How to Turn Customers into Fans with Your Brand Persona

Every company needs a brand – an identity by which you are recognized. And every brand should have a social media persona, which determines the type of content you publish and the language you use to relate to your target audience.

But this persona shouldn’t be limited to just social media. It should encompass the entire brand experience – the way you act, the way you look, the services you provide. This establishes trust, recognition and belief in your brand among your customers, ultimately turning them into fans. Huge, Inc., says that if every area of your company does not fulfill your promise to your customer, trust will not grow. 

Establish Your Brand Persona

To do this, start by answering these questions:

• Brand Attributes: What are you in business to do?
• Brand Personality: If your brand was an actual person, how would you describe them? 
• Brand Promise: What does your brand mean to your customer?

Dallas-based Southwest Airlines has a well-established brand persona that’s easily recognized and understood by its customers:

• Brand Attributes: They provide low-cost air travel to destinations throughout the U.S.
• Brand Personality: Outgoing, fun, frugal, casual, dependable, witty.
• Brand Promise: Dedicated to providing low-cost air travel with friendly service that puts the customer first.

Extend Your Brand Persona

Once your brand persona is established, think about how you can apply it to your entire brand experience. Here are a few examples of how Southwest Airlines has accomplished this:

• Flight attendants deliver safety announcements in a variety of entertaining and engaging ways that keep in line with their brand personality.
• The Bags Fly Free campaign puts the customer first and offers a low-cost air travel experience, consistent with their brand attributes and promise.
• Their recent revamp includes a bold new look and focus on ‘heart,’ both of which align with their brand personality.

An established brand persona that extends to all aspects of your brand experience benefits your company, your employees and your customers. With a consistent and recognizable identity, your customers will start trusting and believing in you – the key to turning customers into fans. MarketingProfs.com sums this up: “When people believe in your mission, they will want to buy from you. When people want to buy, they not only want to hear from you, but they expect it and are excited about it.”

Related reading:

• Stay on Message: How to Get Your Employees on the Same Page
• 4 Steps To Building Your Brand’s Social Media Persona

Blog Author: Jennifer Haynes, Former B teamer.