Branding Lessons from Granny's Kitchen
Ingredients to Spice up Your Brand

I wish I could cook scrumptious meals effortlessly like my grand-mum. Well, if wishes were horses...
However, I learnt some things about cooking from my grand-mum which can be translated into the branding and business fields.

You may be in the kitchen of your brand, cooking what you hope to be one of the best meals – delicious, mouth-watering, yummy and nutritious. What would be a good spice for this meal?

Today, we are using the kitchen and cooking as analogies for building our brand, drawing from everyday life.

Here are the 3 ingredients to spice up your brand.

1. Creativity

Branding is about differentiation, and without differentiation you have no brand. You will just be like any other without a brand, a commodity among the lot. However, if you creatively find ways to set yourself apart from the masses, your brand will gain the needed attention. Creativity is a key differentiator factor of brands.
Building your creativity comes in at various stages and forms – from visual representation, to your brand, to the intangibles - storytelling strategies, et al. The first thing to do is to identify which area that you can easily stand out. Then you capitalize on that as a differentiation factor. Once that is done, you don’t settle, you work on other areas creatively. To stay top of mind and top of your game, you need to have at least 3 key areas of differentiation.
Ask yourself, what three main areas or things would people find different and attractive?

Granny's tip and lesson: I wonder how granny can make sumptuous Jollof from leftover stew. Sometimes, she just combines herbs here and there, adds some vegetables to make a great meal.
Her secret: "Keep experimenting, never be afraid to try uncharted paths"

Tips to help you creatively:
- Sometimes, just go against the tides; do the opposite.
- Listen to the pains and problems of your audience (there lies a solution in there).
- Ask your audience of best ways you can help them (sometimes they have all the answers).
- Simplify, less is more.
- Have fun; play along with your thoughts.
- Sample the best in your field and pick cues from them.
- Read books and blogs.
- Try ideas from totally unrelated fields (e.g. Applying Snail farming ideas to Fashion Bags).
- Crowdsource for ideas, ask Facebook, Quora, etc.
- Ask weird questions.

2. Credibility

Trust is a very relevant ingredient that has stood the test of time. There may be new ingredients to add in the future but this has become the salt of brands. Without trust, you have no brand and no business. You can afford to fake everything, do all the nice things to get traction, grow followers, and make a name but, if your trust quotient is broken, your brand will come crashing down. In an age where people are quick to use things about them for fame and name, brands that desire to stay relevant and make more impact must be trustworthy. Let your products and services be of premium value and not to embellish them with ads, social media posts, and sleazy sales tactics. If you win the trust factor, your brand will thrive. Trust triggers word of mouth marketing for your brand.

Granny's tip and lesson: Even when we didn't know what granny was up to at the kitchen mixing various ingredients, we were assured that something spectacular and tasty was being prepared. She had earned our trust.
She said: "I may not always cook the best meals but I will offer you the best I can.” She admits when her meals occasionally don’t turn out as expected. We grew to trust her beyond the kitchen.

Tips to help and prove credibly online: