Last Updated on 26 May 2022
POINT: John Moore
The surest way a brand will form emotional connections with customers is through its unique personality. It’s also the surest (and strongest) way for us to form emotional connections with people.
Think about your close circle of friends. Each one of them is sure to have a uniquely compelling personality. If they didn’t, you wouldn’t want to spend time with them.
I’m sure if you were to list the attributes of your closest friends, it would look a lot like this:
This list of personality attributes actually comes from an exercise Starbucks marketers did many years ago. We listed all the personality traits we believed the Starbucks brand should convey to customers and ended up with a list that mirrors the traits we seek in a best friend. Gracious. Encouraging. Respectful. Warm. Genuine. Quick-Witted.
Every brand has a personality. And every ENDEARING brand seeks to stand for something beyond being faster, cheaper, better.
A brand’s personality is a shorthand way to convey a brand’s belief system. Marketers should create a list of brand personality traits to serve as a guide to help them design marketing materials and programs that are on-brand in spirit and in the marketplace.
COUNTERPOINT: Paul Williams
Brand personality is what you describe when a friend asks you about a brand that isn’t that attractive, but you still want them to meet.
For example: “Julia… You’ve got to meet Winston. No, you won’t find him on the cover of GQ magazine, but he’s got a great personality!”
I’m kidding. John said it best. I’ve nothing more to add!
