Branding: Real People vs. Abstract Company

There is a lot written about branding: building a brand, strengthening a brand, generating leads, customers, and fans. But the concept of a “brand” is very abstract, and emotionally connecting people to such an impersonal construct is a challenge. An inspiring post on MOZ encourages reflection in this context. We take this as an opportunity to question the abstract brand and discuss the value that real people bring as brand ambassadors.

What makes a brand successful? Users want to feel that a company or a brand is an expert in its field, capable of answering questions and solving problems. It is also important that prospects and buyers can build trust, perceiving the brand as an authority. This stage is reached when content, products, and the brand itself are often referenced or when publications are shared, making the branding process at least partially self-sustaining.

Mark Traphagen summarizes this in the MOZ post under the acronym EAT: Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness. These terms are not arbitrarily chosen. They stem from Google's own quality guidelines and serve as criteria for assessing the quality of a website. Brands can also be evaluated using “EAT.” This is where real people come into play, complementing the three criteria with the personal factor.

The Advantages

Every customer, every follower, and fan is not just a number in the statistics but first and foremost a human being. And one of the typical human traits is feeling addressed by other people. Assuming there is affinity, an emotional connection can be built more quickly with a fellow human than with a faceless brand. Ultimately, evoking emotions is often an important buying criterion in many cases.

The classic example of the importance of real company or brand representatives is the social media channel. Successful participation in social networks requires a certain human component. It is no longer just about feeding the fan base with information and offers. This one-sided communication has given way to dialogue. Fans and customers want to contribute, feeling heard. And who is more credible than a real person?

Furthermore, certain values and brand messages can appear more convincing when associated with a real person as the face of the brand. The personal relationship with fans and customers seems more realistic than the connection of an abstract brand to its followers. Ultimately, people generally remember another human face faster and better than a brand name.

The Risks

Linking a brand to real people comes with some risks. For one, companies may become dependent on certain individuals, where their departure or a negative association with them can have dire consequences.

Moreover, it is quite individual which type of people work as goodwill ambassadors for the target audience. There are also some requirements for suitable individuals who can represent a brand. Naturally, they must be absolutely loyal to the company, have a deep understanding of the target audience, the internal structures of the company, and their own market environment. They should be an expert, an authority. Not everyone naturally thrives in maintaining a continuous direct dialogue with their target audience, partners, and the media.

Given all these considerations, the solution might be to outsource this task. However, whenever possible, the role of the brand representative should be internal. This ensures greater loyalty and preserves the internal knowledge necessary for representing the brand appropriately in public.

What to Do?

Ultimately, it also depends on the target audience, market segment, and existing brand strategy how complex and promising the introduction of a real brand ambassador is. Generally, almost all brands can benefit from this step, although it is more challenging for global companies. Smaller companies face the challenge of not having an appropriate person on their team. In this case, a fictional mascot that gives the brand a face and a voice, or alternatively outsourcing this task, can be a viable alternative and compromise.

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