Stan Yamamoto

Assuming you know your next career path and your goals, the critical next step is to be totally honest in assessing yourself - both your greatest traits and your unfortunate warts. Everyone has weaknesses so you can't ignore them in your brand equation (not that you will highlight them outwardly). Identify your transferable skills and experiences to align with your target audiences. Then tell a compelling story of how you can solve whatever is keeping them up at night. An ABT (And, But, Therefore) story platform is a great way to develop the narrative and strengthen your position. Then present your story on the platforms your audiences rely on and be consistent with your messaging to build your identity, memorability, and trustworthiness.

Assess why you need a boost then gain feedback from you audience(s). Listening to the reality of your prospects’ perspectives is essential in adjusting executions. Customer surveys, focus groups, and social media listening are just some of the ways to gain information. You also need to assess any macro trends in the marketplace that can be affecting your brand. Bring these together to discover any new insights then plan and execute accordingly.

Start by identifying the roadblock and why there is a disconnect. Then address the roadblocks by scouring the research you have. Adapt and overcome based on the data. It could be the brand strategy is supported by the insights derived from the research, but the executions need to be overhauled. Or you may discover a different brand direction is necessary to achieve strategic alignment. The marketplace is constantly evolving so constant monitoring to keep your brand executions evolving and relevant is critical for success.

If your brand consistency is lacking across different platforms, first start with a brand audit (with special attention to your brand guidelines) and review your communications plan. It is critical to find out what is working and what needs adjustments. It may not mean an overhaul of your brand messaging, but adapting how you are delivering it. Or changing how you use the media platforms on your plan. Continue to monitor your results consistently and adjust again as needed. Marketing is fluid and ever changing so ongoing adjustment are just the realities of our role.

If your brand positioning strategies lack logical reasoning, start over. Obviously, there was a fundamental oversight/misinterpretation during the process. I agree with the comments already made here, particularly reevaluating your core company “WHY”. Not having a clear and defined Vision for the brand has a negative ripple effect that impacts many elements. In my experience, once you have a well-defined “WHY”, your brand self-assessment, dissection of your audiences, competitive analysis, and the critical insights discovered really fall into place to support your brand positioning strategies. I’m not inferring a well-defined “WHY” makes this process easier, but it does provide that distinctive focus necessary to achieve your goals.

Brand positioning statements should be an insightful culmination of the research on your target audience, their goals/needs, the market, your unique value, and the customer journey. In my experience working on brand positioning, it’s important to focus on three elements: Your Position, Your Promise, and Your Personality. What's not frequently mentioned is the Personality of your company-what you stand for beyond features and benefits. Successful brands exemplify a certain archetype (Carl Jung’s 12 Brand Archetypes). Apple can be considered “The Creator” Brand Archetype which connects with audiences in a deep, personal way to build authenticity, loyalty, trust. It is a bond that can secure customers and sales and develop brand advocacy.