Be Real - Guidelines for Building Brand Truth and Authenticity

Authenticity rises from a unified sense of purpose in what you are doing. This unity can come from well-communicated goals across your organization, or it can come from your own single-mindedness in targeting your entrepreneurial goals. Sharing a unified purpose gets complicated as the scale of an organization expands, but all of the outreach in the world won’t work if your internal communications are failing. Understanding your own brand, and putting all stakeholders on that same page, will be the best thing that any brand can do to propel its growth. 

Transparency

Authenticity means being transparent with all stakeholders. Be honest about how you are conducting your business, and why. Admit failures quickly, but share successes too. Honesty builds trust, and successes resonate better when trust is established. Reach out for help and answers if necessary, and be helpful when it’s your turn to do so. Share your strengths, and acknowledge your weaknesses. Authenticity flows from trust, and trust flows from expectations that are routinely met or exceeded. This doesn’t mean you need to be infallible - nobody trusts anyone who says that everything is awesome all the time, because “eternal awesome” isn’t possible. That isn’t reality. Be focused, deliver on expectations as a matter of policy, provide solutions whenever possible, and don’t pretend to be anything that you can’t deliver on.

Uniqueness

Individuality among your team members should always be fostered and championed when that uniqueness is applied to clearly-articulated purposes and unified goals. When independent personalities align on an organization’s collective identity, the brand is massively enhanced. Unless you are manufacturing a truly faceless commodity, so much of your brand’s assets are in its people - so let those people do their thing, because they are doing it to build a better overall brand, together. 

Confidence

It takes confidence to be honest, and it takes confidence to be transparent. It’s easier to do so when you recognize that being real means rejecting falseness. What is there to be nervous about in that approach? Inauthenticity and false actions are peppered with booby traps, and you will get caught - but being yourself is liberating because you understand your brand equity, and you are confident in your claims. There is nothing to fear, because there is nothing to hide. Even if some unexpected shit hits the fan, responding to threats from a place that is true and authentic will guide you in doing the “right thing” in response. Confidence provides freedom, and freedom provides opportunity.

Reality

If you want to “appear authentic” then be authentic. Be real. Be yourself, and don’t be afraid of that. Uniqueness isn’t detrimental - it’s often your greatest strength and asset. Never fake anything - illusions are lies, and lies are easily discovered and even more easily rejected. You’ll be surprised how often stakeholders reward you for being real, even if that reality isn’t perfect.