Over the years it has become more and more clear that one of the best ways to build your brand is to connect with your clients, both existing and potential. So how do we do that? You want to bring a human edge to your business and your advertising, and that can be tricky. How do you tell the world about all your business can offer while introducing yourself and developing a personal relationship? One of the best examples I’ve encountered is to follow the “5 C’s”. We’ll break it down below.
CHARACTERS. Introduce your barnd through the voices of real people. It can be anyone involved with you company; customers, you, suppliers, employees. You can take inspiration from several commercials on television today. Think about Florida Orange Juice. Their commercials are often out in the orchards with the farmers and their employees harvesting the oranges we end up drinking at breakfast. It reminds consumers of the human side of business. And that gives most people a feeling of connection to their products.
CONFLICT. In a literature or theatre class we are taught that conflit is the essential element of drama, and drama is the essential element of keeping your audience interested. Consider this, you created your product or service to meet a need you saw as unfulfilled. Gaps like that are conflicts or problems. Your goal as a business is to resolve the conflict, active or passive, that exists in your marketplace.
CURE. Building off the previous “C”, cure. You cure the conflict. You meet the existing need and add value to a potential client’s situation. Improve their life!
CHANGE. This change applies to your clientele. If you cure their conflict (See what I did there?) you have CHANGED their lives. They have improved their lives and the goal is their lives will not be the same. Change them. Become a part of their lives.
CARRYOUT Message. The final piece of your 5 C’s is a tough one. The idea here is to identify the takeaway for your people. Every person involved with or impacted by your business needs to be able to understand what your business is doing in their lives.
Your customers are your BEST publicity source, good or bad. Nothing can match that. We consider our business model from the perspective of our bottom line very easily. The challenge (I snuck another C) is to remember the human aspect. If you put the people first, success will follow. Product alone will not carry the day. Take care of the people from your employees to your suppliers to your customers and you will become a trusted, important part of their world.
Source: MarlinCS Blog
