By Rebecca Riserbato

Marketing and branding have been around for centuries. But brand pillars are a newer idea.

Since the dawn of the digital age, companies have marketed their brands with the goal of giving their company a personality and identity.

But as the practice of branding has evolved, so have audience expectations. Businesses today need more than a catchy tagline to support customer needs. Companies aren’t just selling products anymore — they create brands that need to talk about their impact on society.

In this post, we’ll discuss how to create brand pillars that can help you define your brand’s purpose, values, and identity for continued growth. Keep reading or jump ahead to learn:

• What are brand pillars?
• Why are brand pillars important?
• What are the five brand pillars?
• How to Determine Your Brand Pillars
• Brand Pillar Examples

For example, brand pillars can be core values, important strengths, or aspects of a brand that support or add dimension to the core idea of “Who are you?”

Essentially, these brand pillars can be anything that your customers find important — perhaps it’s innovation, reliability, or on-time delivery.

Brand pillars can differentiate your brand and should be valued and endorsed by your customers. When someone asks why your customers like your brand, you’ll want them to be able to list your brand pillars too.

These pillars should be strategic decisions to offer better products or services to your customers.

Why are brand pillars important?

Brands are essential, especially in competitive industries, to grow awareness and value for a company. A strong brand is a point of connection for customers. It helps a business quickly communicate the essence of its vision and value.

But branding is also a subjective process. It trades in the currency of opinion, making it subject to trends, fickle followers, and more. So, the stronger a brand’s foundation is, the more likely it is to weather the storms of change.

Brand pillars are an integral part of this foundation. They are touchpoints that help a brand define and codify its distinct value. Each brand pillar is a step toward clearer communication.

Each pillar breaks down the many nuances of a new brand. This helps the public connect the brand to the products and services a business offers. It also helps customers, stakeholders, and investors understand what it means to support your company.

I know this might sound slightly conceptual. But brand pillars can be easier to understand when we break them down into categories. Below, let’s learn about the five brand pillar categories you can use to determine your own brand pillars.

The main brand pillars are purpose, perception, identity, values, and brand experience.

1. Purpose

Purpose can be described as the mission and foundation of your company. It will answer questions like “Why did you start your company?” and “What are you hoping to achieve?”

Think about this strategically. What do you want to …read more

Source:: HubSpot Blog

Author: Aaron