Don’t Be Guilty Of Building A Bad Brand Culture

So often, we as business owners are so focused on reaching our prospects we forget about something else that is extremely important. In fact, if you miss this, your business could crumble from the inside out…

So here is a true story… (The names of have been changed to protect the innocent.. and guilty)

There once was a valuable asset to a company, we will call him Sam. Sam was a hard worker and brought a lot to the table. Well, after work on a Tuesday afternoon, Sam started to not feel so good. It ended up he had the flu! At 4 am the next morning, he emailed the owner and different people in leadership to let them know he was sick, but would try to get as much done as he could from home. After three days of emailing his work each morning and giving them an update about how he was feeling (Which wasn’t any better!) he started to wonder why out of those three days and all the different emails that had gone back and forth, why no one said ANYTHING about him being sick… Not even “I hope you feel better“!

Well, on the third day he emailed the leadership asking if they had received his email, right after that he got an email with the “I hope you feel better” in it!!

That is horrible!!

Take a moment and think about if you were Sam, how would you feel if the business you were pouring your blood, sweat and tears for didn’t even acknowledge you or your health. Would you feel valued? Would you feel like they cared about you? Or would you feel like you were not valued?

Get Your Head Out Of Where The Sun Don’t Shine, CEO!

Now, if you will excuse me for a moment, I need to talk to a very specific person. No, not you… I need to talk to the guilty party. The CEO’s that have their head up stuck up where the sun don’t shine! So sit back a moment while I talk to them and we will then get back to business…

Now, for those of you that are treating your staff like a number, we need to talk! Do you understand that your company would fall apart if it wasn’t for your staff? Or are you so blinded, that you forgot about that? Some of the most important people in your company you pay the least attention to and pay the least are some of the most valuable when it comes to expressing your brand. If your company has a negative work environment, you have created a bad brand culture. If your team doesn’t look forward to being at work and they waste time at work. You have created a bad brand culture, filled with bad brand interactions. Just like the one Sam had… bad brand interactions that made him feel worthless. How hard would it be to send him a card or just respond to the stinking email!?

If you are so focused on moving the business forward and forgetting the people that are moving the business with you, you are on the road to failure and misery. So get your head out of where the sun don’t shine and start being social. Make your business about people… inside and out of your business.

Building A Killer Brand Culture

Okay, back to everyone else. 🙂 It really is important to not only focus on the brand your prospects and clients experience, but your staff also needs to experience and believe in the brand. If they have an amazing experience, they are going to be the hardest and happiest workers you have ever seen! And your prospects and customers will notice the difference too.

Some key points to beginning to create a positive brand culture inside your business would be:

• Do little things that make your team feel appreciated. (Give them a Starbucks gift card or something you know they would like)

• Acknowledge your staff. This is probably the biggest one. Uplift your staff and let them know they are doing a good job. Sometime a simple “You did a great job, thank you!” goes a LONG way.

• The environment your team works in can make a difference too. This includes their desks, lighting and so on. It can be hard to be productive if you are sitting in a cubical with bad lighting.

• Start a profit share program. For those that qualify, they can be entered into a profit share. So if they do a good job that produces results, they reap some of the reward.

• Take them out to lunch. Maybe not all at once, but maybe one on one or just a couple. This way you can take the time to get to know them. This can help create a stronger loyalty to you as the owner and the brand.

There is many more things I could say, but I will end with this…

I know running a company can be hard. But it is important to hold a high standard and create a productive environment to keep things running like a well oiled machine. If you can do this, you will be on your way of Ruling Your Realm in your office. If you can do that, just way until we tackle how to Rule Your Realm in the market place! 🙂

So go build an awesome brand culture! Because it’s time to Rule Your Realm!