Consistent Branding, Consistent Customers

I went to the Body Shop last week to look for a present for my mum’s birthday. The friendly and helpful salesperson took me around the shop, showing and explaining each product to me. I finally decided to get a Mango shower gel and body scrub for my mum. After that, I met my friend for a cup of coffee and we were discussing about the excellent service at the Body Shop. My friend had also experienced the same friendly service and comfortable surroundings at a different outlet. We both love the fact that Body Shop stands for good values, such as Activate Self Esteem, Against Animal Testing, Support Community Trade, Protect Our Planet and Defend Human Rights. Their branding strategies and values are very inspiring to us, because we feel that we are making a difference when we purchase products from The Body Shop.

This was fascinating to me, so I went back and read up on it. I came across this topic called brand alignment, which is a part of branding. Brand alignment means creating an environment where your customers experience the brand with the right knowledge and attitude from the sales and service staff before, during and after the sale. This means that the branding has to be consistent in terms of not only their service, but their products, prices, systems, values and layout. Using brand alignment as a form of branding, brands aim to create a lasting impression on the minds of the customers of how they perceive the brand. For example, the Body Shop products support each of their values and their excellent service is famous worldwide. Their products help you feel beautiful which activates your self esteem. It is not tested on animals, and the mango used in the shower gel helps support community trade in less fortunate countries. The ingredients are also not harmful to the planet, and when you purchase it, you help to donate a cause to defend human rights.

Branding is crucial in order to elevate a brand to international status. Branding has a deep impact on us as customers, therefore excellent branding is crucial to its business. The Body Shop is one such brand, with their successful branding through brand alignment being one of its strongest points. Customers love the feeling they get from stepping into the shop, choosing a product and using the product. This is why they have many repeat customers, such as me!