Tag: brand mission

Writing Your Brand Story and Brand Mission

Step 2: Focusing on your brand story and mission

I hope you remember that for the next few weeks, I’m partnering with Fiverr to show you how to build a brand from the bottom up! As a solopreneur what I love about Fiverr is that it gives me extra sets of hands to help me get more done. Their freelance services cover just about everything you can imagine which is going to be a huge help. YUGE. In case you missed the first episode and post, the brand I’ll be building is centered around these comfy and cute slippers. This week we will be talking about your brand mission.

Last week we talked about the importance of identifying your customers and how Fiverr can help with services like customer market research and surveys. I even had a cool freebie to help you bring all that research to life. Check out episode 1 if you missed it!

Storytelling

This week we’re going from who to what.

Have you noticed how some businesses make you fall in love with them? Like right off the bat of meeting, you’re ready to be bffs? Then wondered to yourself, how do they do that??

That right there is the power of a boss brand. They connect with us on a deeply emotional level and make us feel like you’re in on their party. And let’s admit, being on that guest list makes us feel damn good.

So, how do they do that? Well, it’s more than just a happy accident. It all starts with a story.

Storytelling is a part of human nature. When you share your brand story people are able to develop a trusting relationship with you. Think about it, would you rather buy something from someone you know nothing about or someone you know, trust, and like? I think we’d all vote for the latter.

My What

You’re probably wondering why I picked slippers to be my first product right? Well, here’s my story:

When I was in college I went on a trip to Peru to do some service work and I discovered these slippers while I was there. I loved them so much I began importing them from Alibaba, like before Alibaba was a thing (*whispers to side* so sketch) and I would sell them around campus straight out of my backpack. I’ve been wearing mine ever since which has been a long time. A. Long. Time. But I decided I wanted a fresh pair and lightbulb moment – I thought, I should totally resurrect the product for Slippers 2.0. New and improved and branded.

Now here’s the other half of that lightbulb moment. Earlier this year, I began coaching and consulting on my own which meant a lot more hours working from home. All of a sudden my work wear looked very different. Pants, what pants?

But seriously. I started calling my slippers my “work from home shoes”. Which got me thinking, about the market research that I’d done. I wasn’t in an empty boat. There’s a heck of a lot of us working from home. In fact, one piece of research stated that 40% of us are going to be part of the freelance economy by 2020. And for all of us, our definition of work wear is different because we have the luxury to wear whatever we want. That lead me to the idea for my new brand – a line of apparel and accessories that suits the freelance lifestyle. Clothes that allow you to feel free to be and work from where you choose – wherever you are in the world.

Why You Do What You Do – Your Brand Mission Statement

One of the things you’re going to uncover as you’re writing your brand story is your brand “why”. That is, why you do what you do? Why are you building this brand in the first place?

The way the answer to that question often manifests itself is in your mission statement. I like to think about your brand mission as the most important promise you will make to your customers. It is a declaration of what you’re going to do for your customers and how you plan to make it happen.

I’ve decided that my brand’s mission is to inspire entrepreneurial spirits to embrace their journey by redefining modern workwear. If you want more inspiration writing your mission statement, I’ve left a link below to a free download with 20 more examples.

Your brand mission is also where you begin to introduce your brand values.

It’s an important opportunity to reveal what you care about and will deepen the emotional bond you have with your core customers.

You brand story, mission, and values all make for great website content. You often find them on the “About” page and when done well, you can feel them come through in all of the content a brand produces.

With this in mind, I enlisted the help of a Fiverr content writer to help me start to write copy that I’ll be able to use once I’m ready to bring my brand online.

Service used + Cost Breakdown

I Will Do The Copy Writing For Your Website

– Basic, $350
– Medium, $500 (My choice)
– Premium, $570

Total for week 2: $500

Total for week 1 & week 2: $565

That’s all for this week. Next time we catch up we’re going to talk about how all of this work will be used to develop your brand positioning.

Cheers!

PS: Want more tips on how to write great mission statements and really connect with your customers? This post is for you.

If you missed week one of this series you can see it here.

November 14, 2017
How to Write a Powerful Mission Statement for Your Brand
Your brand mission statement is the most important promise you will make to your customers.

That’s right, I’m coming in strong here.

There’s a difference between building a product and building a brand. A product offers a solution to a specific need. A brand offers a gateway to a specific desire. You’re here because you want to build the latter.

So how do we take our businesses from product to brand?

You give your brand a mission.

Your brand mission is a declaration of what you’re going to do for your customers and how you plan to make it happen.

It should:
- Express not just what you make, create, sell, or do what you do but why you do it
- Be rooted in emotion not just cold hard facts
- Spark brand loyalty by revealing a true desire to help not just sell
Let’s talk about that last line for a second. Your mission statement is an opportunity to introduce what your brand values and more specifically, that you value your customers.

Let’s use Toast Meets Jam as an example.

Toast Meets Jam teaches you how to build and grow your brand online.

Your need = wanting to build and grow your brand. My brand is here to help make that happen.

What’ I’ve just shared is my brand statement – a clear, concise articulation of what service or product I offer. Now, compare that to my brand mission statement >>

Toast Meets Jam exists to enable female founders to build the world’s most loved brands by inspiring confidence in every woman with a dream.

Your desire = having the confidence to pursue your entrepreneurial dreams and feel set up for success. My mission is to fuel you with that confidence by helping you put your best put forward with incredible branding.

See the difference? And if you want a few more examples, this Free Download is for you.

And if you think writing your brand mission statement is a fruitless exercise. Think again. Here are three ways I want you to share your mission statement IRL.
- In your ‘About’: Include your brand mission statement in the About page on your website, your media kit, or even the bio your social media profiles.
- In your email signature: Including your mission statement in your email signature will make every interaction a little more meaningful by reminding those you work with why your brand is different.
- On your hiring page: Using your mission statement here is a great way to attract the right kinds of talent to your team who not only want to work on your product but are inspired to bring your mission to life.
Writing Your Mission Statement

OK, now let’s write yours. I’ve created a foolproof formula for writing a brand mission statement that nails it every time. Ready for it? Here goes:

Not so bad, right?

It’s a simple statement that packs a lot of punch. The formula is simple but the end result can be incredibly powerful for elevating your brand to the next level.

You’ll know you’ve nailed your mission when it becomes not just a directive but a rallying cry for your team and your tribe – something everyone knows by heart and are working together to achieve.

If you want even more help to nail down your brand statement, mission, and values you might take a look at the Jammin Brand Book. In the meantime, leave a comment below with what questions you have about writing your brand mission statement.

A toast to you,
Jen
May 15, 2017