Consistency is important in any business, but particularly so in the coaching industry where credibility is your most important asset. Presenting a consistent brand experience will build trust and eliminate confusion, helping you gain a deeper connection with clients and potential clients. Some of the steps involved in this process are obvious, while others require a bit of planning.
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The Importance of Brand Consistency for Coaches
“Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come.” -Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson
Hiring a coach is a leap of faith. One who does so has essentially decided that ‘this person is capable of imparting systematic wisdom into my life.’ A coach who presents inconsistencies in their own brand image sends a signal that they’ve failed to properly organize their practice. For obvious reasons, this is not a good look.
Confusion likewise builds a barrier. The rule of seven states that the average buyer must be exposed to a brand seven times before making a purchase. If someone is exposed to your brand on seven occasions, will their initial impression be re-enforced six times over? Will they even realize it’s the same brand? If the answer is no, then branding inconsistencies should be addressed.
There is a lot of competition out in the marketplace and consistent branding builds confidence and engagement, placing you top of mind.
What is Brand Experience?
Brand experience is described as “sensations, feelings, cognitions, and behavioural responses evoked by brand-related stimuli that are part of a brand’s design and identity, packaging, communications and environments.”
This is a fancy way of saying that every impression an individual forms around your brand is relevant. These impressions can come from major things, such as meetings or customer interactions, but they are often formed by seemingly minor details such as fonts, imagery, aesthetic, voice, language, and tone.
Studies have shown that different colours can have different psychological effects upon people, with blue providing a sense of security, orange promoting enthusiasm, and so on.
What feeling are you trying to associate your practice with?
Achieving Brand Consistency for Your Coaching Business
Consistency should be prevalent wherever your brand is present. This would obviously include your website and social media, but also encompasses online videos, review sites, email marketing, and even office décor. Does the person who answers your office line present the same tone as your online bio? Even the messaging that accompanies the invoicing has to be considered.
A big factor in brand consistency is upkeep. If your (new) Facebook bio says that you’ve been in practice for ten years, but your (old) Twitter bio says you started eight years ago, this presents an inconsistency. Is your website color scheme reflected on your Instagram account? Is your updated logo present on your Google Business page? Consistency is even more important when sharing pertinent information, such as address, hours of operation, or areas of service.
None of this is to imply that every communication should include identical verbiage and imagery. Authenticity is important, and this can often be best achieved by speaking from the heart. What IS important is presenting a unified front. Interacting with your practice via various platforms should not feel like encountering different businesses with different priorities and attitudes.
Ensuring Brand Consistency
This type of consistency doesn’t happen by accident. Soul searching should occur with regular checks to maintain consistency.
A Style Guide should be established and codified. These should be communicated to staff, content writers, graphic designers, and anyone else who contributes to your brand.
Performing an occasional but regular Brand Audit can also help. A regular review process should occur following a simple checklist will ensure that brand consistency is being adhered to.
Getting Started
New Peak Ed Designs clients begin their journey by completing a questionnaire about their business, core objectives, and design preferences. This is followed up with a phone call, which allows us to truly get a handle on who they are, where they’d like to go, and how we can help them get there.
As part of our website design process, we create a style guide detailing logo presentation, color schemes, fonts, and imagery. This is presented as part of our deliverable.
Furthermore, our in-house copywriter ensures that all website copy included on the website works to communicate the desired messaging in an informative, persuasive, and consistent manner, ensuring that our clients’ true value is accurately conveyed through their standout coaching website.
I want to portray my coaching practice with clarity and consistency!