Insight
Does your brand have a soul? The power of a single word to make your brand remembered from the inside out.
(Text: Yang Shuyan / General Manager of Process Pro Brand Taiwan)
When you hear classic brand phrases such as "Just Do It", "Think Different" and "Because You're Worth It", your first reaction may be that they are advertising slogans. But the truth is, behind these short but powerful phrases lies a deeper soul of the brand -- the soul of the brand. Brand Essence.
"Just Do It" isn't just a marketing slogan; it's Nike's expression of its core belief that everyone should be inspired to push boundaries and achieve. That's the relationship between the brand's message and its tagline -- the brand's message. One is the source of belief and the other is the expression of communication.
The Soul of a Brand: Brand Essentials
The brand essence is the condensed crystal of the brand strategy. Once the brand positioning, value proposition and structure are established, the entire strategy document needs a phrase that can "tell you the spirit of the brand in a nutshell" if it is to be understood by the team.
It is a phrase that captures the core values and uniqueness of a brand and is the starting point for all brand actions and communications. It has three qualities:Short, concentrated, long-lastingIt is not an externally communicated phrase, but a core guideline for internal decision-making and behavior. It is not a statement to be communicated externally, but rather a core guideline for internal decision-making and behavior.
For example:
Coca-Cola's brand mantra is Happiness - everything the brand does is centered around "delivering happiness".
Disney's main theme is Magic - from movies to parks, they want to make people "feel the power of fantasy".
Nike is all about Inspiration - every product, every commercial inspires people to take action.
These seemingly simple words are in fact a concentration of the soul of the brand's beliefs.
Brand Voice: Brand Slogan
If the brand is the soul, then the brand slogan is the voice that makes the soul heard. It is the language used to attract attention, deepen impression and unite emotions when the brand communicates to the outside world.
The characteristics of a brand slogan are:Simple, rhythmic, transmittable, adjustableIt can be found in advertisements, packaging, websites, exhibitions or social media platforms. It appears in advertisements, packaging, websites, exhibitions or social media platforms, using a figurative tone to translate abstract ideas into palpable emotions.
For example:
Coca-Cola's tagline, Open Happiness, is an extension of the "Happiness" message.
Disney's Where Dreams Come True, the Magic of Magic, is an experience that makes dreams come true.
Nike's "Just Do It" is "Inspiration" turned into an actionable phrase that resonates with everyone.
The relationship between the gist and the tagline is like the soul and the voice: the gist is why the brand exists, the tagline is how the brand is heard.
Pro's Success Story: PinYuan Industry
This relationship is clearly visible in Process Pro's real-world projects.
Texture Maker, specializing in the research, development and manufacturing of beverages and food ingredients, transforms traditional food products with innovative technology, and is committed to providing global customers with rich and diverse solutions to become an innovation driver in the food industry. We have developed a core message for our brands:
Happen - make everything possible.
This phrase symbolizes the brand's creative energy and practicality, and is the starting point for the team's beliefs.
And the market-facing brand tagline is:
Let's Make Wonders Happen - Let's Make Wonders Together.
The slogan is an extension of the key message, an invitation to the market and partners, conveying the vision of the brand and its customers to realize delicious surprises together. "Happen" is the brand's soul phrase and "Let's Make Wonders Happen" is the brand's action phrase. The two echo each other, aligning internal beliefs with external impressions.
Read the case:Texture Maker
Simple, but not so simple
The simpler the brand gist, the more memorable it is; but the simpler the refinement, the deepest the effort behind it.
Finding a phrase that truly represents the soul of a brand from the vast array of brand strategies, visions and cultures requires cross-departmental discussions, deep insights and a lot of give and take. It's not just a creative idea, it'sSimplicity in exchange for structure and thought.
In this era of increasing popularity of AI assistance, AI can indeed generate sentences, but can it "set the tone and soul" for the brand?It's all about human judgment and integration.Because the brand essence is the result of real conversations within the organization. Because the essence of a brand is formed from a real dialogue within the organization - the result of the joint participation of marketing, R&D, management, design, and business. It is the result of a consensus that is difficult to replicate in any algorithm.
Moving brands from "thinking of the past" to "shouting with a soul".
Back to your brand - do you already have a clear and powerful brand message and slogan? Or do you just tell a bunch of stories about "back in the day" at the year-end or annual meeting, without being able to say anything that truly represents the spirit of your brand?
True brand cohesion is not about how long the story is, but whether the beliefs can be remembered succinctly. When a company can summarize its brand soul in a single sentence, it is easier for employees to understand, recognize and act on it, and the market has a better chance of remembering you.
Let the power of branding begin with a word.
Welcome to Process, the branding consultant who will help you refine the words that will revitalize the soul of your brand.
