A brand is an expectation

A brand is an expectation. It's set by whoever is looking, through what they expect from you. And that doesn't need to match what you promise.

That nuance actually matters.

The expectation begins with the promises we make, indeed, but it takes shape through every interaction, through every action that connects the company with its audience along the way.

That's why it goes beyond marketing: building that trust involves the whole company. And trust is the result of meeting that expectation.

We could argue that trust is the foundation of every human connection, and it rests on coherence more than on authenticity. It relies on the consistency of delivering what's expected of you.

Of your identity.

This means being very aware of the promises you make. And of the priorities that lead your decisions, and therefore your behaviour, which, at the end of the day, defines your identity.

Because people form expectations about a brand, inevitably.

They'll expect you to publish serious, professionally rigorous articles. Or to do irreverent writing, against the mainstream. They'll want to see your wit, or your humour. Maybe your discretion. That you look after the details, or how you treat the design of your product.

They'll for sure expect to find a standard of quality in your service.

They'll form an opinion from how you handle customer complaints, from how you look after your team's image.

They'll expect to see you at the top of the rankings. Or at the bottom of the table. Maybe nowhere on them at all.

All these expectations exist, and they'll be there whether we account for them or not.

So, in order to be the ones who build our brand, we have to be consistent in meeting those expectations. The ones our clients care about.

Marketing can only channel that identity, creating the right conditions for it to be known, to be recognized, to be remembered, to be talked about.

But marketing can't build a brand, nor constitute one. That lives at the heart of a company's culture.