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Seven Strategies for Humanizing Your Brand

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Rarely does anyone ask to be insulted. Wendy’s changed that in 2018 when creating a new annual tradition: National Roast Day. The fast-food chain took over Twitter, responding to followers asking to be “roasted.” No one was safe. The company went after competitors, iconic brands, and everyday consumers, all in good fun. Now #NationalRoastDay lasts three days and has become a marketing marvel.

The secret to its social media success? A humanized brand. The Wendy’s logo was already well known. But by giving Wendy a personality as fiery and fun as her bright red hair, the company brought the logo to life. With every quip, she embodies the brand by sizzling, being spicy, and constantly stirring up fresh beef.

Standing out among a barrage of brands is more important than ever. The average American sees between 4,000 and 10,000 advertisements every day. Which ones do you remember? Probably not many, and likely only the ones with real personalities. That makes humanizing your brand one of the best strategies for boosting business.

What Is Humanizing a Brand?

Humanizing a brand involves three key elements:

  • Building the personality – Who is the brand? How does it behave? What traits make it unique?
  • Developing a communication style – How does the brand talk? What makes its communication feel human? How is it relatable and personable?
  • Establishing values – What does the brand stand for? What does it care about? How do its values align with customers?

The goal of humanizing any brand is to build a strong relationship with consumers. Marketing often jumps immediately to “Buy Now!” Instead of going straight for the sale, companies benefit more when they get to know the target audience—and let those people learn about them as well. The deeper connection earns greater customer loyalty and often a bigger share of the wallet.

Why Is Brand Humanization Important?

Today’s consumers crave connection. Even with the brands they buy. For any non-commodity product, brand personality matters. Here’s why:

  • 88% of consumers say authenticity is important when deciding the brands they like
  • 46% of consumers would pay more for brands they trust
  • 66% of consumers think transparency is one of the most attractive qualities of a brand
  • 77% of consumers buy from brands that share the same values as them

Look at the italicized words in those statistics. Now think of a good friend. They probably share at least some of these same qualities. The best brands feel human.

How Do I Humanize My Brand?

Just like all of us, brands refine their personality and communication styles over time. No matter how you manage the process, the key is being authentic and consistent.

Start with these seven strategies and build from there.

  1. Define the Purpose
    Identify why the brand exists. Purpose sits at a brand’s core driving everything it does. The “why” helps focus resources, guides decision-making, and offers a strong connection point for consumers. If the purpose doesn’t matter to the brand, it won’t matter to people.
  2. Create a Brand Persona
    A persona transforms the brand into a person with characteristics, values, and a voice. At Boldthink, we build brand archetypes using the Myers-Briggs personality inventory. We even define the brand’s strengths and weaknesses as a person and consider its motivations to get to the heart of “who” the brand is.
  3. Share the Brand’s Story
    Any good superhero has an origin story. What’s yours? Consider eggs. They’re a commodity at the supermarket with little differentiating brands. Except when it comes to Vital Farms. They are the largest producer of pasture-raised eggs in the U.S. But they started with just two rescued chickens unable to walk because they’d been caged their entire lives. Visit their website to read more, and you might be willing to pay extra for eggs. People connect to good stories.
  4. Engage with Customers
    Using your brand’s voice, respond to customer inquiries and comments on social media. Reach out to fans, followers, and commenters. Ask for feedback on products and services.
  5. Show Your Values
    People buy when values align. Donate to charities. Support community events. Invest in the environment. Whatever the brand’s unique values, translate them into actions people can see and share.
  6. Use Real People
    Stock photography is great, but people want the real you. Share pictures of employees being themselves. Give consumers an inside look at the brand. Be funny. Be emotional. Be quirky. Whatever fits the brand’s personality. Real pictures offer the best way to do this.
  7. Be Conversational
    The brand should talk like a person. Avoid business jargon and technical terms people won’t understand. Think of all the big insurance companies. Rather than talking about complex liabilities and policy coverages, they use a person or animal to represent the brand. Flo from Progressive. Jake from State Farm. The LiMu Emu and Geico Gecko. And, of course, one of the best-humanized brands is Mayhem for Allstate.

Humanizing Brands: It’s What We Do

Ready to bring your brand to life? The Boldthink team of brand experts transforms stale logos and blah brands into vibrant, personable, relatable marketing magic. Discover how our bold approach to brand design is a game-changer for helping your company connect with its customers.

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