Brand is how people feel, not what you say

Your brand is who people think you are and developing a brand strategy is what do you want to be? What do you want people to think you are? And what are you going to do to help shape that perception?

I'm a very big believer that the two most important things in a consumer business are product and brand in that order. And I don't think I need to sell the idea, especially to your audience. That product is absolutely critical and probably the most important. But brand as an afterthought is definitely one of the areas where I think there's a giant missed opportunity for consumer tech businesses.

Great brands create associations in their customer's minds that transcend the typically transactional or utilitarian one that most people have with businesses and they become part of one's identity.

You create consistency across all customer touchpoints. And so branding is not just cool logo, cool advertising, fun imagery, but it's really about the impression that a customer or user has with your product and with your business.

There is always a quirk, like it's unexpected. The way we talk to you is a little bit funny. It doesn't take ourselves too seriously and it makes the person receiving this message feel something. Again, it's about how you make people feel.

I like to think of your brand is the promise that you're making and your product experience is your delivery of that promise. And those two things have to be in lockstep with each other, or you're going to have mismatched expectations and some really disappointed customers.