How Do You Describe Your Brand's Soul?

By Perry Rearick, Chief Editor, Follow Your Buyer

I was in a local coffee shop doing some work and enjoying a cup of coffee when an email arrived from Howard Schultz, yes, The Howard Schultz of Starbucks fame. What a coincidence! Here I am in a coffee shop, not a Starbucks, but certainly one whose existence is due in large part to the Starbucks movement, and I get this email.

To be fully transparent, it wasn’t an email from Mr. Schultz to only me. I likely received it because some time ago I provided my email address to sign into a Starbucks wifi, but it felt personal in a good way. He opened by expressing empathy. He shared the same feelings I have about the troubling divisions in our society and disappointment with institutions that we both, apparently, at one time held in high esteem. Hmm, Howard Schultz and I have some common ground, that’s cool. Ok, you have my attention, I thought, and I continued reading.

The email was largely a letter from him to the Starbucks leadership team and board in February with the subject line, “The Soul of a Brand”. Wow, he was inviting me into the internal communications of Starbucks, that feels special. So that you don’t question my motivations, I am neither a Starbucks fanatic nor a hater, but I do enjoy the coffee and the experience.

Religious and philosophical traditions describe the soul as the non-material essence of a person, which includes identity, personality, and memories. But what is the soul of a brand?

Howard Schultz describes a brand’s soul like this.

It is intangible, yet we know it when you see it, and deeply memorable when we feel and experience it. It is not derived from a single aspect of a business, but it is an amalgamation of many singular events over many years in the reservoir of the company’s core purpose and reason for being. It includes the meaningful relationships developed over time with partners and customers. A brand’s soul reinforces its foundational values and never succumbs to the economic pressures and market dynamics that would undermine its existence.

He closes by saying that organizations that endure and even thrive during difficulty will be those that are not just nimble and innovative, but those that embrace their core purpose and reasons for being.

This week I encourage you to take a fresh look at the rules on the wall, your mission statement, your business’s purpose, taglines you use, and what your customers think and feel about you. And ask yourself an important question, what is your brand’s soul?

I hope you have a great week!