With the holidays coming up, staying true and keeping an authentic brand identity can be difficult. Does your brand acknowledge an array of cultures while promoting the holidays? If your brand mentions Christmas, is mentioning Hanukkah and Kwanzaa necessary? These questions are crucial for helping brands position themselves during the holidays.
Most brands have certain guidelines they follow such as colors, logos, and fonts in order to stay consistent with their brand. These things are important in order for a brand to have a set identity. These colors, fonts, and logos should be consistent all platforms. These guidelines allow the brand to establish their identity. It is imperative to keep your core messages and values alive for your brand during the holidays.
A brand that consumers can expect to show out and stay true to their brand during the holidays is Starbucks. Every year, for the past twenty years, when the holidays roll in, Starbucks puts out their holiday cup designs. The brand has been criticized for not displaying proper respect for christianity. Starbucks is an inclusive brand, however, and has never had blatant Christmas designs ever. A large chunk of Americans, a whopping ninety-two percent, celebrate Christmas, but unless your brand is faith-based consider being inclusive.
Despite the criticisms that Starbucks has had in the media, the brand sticks by their beliefs which creates an authenticity for the brand. If your brand typically showcases a humorous and snarky personality on social media platforms, tweeting and facebooking sweet posts during the holidays will create confusion with your audience, which creates an inauthentic vibe for the consumers.
Knowing your audience is important, arguably the most important aspect, in staying true to your brand’s identity. In the long run, taking the time to build an authentic foundation for your holiday marketing plans will help establish and maintain this authenticity, even through turmoil.