A Brand is a Story | Ep. #14 with Rhonda

09/17/20 • 38 min

On this episode of Candid Creative, Antonio continues his conversation with Rhonda Glynn, a small business strategist, and coach who works primarily with female entrepreneurs. Rhonda begins by sharing her disappointment with Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, for his decision to ban employees from wearing symbols related to Black Lives Matter. She believes that this is incompatible with the company’s image and a sign of an old way of doing business that no longer works anymore.

Instead, brands must be consistent and find their niche in order to adapt to a value-based economy. Consumers want to know and be known. To hear and be heard. That doesn’t mean that a brand should be strictly ‘political,’ however. It’s about awareness, not an agenda. Know your customer so they don’t ‘strike back’ against a lack of authenticity. Share the truth, or trust will be lost forever.

COVID-19 has sped up this transition. With social interaction at an all-time low, people are looking to be heard on a deeper level. Brands must speak to this need through stories and genuine communication. This may lead many companies to go back to the drawing board or disappear completely. For better or worse, simple transactions are no longer tolerated. There must be an exchange on both ends.

Things will never go back to how they were. Our society has reached a tipping point, and having the right mindset will determine your success. Rhonda points to a greater need for preparation to remove uncertainty. Because we live in a binary era where everything is virtual, pivoting your strategy through innovative technology like video will restore the human connection in a positive, but completely different way.
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Follow Antonio on IG: @imantonioruizFollow the Candid Creative on IG: @candidcreativepodcast

Visit Rhonda at https://www.rhondaglynn.com/

Follow Rhonda on IG: @zoma.business.solutions

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Visit Rhonda at https://www.rhondaglynn.com/

Follow Rhonda on IG: @zoma.business.solutions

Previous Episode

Show Up As Yourself | Ep. #13 with Rhonda

On this episode of Candid Creative, Antonio speaks with Rhonda Glynn, a small business strategist, and coach who works primarily with female entrepreneurs. To begin, Rhonda discusses her career in the aviation industry and how it has prepared her for a customer-centric world.

Aviation is not a physical space, she says, it’s a doorway into people’s lives. Travel can be motivated by tragic events or a desire for pleasure. That’s why it’s essential that airlines base their branding on their customers. Everything else is secondary.

For so long, businesses have been focused on the transaction, not the value. They provided a product and the relationship quickly ended after that.COVID-19 changed the landscape overnight. Due to a loss of capital and the impossible nature of uniformity, a movement has begun to understand the ‘why’ of what’s happening, rather than the ‘how.’

Unfortunately, customers can still be lost in a value market. When creatives compete with each other, they tend to focus too much on vanity metrics, instead of a central message that leads to change. The most important way to create loyal followers for your brand is to show up as yourself. “People buy from people,” and authenticity is key. All of us are constantly evolving and accepting which leads to a greater level of success.

The other event that has affected branding in 2020 is the Black Lives Matter movement. Rhonda explains that a tipping point forced individuals and companies to reckon with decades of injustice and shift to a more genuine model. People began to see ‘people of color,’ not other colors, and realize that we all need to understand and be understood.

However, not everything you see is genuine. Some companies, such as Amazon, continue to operate in a ‘sweatshop-like’ environment while putting on a good face for the public. No matter what shape business takes, data informs strategy and change will come whether it is universally accepted, or not. Companies must, and will, adapt to survive.
Don't forget to check out Analisa.io and click here to get 15% off Unlimited reports for first month upgraded subscriptions.
Follow Antonio on IG: @imantonioruiz.

Visit Rhonda at https://www.rhondaglynn.com/

Follow Rhonda on IG: @zoma.business.solutions

Next Episode

Personal Branding Puzzle | Ep. #15

On this episode of Candid Creative, Antonio breaks down the myths behind personal branding and how to leverage your true self to achieve success. In reality, most of us have a personal brand before we even know it. How we present ourselves and interact with others defines the way that people see us.

It’s important to perform an honest assessment of yourself in order to inform your growth strategy and increase awareness of the space you’re in. According to Cynthia Johnson in her book Platform, “the goal is to find and demonstrate your identity in a way that accurately represents your success.” Ultimately, it’s about telling your own story. What have you done and how do you think? Many companies have seen the benefits of this mindset, which has led to a shift in business as a whole.

Developing a personal brand should be easy because it’s an authentic reflection of who you are. The four main factors that influence your brand are personal proof, social proof, association, and recognition. All of these work together to create an image that you can use to enhance your success both personally, and professionally.

Having education, awards, and an extensive network is great, but only if you project the real you, not who you think people want you to be. Everyone has equal value no matter their gender, orientation, or background. Don’t get stuck in a box. Evoke feeling through genuine interaction and develop an honest connection to the world.
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Sources:

Platform: The Art & Science of Personal Branding by Cynthia Johnson
James Jani: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT0dmfFCLWuVKPWZ6wcdKyg

The Candid Creative - A Brand is a Story | Ep. #14 with Rhonda

Transcript

Unknown Speaker00:00:02.000

Welcome to the candid creative show made for creators, creatives and entrepreneurs. Whether you're starting out, growing or established, this is the show for you. This is part two with Rhonda, thank you so much for continuing listening. And I'm going to give you a little rewind into the previous episode. Let's jump right in. Yeah, I think it's important to because I feel like how you said like people people are more intuitive about or like,