changer for your brand's success. So, keep it genuine, keep it consistent, and don't be afraid to show a little personality.

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