Building a solid brand has everything to do with your personal values and how they impact the mission and vision of your company.
Your values if you want to successfully be in business-and especially if you want to succeed in business online-should be above reproach, and by extension the mission and vision of your company should represent your quest for excellence by providing a quality product to your customers. Are these lofty values and goals-yes they are, but they need to be because in the virtual world-not unlike in the small hometown of yesteryear where everyone knew everyone and their personal business-if you provide an inferior product and just one or two people decide to legitimately complain word can spread like wildfire and your business can fail overnight.
So you need a rock solid mission statement, that you fully intend to stand behind. Your mission statement should include the ultimate goals you wish to achieve and a public affirmation that you will do so with honor and integrity.
A vision or mission statement needs to be seen by your customers. Think of an old-fashioned brick and mortar store in that charming town of yesteryear, it may not have been called a mission or vision statement, but I can almost guarantee you that in most successful businesses there was a framed document proudly displayed behind the cash register that stated for the record the goals and guarantees offered by the founding owner of that business. So understand that your vision and mission are both a part of the branding process because they define what your company is all about. These two statements need to be believed in and practiced by employees and staff of your company, and your online customer needs the assurance of knowing that they can put their trust in your brand and everything for which it stands. Read the rest of this entry »
