Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Consistency within Limits


Lots of us have heard the phrase 'brand consistency.' So much so, that we often forget to consider its limitations. Specifically, we can often overstress the importance of brand consistency while neglecting the benefits that the plural nature of a brand can bring us. 'Brand consistency' is a buzz phrase because it reassures us that we're in control of what our brand is saying about us. But think of it this way: are people that inflexible? Everyday, we adjust ourselves to different circumstances, showing different aspects of our personalities. A brand has the potential to do exactly the same, to engage with a plurality of people instead of an overly-narrowed down, artificial group that, in reality, is often no more than a mere stereotype. In short, brands, like people, can pluralise themselves too.

That's not to say there doesn't need to be a consistent framework to work within. But humanising your brand and respecting the diversity of the people it speaks to can really open up the way your audiences connect with you. To take a good example, HSBC purport to be 'The World's Local Bank.' With this ingenious concept, they use a universal notion of the 'the world' to provide us with a framework of consistency to express their recognition of local, cultural differences. At once, we feel considered and accounted for on a local level by a brand who are quite literally, global. We can all learn from this example when thinking about where to place the dial between consistency and diversification. And all this from a bank!

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