HN Haus Podcast

The Making of a Cult-Like Brand

• Hannah Nieves • Episode 74

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When clients Google your name, what do you want them to learn about you? What is it that you want your brand to be known for? These are the questions you need to ask yourself when establishing the foundations of your brand. Today, we explore the key elements of building a cult-like brand, including how to get clear about the core essence of your brand and intentionally position yourself in the market. We also highlight the importance of a customer-first mentality, frequent refinement, and consistency across all digital platforms. 


IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT:

- (0:48) What it means to have a strong brand presence 

- (2:28) Prioritizing client experience rather than the product 

- (3:48) Making your brand stand out through market positioning, visuals, and a distinct core essence. 

- (7:04) The importance of consistency across all digital platforms 

- (9:05) Why you need to be frequently asking for customer feedback 

- (12:22) Surrendering control and embracing the unique perspectives of your team members


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Speaker 1:

Hey everyone, it's Hannah Nieves of the H&House Podcast and we are back and we're talking about branding, which this is the conversation that we talk about all the time, because a lot of the times, we see founders focus just on the product itself. But if you are here for the long run, you are here for the long haul. We need to build a strong brand and a strong presence, and this is something that we've done with all the brands that we've created and a really big conversation when it comes to Thrive, and this can be applied to the business that you're creating. This can be the personal brand that you're enhancing, so let's break it down. So, when it starts with creating a strong brand presence, let's just take a look at some of the brands that are really, really powerful. So, if you think of strong brands that are entity focused, so let's just say SoulCycle another brand with a really, really strong presence. Let's just say Stanley, the Stanley Cup that's sitting here, another brand with a really strong presence.

Speaker 1:

When it comes to personal brands, you have people like Richard Branson, who have a really strong presence, and Oprah Winfrey or Sarah Blakely, and I think the biggest common denominator with all of them is that you know what they stand for, and that's a really, really big thing when it comes to building a cult-like brand is getting very, very clear on what the mission and purpose is. So if you think of Richard Branson, you think of innovation, you think of a trailblazer in entrepreneurship. If you think of Oprah Winfrey, you're thinking of philanthropy, you're thinking of a media mogul. So, when you're thinking about building a strong brand and it starts with this clear foundation but I know this process might seem a little bit foundational, especially if you're listening to this and you might be thinking, hannah, i already have a brand, my business is doing great, but every brand is constantly going through a reinvention of themselves, and this is something, too, as our brands have become more defined and we have a clear ethos across all of them. Our mission and purpose has been so clearly defined, but it took three years to get there. It took three years of trial and error and constantly refining for us to come down to this core concept of redefining the way that we live and work, and that's what all of our brands are living and breathing. So that's the first step in the process of going through, and maybe this is auditing your brand right now. Maybe this is auditing where your brand currently sits within the marketplace. So the second thing I want to bring up to is that and I mentioned this earlier a lot of founders are so focused on the product, they're so focused on building products where it's hey, i want to create this service, this offering, and then they backfill the clients behind that, whereas we need to start with the client, tell we want to be servicing first and make this a client and people for a focus brand first, because when you focus on the people, you then create really, really great products and you create really great experiences. So starting with the people behind the brand is a big, big piece, and this can also include having a shared mission that your audience is bought into or tied into, and this plays into the position that you take within the market.

Speaker 1:

People always ask me, hannah, is the market saturated? Yes, it is very saturated right now. A lot of people came into the online industry, service-based industry and the last few years me being one of them And a lot of people have surface when it comes to marketing and branding or any type of service-based industry. So it will always be saturated. But what differentiates you across many other founders out, there is you and your positioning within the market. So that is your positioning, with messaging right. So what type of tone and what type of voice do you have within the market? This plays into your brand visuals And this plays into not just the photography that you have, but what is the core essence, what's the aura around the brand? Some brands are more aspirational. Some brands are come off relatable. So, thinking about how you want the brand to be positioned, when we were going through the rebrand of H&H and we've been through several, we're going on our third right now With every iteration of our refinement of the brand, we've gotten more clear as to who we are and where we're putting our stake in the ground.

Speaker 1:

So really getting clear on that will help you with your positioning, and your visuals are a big, big piece. When we rebranded the last round for H&H, we drew a lot of the inspiration from the Hudson Valley where we live, because that's a big piece of our brand here, because our goal is to cultivate the entrepreneurial community in the Hudson Valley and show people this beautiful place. The second piece was the your public library. So the library plays a very big role into our brand visuals, into the work that we do. So if you were to go on our website, you know our programs are the special collections. Our blog is the archives. We ordered these really cool. You know public library cards from a library in Detroit, michigan, and that played into our brand visuals. So really taking it down to such a granular level really makes a difference And people see that. People see when you're really intentional with your brand And that's a big piece for what we're doing here, because it's not just we're selling mastermind services or business advisory. We're selling a movement, and when you can get people behind a movement, you get people bought in, you get people who are really loyal to your brand and you get people who are going to come back time and time again.

Speaker 1:

So your positioning within the market is really, really important And this is something that's not just a one and done thing. This is a fluid conversation that's going to take constant refinement, over and over and over. So think about what do you want your brand to be known for, and this might be you. What do you want to be known for? You know, when people think of your name, when they Google, search your name, what comes up? What are those three to five topics that come up that people are intrigued and they want to learn more but they go to you for. So think about what you want to be known for in the market first, and then start to think about, like I said, your unique take on things, because that's what further helps your positioning. Is your content right? That makes up your brand. You know what's your take on the way that your industry is doing things? Do you have a unique approach to what you're doing? Are you doing things differently, right? What's your unique value proposition? That's what creates really, really strong brands.

Speaker 1:

So we talked about positioning, we talked about messaging, we talked about the visuals, and this is a big piece when it comes to your visuals, because you know you can have the best product or service, but if we go to your Instagram and then go to your website and your visuals and your message is not consistent across all of your social, it's going to be a little bit disjointed. So one of the things that we always do with every client that comes into H&H house whether you're in BAA and the Thrive Collective or anything along those lines we always kick off with a business audit intensive, and this is really really important because we go through when we actually audit your brand, because we're looking at it from a third party perspective and saying, okay, great, you have this pretty brand on Instagram, but I look at your LinkedIn and I don't see any experience on here. I don't see anything that is reflective of what you're actually doing, or vice versa. You might have a, you know, a social media presence that's not so great, but your website's fantastic. So we want to make sure that everything you're building is consistent. So, no matter if a consumer is going to look you up on your podcast or your LinkedIn or your Instagram, everything is consistent across the board. And we say this because your clients are going to do this, your clients are going to search you, your clients are going to look you up And if you don't think that you're wrong, because clients are going to vet you, at the end of the day And this is a big piece because you can have the best service in the world and you can have all the experience But if people search you and nothing comes up, or if people search you and it's not consistent, it's going to impact the sales process. I can't tell you how many times people will tell me yeah, i listened to your podcast. I listened to all your episodes. I went on your blog, i looked at your LinkedIn, i read your testimonials all before they even got on a sales call with me. They did their research. So help your clients by giving them all of the information that they need online before they even get to you.

Speaker 1:

And the last piece, when it comes to building a cult-like brand and we talked about this before is focusing intensely on your customers. This is a big, big piece. Ask for market feedback right For market research. Ask for consumer feedback during the process from clients. One of the things that we've done in the last few years and we're working with clients is every single quarter, so we do a midway feedback form. If you're in a year-long container, you get this four times. We do a quarterly feedback form and we ask for feedback every single time. We ask them what they're enjoying. We ask them is there anything else we haven't been supporting you with that you need support with? So we always give them the option to share feedback with us because it helps us do better. So always make sure that you are capturing the feedback from your customers. You're documenting that feedback from clients, right, and then, from there, using it and applying it to your brand, and I think that's a big piece of building a strong reputation which helps people come back.

Speaker 1:

So, like I said, you can have all the beautiful branding, all the beautiful marketing assets that are created, but if you don't understand your customer, it's going to be really hard to scale. And when you truly understand them and you can support them, you can service them. The sky's the limit when it comes to your business growth. I think that's the biggest piece is that we're in the business of people. At the end of the day, i think the biggest thing when it comes to branding, especially in the beginning stages, is investing too too quickly in, say, a website, for example.

Speaker 1:

When it comes to building your brand, this process takes time and it's going to take a lot of refinement. So before you go and run and want to invest in all the things right away, you have to start with the foundational work first, which is, like I said, focusing in on why you're here, who you're serving, what the purpose is, what your offers are. So that way you have a clear understanding of who you are and that will help you when you do make that hire. So when you're figuring out the visual identity of your brand this is actually a really fun process and we love working on this with clients is to get very clear on what are your sources of inspiration. So one of the things that we do and this could be through a Pinterest board, this could be through going through a visual identity exploration exercise, but getting very clear of also, what are you attracted to.

Speaker 1:

So one of the exercises I make clients do is pull sources of inspiration, but not from your industry. So, for me, i always look at the design industry. So I'm always looking at interior design and homes and amber interiors studio McGee. Those are like some of the big ones that I love to look at And that helps me source inspiration for our brand. So it's really finding your sources of inspiration first and starting with how do you want people to feel when they experience your brand? And I think that's a big piece, because you can still be high level and elevated but also be relatable at the same time. And if you want to be a more aspirational brand, you can absolutely do that as well. But it starts with getting clear on how you want your brand to be positioned and those thoughts, those words that your consumers say, when they are experiencing your brand.

Speaker 1:

So, when it comes to being detail oriented or wanting to loosen the reins a little bit on your brand, i think the biggest piece is, as a founders, that you have to surrender control, and this is a hard one, especially I'm an Enneagram one, and our default with Enneagram ones are hyper controlling and high sense of standards, which is great, right, there's a great level of perfectionism that comes with that, but it also can be a downside too. As founders, you have to realize that no one is going to do things the same way that you do, and that's the beauty of it. And as I've grown these businesses, i've realized I actually I didn't hire people because they were just like me. I hired people because they had an unique skill set And I hired people because they are going to challenge me to think differently. So, as founders, you have to loosen the reins up a little bit and you have to surrender control. Otherwise you are going to be the bottleneck in your business and it's not going to grow.

Speaker 1:

Um, as it relates to AI, this is a big thing that it's coming up right now And we have a lot of service based. You know people in our industry right now. You know whether they're marketers or you know they're brand specialists or whether they're in more of an ops space, and I know the conversation of AI and tech has become a big, big conversation, especially as chat, gpt has blown up, and I think for a lot of marketers right now, ai is a really interesting and fascinating tool, but also a little bit intimidating, because I think the question a lot of people are asking is is this going to replace me? And it's a really big conversation right With AI having the ability to recreate what you look like.

Speaker 1:

I mean, this is getting a little bit scary here, but it's true, and I think this comes down to that you need to have a personal brand because, at the end of the day, like AI can do all the things and probably will be able to replace a lot of the things that you can do, but no one can replace you and no one can replace the personal brand that you have. So if you're not focusing on building a personal brand, you're going to be left behind. So if you love this episode, please share on social media. If you need support on this, please reach out. We have several different ways of getting support when it comes to your brand, whether it's through the brand authority accelerator or the Thrive Collective. We're here to support and we'll see you in the next episode.