Why Brand Authenticity Runs Deep for Small Businesses
Updated: Oct 7
You’ve probably seen it happen before: a new business opens up in town, but something about them doesn’t feel right. Maybe it’s how they showcase their logo, the language they use, or the marketing material they distribute—either way, whenever you find yourself looking at the company, you can’t help but think “they not like us.”
When something feels ‘off’ about a business's brand authenticity, it’s probably because it isn’t coming across as genuine. Even if the business is speaking from the heart, if the messaging isn’t convincing and showcases that, it could damage their reputation.
Here’s why small businesses should focus on their business's brand authenticity (and how they can do so).
Why Brand Authenticity is Important
Every business wants to stand out—but not for the wrong reasons. Avoid unwanted, negative attention by using brand authenticity to inform your audience what values your business stands on.
Brand authenticity refers to how much a business's marketing and messaging aligns with the reality of its products, values, and actions. This concept falls under the umbrella of brand identity, or the general impression a brand leaves on its consumers. The most successful businesses work on their brand authenticity and identity in tandem, as the two often overlap in several areas.
An authentic business with a strong brand identity has these four key elements:
Consistency: The business is consistent with its messaging and its actions align with the messages it preaches.
Distinctiveness: The business uses unique marketing assets, such as a color scheme and logo, to distinguish itself from its competitors.
Transparency: The business is open and honest about its products, services, and business practices.
Familiarity: The business creates a genuine and personal connection through consistency, transparency, and communication with the community it serves.
The Benefits of Brand Authenticity
The benefits of brand authenticity are many, but the main benefit for small businesses is trust. Building trust with your customers creates a more positive brand image and makes them more likely to engage with you and remain loyal. An authentic brand:
Sets You Apart from Your Competition: The constant bombardment of advertisement makes it difficult for customers to remember what makes companies different. With spam filters and ad-blockers creating additional barriers, businesses with strong branding, benefit from higher levels of community engagement. This means brands can sometimes rely on their customers to do word-of-mouth marketing for them.
Attracts Younger Generations: Staying authentic actually draws in more business from Millennials and Gen Z'ers. These generations prefer brands that are “real and organic” instead of “perfect and well-packaged.” Your brand should clearly reflect your values.
Creates Emotional Connections: Sincerity goes a long way. Businesses that deliver genuine messages are more likely to connect with their customers at a higher emotional level.
How Local Businesses Can Create a Strong Brand Identity
Now that you're aware of the benefits of having a strong, authentic brand identity, it's time to create one for your organization. Keep these five points in mind when establishing your brand's authenticity and identity.
1. Stay Authentic
Like we said at the beginning: people can tell when a business is trying too hard. So, don’t rely on branding gimmicks and stay true to yourself and your brand—authenticity means more to customers than you might think!
2. Remain Consistent
Having consistency in your branding doesn’t mean going viral every day. Instead, think of consistency. Being consistent long enough to know what it is your company stands on across various touchpoints, resonates with people more than constant changes or inconsistent messaging. This will help create loyalty among your audience.
3. Be Flexible
This might seem counterintuitive to the point above, but don’t carve your marketing rules in stone. Keep things consistent, but don't get bogged down in the day to day and let your creative juices flow. Recent years have highlighted how important it is to quickly adapt your brand identity to stay aligned with your target market and maintain relevance. Make sure you stay open to making changes, especially as language and culture evolve over time.
4. Stay Transparent
Every brand makes mistakes, and that’s okay. What matters most when it comes to brand authenticity, and what customers care about most, is how you communicate these errors to them. Make sure to practice what you preach when an error occurs in your business. Promptly apologize to your customers for inconveniences and let them know when the issue has been resolved.
5. Own It!
You know the saying about having too many cooks in the kitchen? The same applies when establishing brand authenticity. Whether you’re deciding on a brand voice, marketing campaigns, or imagery, make sure your values and identity stay the same.
Need Some Help Establishing Your Brand Identity?
An authentic brand identity is about being true to who you are and what your business stands for. But creating a brand identity on your own can be hard work, and sometimes you need to call in reinforcements.
At King's Dream Business Consulting, our consultants help you establish your brand’s authentic identity. We use a combination of research and expertise to navigate big decisions, such as which marketing strategies to deploy first and what values resonate the most with your target audience. And best part is that our consultants can even bring in additional resources, like website developers and graphic designers, allowing your dreams to come to life.
Let's Start Strengthening Your Brand Together
The path to a strong brand identity doesn’t have to be treaded alone. King’s Dream is proud to endorse cultural relevance through business branding—or, plainly speaking, we’re happy to create brand strategies that reflect YOUR brand and voice.
Yes, we have a deep knowledge of industry best practices, but, ultimately, you know what makes your business unique. Our job is to amplify that message and establish your business as a valued presence in your community. We have years of experience helping local and national businesses establish their brand identity, expand their presence, and identify new opportunities, and we love meeting new faces.
Ready to get started? Fill out our contact form today!
About King's Dream Business Consulting: Founded in 2019, King's Dream Business Consulting is a small business consulting and management firm established initially in response to Seattle's gentrification and displacement of its minority business communities. To Date, King's Dream has served over 200 small businesses nationwide. King's Dream Business Consulting is a leading provider of business advisory services, offering strategic planning, marketing strategies, financial management, operational efficiency, and human resources consulting. Committed to the success of small businesses, King's Dream Business Consulting provides tailored guidance and support to drive sustainable growth.
Samaria Johnson writes many things, hopefully none of which you consider boring. She loves taking complex information and breaking it down into engaging, understandable content. Samaria’s goal is to only use her words in ways that help make the world a better place.
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