The Two Footed Business

We all know that running means using our feet. But did you know that running a brand can involve using both feet too? Here’s how.

Here’s how to run a brand – your brand, their brand, any brand – using only your two feet.

Imagine.

First, imagine this. Imagine that your RIGHT foot is your brand. That means that your right foot is what your business stands for. Your right foot is what you and your team believe in. Your right foot is the change you feel you were born to make. Your right foot is the way that you want to raise the game of how you and people like you do things. That’s what we mean by having a focus on brand.

And that’s your RIGHT foot.

Then imagine that your LEFT foot is your marketing and design. It’s what your business looks like, what your business actually says, and how it says it. So your LEFT foot is your creative, design, copywriting and messaging.

Two feet.

And by the way, before we start chatting about how to run a brand (using your feet) – you can see that there is a clear difference between the two feet mentioned here. So if you don’t actually have a two-footed offering right now. (Right foot – brand. Left foot – marketing and design). You’ll have to sort that out first.

Running a Two Footed Business.

First, root your right foot – your brand foot – firmly to the ground. And from now, that’s where it stays. Because your brand is what you believe in. You just can’t help yourself! Your brand foot symbolises what’s in your heart. It can’t move because it includes your values. And values don’t change. They’re fixed.

Your left foot however, that can dance all over the place. Depending on how adventurous and creative you want to be with your design and your messaging and your copywriting. But because your right foot is rooted to the same place, your messaging remains consistent.

Do whatever it is that feels appropriate to do with your ‘design and marketing’ left foot, alongside your firmly rooted right ‘brand’ foot.

And try not to fall over as you do.

Stand for something.

To carry this ‘feet’ metaphor just one more step (ahem).

“Stand for something!”

That’s what your right ‘brand’ foot symbolises here. The foot that is fixed firmly to the ground is what you stand for. And it’s the bit that’s missing from most businesses.

Most businesses just want to tell people that they exist, and that they are there to be chosen. But they forget to explain why they should be chosen. That’s the brand bit.

Most businesses are concerned only about the left foot. The foot that can dance about all over the place. Creatively. Adventurously.

With evolving design and copywriting. The new website they create just for the sake of having a new website, for example. A new website that says pretty much the same as the old website. And because the brand is not anchored in anything solid, simple and consistent, there’s nothing to be remembered for. And once again, the design and marketing money is wasted. Just like last year. Just like it will be next year.

So have a think about the two feet of your business. And if you can adopt this thinking, remember that the right foot – the brand foot - never moves. Meaning that your messaging is simpler, more consistent and more memorable too. And because your left-foot marketing spend focuses down on these simple, consistent right-foot things – that’s what you become most famous for. And your targets learn why to choose you over the competition.

Excellent! Now you can jump – feet first and with confidence – into your next brand and marketing activity.