Your Vision explains why your company exists, outlining what your brand is ultimately trying to achieve – the type of world it is trying to create or the environment it is working towards. You need to think big.

Example – BBC
To be the most creative organisation in the world.

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Your Mission is linked to your Vision and explains what your company’s role is in achieving it. (Some well-known and successful companies only have one combined Vision / Mission statement but it is worth trying to differentiate them, as it will help make your brand more precise).

Example – BBC
To enrich people’s lives with programmes and services that inform, educate and entertain.

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Your Values dictate how your organisation should behave – what does your company stand for, how should it operate? They will set the tone for all action – both internal and external. For example, internally the Values will help clarify important issues such as what type of recruits are required, how staff should behave and interact with each other and other stakeholders, as well as the training needs and the overall culture of the organisation.

You should limit the number of Values to five or six at most. The fewer you have, the more memorable and useful they will become.

It is tempting to spout classic words such as ‘professional’, ‘honest’ or ‘open’ but they can seem generic and may not be sufficiently motivating to help you stand out or get buy-in from your people.

If you really want to make sure that your brand Values are embedded throughout your company and drive all action, then you need to choose the very best combination that expresses your brand. This might mean thinking about more unusual expressions such as ‘constantly curious’ or ‘go the extra mile’ and it will certainly mean that you will have to explain and embed your values so that everyone understands them.

Example – BBC
Trust. Audience-focused. Self-driven. Creative. Respectful. Collaborative.

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A Proposition is a short statement that encapsulates your offer – it articulates the overriding benefits that your brand provides to your target audience, helping to set you apart from your competitors. It is a strategic statement, not a strapline, although it will form the basis of any marketing straplines.

Brand propositions, sometimes known as a customer or value proposition, are a ubiquitous part of brand definition and brand building.

The John Lewis brand proposition is articulated in its well-known strapline – “Never knowingly undersold”. This expresses clearly the benefit that John Lewis offers its customers – it will always treat them honestly and openly and provide them with the best value for money.

Your Proposition will help you crystallise the key benefits your brand offers. This is important when you come to develop marketing communications as it will provide focus, tighten your messages and ensure clarity and cohesion.

Link your Proposition back to your Vision / Mission, thinking in terms of what benefits your company provides to your customers that is better than and different from your competitors.

Example – L’Oreal
Because I’m worth it.

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Essentially the Personality is the way in which the brand communicates. The simplest way to define your Personality is to ask yourself, “Given how we have defined our brand, what tone is most appropriate for us to take when communicating with our various audiences?”

For example, should we be: Authoritative? Precise? Serious? Witty? Funny? Technical? Straightforward etc? As is the case with ‘Values’, don’t list too many personality traits – typically, five to six carefully chosen characteristics should be ample.

Example – Virgin
Maverick. Rebellious. A bit edgy. Sense of fun. Appreciative of pleasure.

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These are important because they will form the basis of your list of key messages. Many ‘Reasons-to-believe’ will be existing factors that support your brand such as, ‘x number of queries dealt with within 24 hours’; ‘all our staff have xxx qualification’; ‘we won the 2018 award for xxx’; ‘xx languages spoken by our staff’ and so on.

However, other ‘Reasons-to-believe’ may relate to supporting factors that you need to introduce to make sure that your newly created Brand Definition rings true. A Brand Definition statement can (and arguably should) contain an element of aspiration (otherwise you are not moving forwards) but it must be founded in reality, both present and future.

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