Best Practices for Presenting Brand Values

Having worked for several law and consulting firms that are often referred to as prestige brands, I've discovered there is no magic to building a strong brand, whether it's one of prestige, innovation or integrity. However, there are important lessons that can help you whether you aim to be Tiffany 💍 or Target. 🎯 💎1. Mission and Brain Brand Understanding your firm’s mission and how it differentiates itself is the first step. I call this the “brain brand.” Consensus on what you want the firm to stand for is essential. Without clarity and constant communications about your mission, even the most beautiful logo and storied history of deals won’t matter. 💎2. Excellent Work and Training At the heart of any strong brand is an excellent product and training. Hiring top talent and providing continuous mentorship and training are crucial. Prestigious firms invest in regular training to keep their lawyers updated on the latest developments, technologies, and best practices in innovation. This commitment not only enhances expertise but also demonstrates a dedication to professional growth and client service. 💎3. Strategic Marketing Decisions What you say "yes" 👍 to is as important as what you say "no" 👎 to. In the pursuit of prestige, discernment is critical. CMOs are constantly approached with sponsorship requests, and ad campaign and industry conference invitations. The most successful firms spend their money strategically. Quality of marketing activity always trumps quantity. Ensure all marketing and business development activities align with your core values and strengths. 💎4. Consistency in Public Relations A consistent and strategic approach to public relations and media interactions is essential. Craft a coherent narrative about your firm’s mission and values. Engage with the media and have frank and honest conversations, respond promptly to inquiries, and provide expert commentary on relevant issues. Being seen as a reliable and authoritative source enhances your brand and visibility. Never, ever lie to a reporter. It will come back to haunt you. 💎5. Visual Brand Professionalism First impressions matter. A prestigious brand requires a professional and consistent visual identity. This includes everything from your logo and website design to marketing materials and office environment. Avoid random acts of marketing—every visual element should reinforce the same high standards of professionalism and quality. (Say “no” to the partner that wants his “personal” PowerPoints to have a neon green background.) 💎6. Treatment of People How you treat people—clients, employees, and vendors—is crucial. Your firm’s reputation can be significantly impacted by the behavior of its partners and staff. As the saying goes, you are only as good as your worst-behaving partner. If a snarky partner does well with clients but mistreats staff, prestige gets sucked out of the window. #strategy #brand #mission Legal Marketing Association

Messaging: It’s short. It’s not 11 typed, single spaced pages. Ideally, you can print out your brand messaging framework on one page and glance at it while on an interview with a journalist if you’re doing a phone call. A framework is not meant to be the novel of your startup’s entire past and its future, though so many founders get tripped up on how condensed this one page can be. Don’t fret. Here are the elements I like to see: ✔️ Vision  The vision of your startup is usually at the top of a branding messaging document. It’s the incredible superb thing you see for the world if your startup is successful. Airbnb’s is: “Belong anywhere.” Amazon’s is a bit meatier: “Our vision is to be Earth's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices." ✔️ Mission  Next is your mission which is what you’re going to do to make that vision actually happen. Instagram’s mission, for instance, is to: “Capture and share the world’s moments.” NVIDIA's mission is to, “develop high-performance computers that scientists, researchers, artists, and creators from around the world use to create the future and improve lives.” ✔️ Brand promise You might then have a brand promise or a value proposition conveying what you guarantee to a customer. It’s like a pledge as you accomplish your mission. My favorite is Geico’s, which is: “15 minutes or less can save you 15% or more on car insurance.” ✔️ Target audiences There are usually a few to perhaps five audiences you’re aiming your messaging towards, and it certainly shouldn’t be “the world.” Plaid, for instance, targets “financial partners” in the automotive, banking, financial services, crypto, real estate, and health care sectors. Audiences may also include your employees, investors, and regulatory groups.  ✔️ Tagline This is a catchy, quick, and ideally, unforgettable phrase like Apple’s, “Think Different” or Google’s former “Don’t be evil” phrase. A tagline is like the written version of your brand. As soon as you say it, people should say, “Oh, that’s X.” ✔️ Tone of voice  This is how your brand sounds. Cybersecurity startups, such as CrowdStrike, are often steel-y and strong, whereas creative companies like Canva are more lighthearted. Canva’s tone of voice is, “inspiring, empowering, and human.” ✔️ Supporting proof/differentiators This area is reserved for the numbers, data points, and explicit reasons why your startup stands apart from others. A lot of founders get mixed up here, as they want to say there are 18 reasons why they stand apart from competitors. This area of your brand messaging framework should answer a reporter’s question that sounds like, “So what makes you so different from X and Y competitors?” #vcstartups

I was speaking with someone a few days ago about FAB (Features, Advantages, Benefits), and then it struck me—how often we skip straight to features and wonder why sometimes our pitches don’t resonate with the customers. The truth? Features might inform, but it’s the benefits that sell. Here’s the breakdown: Features are the specs, processes, or tools behind the service—important for credibility, but not what convinces a client. Advantages start to show why our approach or tools stand out compared to alternatives. This is good, but it often doesn’t spark that client “aha” moment. Benefits? That’s where we connect to the client’s needs, aspirations, and goals. Benefits say, “Here’s how our service makes a real impact on your business.” Take, for example, a supply chain visibility solution: - Feature: Real-time, end-to-end visibility across the supply chain. - Advantage: Enables faster response to disruptions than standard reporting. - Benefit: Reduce stockouts, improve customer satisfaction, and build a resilient brand that’s prepared for the unexpected. So, how do you implement FAB effectively? 1. Customize for Each Client: Benefits vary depending on the client’s priorities. For a premium brand, it might be about “ensuring product availability for demanding customers.” For a value-oriented brand, it could be “optimizing costs through efficient inventory management.” Speak to each client’s unique goals. 2. Tell a Story: Clients remember scenarios, not specs. Frame FAB through real-world examples that show how your service addresses their specific challenges. Example: For a client struggling with fluctuating product availability, share a story about another brand that used real-time visibility to catch bottlenecks before they happened, keeping shelves stocked even during a sudden demand spike. Relate how this enhanced customer loyalty and built trust in the brand’s reliability. By crafting a vivid scenario around FAB, you help the client picture your solution working for them, making the benefits tangible and memorable. 3. Balance in Messaging: FAB is perfect for deep dives like presentations or proposals, but in shorter interactions, focus on benefits and let features and advantages subtly support. Example: In a short pitch, instead of listing “real-time visibility” (feature) or “faster response times” (advantage), highlight how “our solution ensures shelves stay stocked and customers keep coming back” (benefit). You might briefly mention the underlying feature (“using real-time data”), but let the benefit drive the message. This way, you’re speaking directly to the client’s goals, catching their attention with what matters to them most, and making a memorable impact, even in a short touchpoint. When talking about services, lean heavily into benefits. Clients want to see how your services drive tangible impact—not just what’s under the hood. How have you used FAB in your pitches? #cpg #cpgindustry #consumerproducts

Without internal alignment, your brand will fracture externally. The best brands start from the inside out. Your logo might be beautiful. Your messaging might be sharp. But if your team doesn’t understand or embody the brand — it shows. Employees are brand ambassadors… whether trained or not. And misalignment internally always leaks into the customer experience. → Framework Model: The Inside-Out Brand Alignment Loop 1. Belief → Do employees understand the “why” behind the brand? 2. Behavior → Are they empowered to act in alignment with it? 3. Experience → Is the culture felt at every customer touchpoint? → When those three break down, you get: ↳ Inconsistent messaging ↳ Brand promises not lived out ↳ Confused teams = confused customers Let’s flip that. → Things to put into motion: ↳ Make brand onboarding part of team onboarding. ↳ Share brand values as decision filters — not wall posters. ↳ Use internal language that mirrors your external promise. When your people get it, your customers feel it. Clarity becomes culture. And culture becomes competitive edge. → 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂: Does your team understand your brand as well as your customers do? → 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲: What’s the biggest barrier to internal brand alignment? A) Vague mission/values B) Siloed departments C) Leadership disconnect D) No consistent training → Vote + add your own experience in the comments. → Let’s unpack it ⬇️