How Sweet It Is
By Nathan Johnson

In these “pages” of Technique, we’ve covered everything from needing market research and building an effective plan for conducting search engine optimization to following AP style in writing press releases and knowing how to get the most out of your media dollars. Those are all big, important topics, but a topic we’ve returned to again and again – and one that may be the biggest, most important topic of all – is brand. What is your brand? Who are you, really? You may know, or you may think you know who you are, but there’s a sure way to find out. It’s in the little things.

What if I told you that your office candy bowl is part of your brand – that, whether or not you realize it, it’s telling your employees, customers and prospects what you stand for as a business? Would you believe me? If not, stop reading – you need more help than I can offer you in 600 words or less. If you’ve never thought that much about your office candy bowl before but are intrigued by the idea that it might be a key brand signifier, please read on.

Stop for a minute and think about an office you’ve visited that had a candy bowl in the reception area. Was it filled with hard candy, mints, chocolate, something healthy? A simple look at the candy bowl can tell you a lot about that company – how it presents itself, how it spends money, what it’s interested in providing freely and benevolently to employees, customers and prospects.

Your stakeholders and prospects may or may not be processing your candy details consciously, but don’t think for a minute that they don’t notice the small things. Like it or not, some people still operate in a world where deals are made or broken based on nothing more than the quality of a person’s handshake … or maybe even the kind of candy in the bowl.

The candy bowl is just one tiny aspect of your business that you can turn into a strong brand signifier, but the chances are high that you haven’t spent much time thinking about it. What other “little” things have you not thought about?

Living your brand depends on all aspects of your organization, big and small – from the text in your mission statement and the quality of the work you do, all the way down to what you put in your candy bowl. Of course, living your brand – or even understanding your brand – isn’t always easy, and sometimes you need some help figuring out how to address some of those little things that signify your brand. Maybe you need help addressing some of the larger issues, as well.

If you paused at any time during this article to wonder what the “little things” are saying about your company, and if you weren’t sure, maybe it’s time you started looking more closely at your brand. It could be time to add something new to your “bowl.”

E-mail the author: Nathan Johnson

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