How brands stay true to their core values

Written by our CEO, Peter Rabey.

In a world where people are constantly looking for connections with their favourite brands, your brand values can deliver real engagement and direct you towards more powerful connections with your people and target consumers.

Sadly, some businesses at this current time of uncertainty are struggling to stay afloat. With businesses keeping true to their core values, I am hopeful that many can get through these troubling times as they have done before – time to share our knowledge and help each other where we can!

A couple of things that have been pertinent in being able to not just survive, but eventually thrive, has been working with highly talented people with an innate hunger to beat all things that stand before them, as well as a desire to be simply excellent at what they do.

Speaking to many inspiring leaders on the Leadership Learns podcast provides a huge opportunity for learning and I want to share this with as many people as possible. My top picks this week are Ed Williams, CEO of Candy Kittens, Hannah Farrar, CEO of CF, and Richard Adey, CEO of TAUR.

Ed Williams, CEO of Candy Kittens is experienced with the challenges of breaking into a crowded market full of well-established competition – his secret, disruption.

As Ed explains: “You don’t need to be loud to be disruptive” – putting adverts on every bus in London is loud, but if you’re not getting the desired effect, you’re not being disruptive.

If you’re trying to break into a space dominated by some huge players, focus on what will get you the volume you need to stand out. What idea is disruptive enough to make people stop and talk about it?

Allow your vision to evolve.

You don’t know everything that you need to know at any one moment in time. Your knowledge and experience will develop over time.

Some goals you’ll achieve early, some goals you’ll achieve late, and some you may not even achieve at all. Be prepared for any outcome and be flexible in the creation of new plans.

Periods of difficulty will change your course of journey, but your company will come out of these periods stronger than before.

Don’t spend all your budget on branding if you have a product that’s the same as everybody else’s. Create a distinctive product first, build your core competence, and then position your brand.

Understand where your positioning is, and if you have the opportunity to be an early contender in your market, don’t hesitate.