Why and How to Align Your Team Through Brand Values

Author and professor Jean-Noel Kapferer once said, “A brand’s strength is built upon its determination to promote its own distinctive values and mission.” Brand values are one of the most important components of any brand. Without unique brand values, there is a lack of direction and purpose for the company. 

Employees working for a company need to be fully aligned with the values of the brand. Today, we are here to show you why your team should be unified through brand values and how to do it. We have consulted with a number of entrepreneurs and leaders to gather their expert input on this topic. If you own a brand and are looking to implement core brand values, keep reading. 

Why Are Brand Values Important? 

The very first question we must answer is the question of why brand values are important. Brand values are crucial for the alignment and unity of your team. Without concrete brand values, your company’s team will lack consistency across team members. Brand values act as a compass for the direction of your company, and all your team members should be following the same compass. 

Bradley Hall is a CEO of SONU Sleep, which specializes in the world’s first mattress designed for side sleepers. Regarding the topic of consistency, he says, “Values are the backbone of any brand worth your time, and every employee working under a brand has to follow and uphold the same values. Let’s say one of your brand values is sustainability and being eco-friendly. This is a very attractive value to a ton of potential customers, and the way to show that your brand really cares about this value is to make sure that everyone in your team cares about it, too. You can promote sustainability all you want, but if some of your team consistently does things that go against your eco-friendly values, then it will affect people’s perception of the whole brand. Consistency is key, and that can only be found by forming clear brand values and making it a priority for everyone to demonstrate those values.” 

In addition to keeping your team consistent, brand values are important because they provide the necessary motivation to keep everyone working hard. Your employees need to have a purpose, and that purpose can be found in brand values. Kevin Miller says, “Everyone needs a purpose behind their work. Without the right motivation, work becomes nothing more than a burden to make money. Brand values can help provide that motivation for not only you but your entire team. When everyone comes together to say ‘Hey, we really care about this issue,’ your team will gain a sense of unity and feel motivated to not only work better but also with more purpose.”

How Do I Align My Team Through Brand Values? 

Now that we’ve covered the “why” behind brand values, we’ll move on to the “how.” How do you use brand values to align your team? While this idea has been implied throughout this article and is pretty obvious, it must be stated for clarity: you need to clearly identify your brand values and put them in writing. It’s impossible to align your team with brand values to work harder and better if your team isn’t fully aware of what those values are, so ensure that everyone in your company knows exactly what the values of the brand are. 

Once you’ve written down some concrete values, the next step is to demonstrate those values from the top down. This means that it is on the shoulders of the higher-ups in the company to exhibit the brand values through their actions and words. Steven Vigilante is a Head of New Business Development at OLIPOP, which is a canned soda that uses alternative plant-based ingredients. Olipop highly prioritizes having the company superiors demonstrate the brand’s values, according to Steven Vigilante. “The people higher up in the company have the responsibility of being role models to their employees, and this applies to showing brand values as well. Team members really do look up to their superiors, so when the superiors start demonstrating a deep care and passion about the brand values, then inevitably, the rest of the team will start doing the same.” 

Another way to align your team through brand values is to recognize and reward your team members who show a dedication to the brand values. Something as simple as recognizing them in front of the team before a department-wide meeting can do quite a lot for encouraging the entire team to also demonstrate brand values. 

Miles Beckett is a CEO and Co-Founder at Flossy, and when it comes to recognizing team members for showing a commitment to brand values, he says, “At our core, we as human beings just want to be recognized for a job well done, so when we see others get recognized for something like a dedication to brand values, we then also want to be recognized for the same thing. Because of something as simple as publicly rewarding team members who are dedicated to the brand values, everyone in your team will feel a sudden pull to also demonstrate those values, too. This is a simple and great way to get everyone on your team on the same page when it comes to brand values.” 

Wrap Up

• Brand values are important because they help keep your team members consistent. 
• Brand values motivate your team to work harder and better. 
• Clarify what your brand’s values are so that everyone is fully aware of them. 
• Demonstrate brand values from the top down, with the higher-ups leading the rest of the company by showing a commitment to brand values. 
• Recognize employees who demonstrate the brand values well. 

Brand values are all about the culture of the company, and in the words of Jacque Fresco, “Our customs, behaviors, and values are byproducts of our culture.” By following the tips in this article, you’ll be able to develop a company culture that centers on your brand values in no time. See for yourself the power of aligning your team through brand values.