An important element of any successful brand-building program is a consistent brand lexicon. We've found that one of the big stumbling block companies face is that people throughout the organization aren't using the same vocabulary. Even the term brand itself has no universal definition or meaning.

That's why one of the first things to do with any brand development initiative is define terms. It's critical to have everyone involved speaking the same language. The definitions don't need to be the ones we like (see below) but the terms should be clearly defined up-front and used consistently throughout the organization.

Here's how we define some key branding terms:

Brand
Brand, in our view, is essentially the sum of the experiences consumers have with your product, services, communications and people.

Brand Attributes
The specific and different dimensions or aspects of a product/service that a potential customer self-selects and uses to make judgments about the benefits of alternatives. Brand attributes can be functional or intangible, and have varying degrees of importance to different people.

Brand Building
The systematic process of understanding and managing the perceptions and experiences customers have with a brand in a manner that creates added value and preference over competitive alternatives.

Brand Equity
The advantages (if any) from the collective and unique set of distinctions - real and/or perceived - attached to your product/service offering by customers. Brand equity shows up in these areas: awareness, familiarity, image/identity, associations, availability, preference and loyalty.

Brand Experience
The totality and quality of what is promised and what is actually delivered throughout the customer's or user's engagement with the brand. Strong brands represent a consistently authentic, desirable and positive experience for the customer.

Brand Identity
Brand identity is the collective set of names, symbols, colors, personality ("look and feel") and key associations/attributes that provide the cues and messages customers should and will use to define and judge what a brand is all about. In contrast to image, identity should represent what is true and authentic about a brand. Identity can and should be carefully and consistently managed.

Brand Image
Brand image is how you are perceived to be from an external perspective. Image is the selective and often personally judgmental set of associations and perceptions people have about a brand based on impressions and/or experiences. Image is the way a customer imagines or believes a brand to be. Oftentimes brand image and identity are not aligned. Image is more difficult to manage than identity because it's influenced by events beyond control, like media, competitors and market conditions.

Brand Loyalty
The degree to which customers are loyal to the brand, as expressed by their ongoing endorsement and repurchase of the brand, and by the degree of support and allegiance to the brand, considering all available alternatives. Increasing brand loyalty is the source of most of the economic advantages of brand building.

Brand Mission
The internal statement of purpose, or a specific goal, that drives and guides all activities shaping customer perceptions and experiences with a brand.

Brand-ness
The unique quality or state of being achieved by successfully differentiated brands over time.

Brand Personality
Brand personality is the aspect of a brand's identity that reflects the "human" persona of the brand. It's the observable tone, behaviors and manner of a brand. A good brand personality creates opportunities to contrast with key competitors and be appealing to the target audience. It should be reflected in the tone and manner of all communications.

Brand Positioning
The memorable and differentiating idea about a brand that customers/prospects (should) have in their minds. A positioning is also a promise that's experienced every day, in ways big and small, through messages, products and people. If done well, a positioning defines an emotional link or bond between the brand and the customer. (Note: A brand positioning should include personality to be complete.)

Brand Promise
A brand promise statement answers these questions: What can you expect and how will you benefit from the brand? What's motivating and differentiating about the brand experience? What problems does the brand solve?

Brand System
The interdependent set of named and/or trademarked products, features, and services that a company has created and developed over time. A brand system needs to be managed on a collective, not just an individual brand basis.

Brand Vision
Sets long-term direction and aspirations for building the brand. The vision has emotional potential from a customer and internal perspective, shapes/inspires the brand experience and is consistent with the business mission.

Core Values (of a brand)
Strong brands have strong beliefs, principles and convictions that drive and shape the experiences people have with the brand. Brand values need to be authentic reflections of a company's culture. They should be enduring and have appealing emotional potential. They must be widely supported and understood throughout the organization.

Moments of Truth (MoT)
Moments of Truth are those touch points between a brand and a consumer where brand perceptions are shaped (for better or worse) to some degree. Moments of Truth are often used in terms of customer service experiences only. Our approach broadens this perspective to include virtually ALL touch points between a brand and its customers or potential customers.