What’s in a Word? Defining Your Brand and Purpose

I enjoy words. It’s fun breaking them apart, figuring out their meanings, learning their uses and misuses. As a student, I studied our language: grammar, poetry, literature, and linguistics. As a parent, I teach that our words matter, always. And as a professional, I market with the written word. There are endless options when choosing your words. Expressing ourselves clearly is a matter of using the right words.

Defining your brand through words is key to building your brand. So, what are your words? What are your employees’ words? And what words are you using to define your brand? Once you have identified these words, use them! The power of words will work for your company — with not only improved SEO, but also customer connections. Think of them as your personal hashtags!

Have you ever asked your employees for a word to describe themselves (maybe in an interview)? What about a word that explains this year for them? It’s great to be able to package how we feel into a word. It makes you think! We recently asked our employees for a word that describes 2022 for them. Not surprisingly, their words were all about transformation. Here are a few of our words:

Growth

Change

Alignment

Unpredictability

Optimism

Rollercoaster

Resilience

These words are telling and true. Businesses have seen a lot of change over the past few years. And while change and revision are necessary, it’s important to anticipate what’s ahead and prepare for any necessary shifts. How can words help? Similar to a vision board, your words can represent where you are and where you want to go.

From your employees to your product of service, be sure your company’s brand and purpose are well defined. That way, you will be better prepared for change and transformation. To define your brand, ask the questions, “Why does my brand exist?” and “What does my company provide?” From there, make a list of the words that come to mind. Consider what your product or service does for others. How are you helping the end users? In defining your brand this way, you will learn how your customers connect with your brand. 

Once your company’s brand and purpose is defined, consider how you line up with your customers. As a business, it would be wonderful to know exactly what your customers are looking for. What are the keywords people are using to search for your particular product or service? The ball is definitely in the consumer’s court, and it’s digitally driven. It’s key to know what your potential customers are searching for. What are the words that will drive them to your site and your brand? Do these keywords align with your company’s words?

At Boxwell, our purpose is to build customized storage solutions for the success of each of our customers.

Some of Boxwell’s words are relocatable, portable, flexible, durable, moveable, authentic, convenient, easy to install, custom, innovative, community, storage. And some of our keywords are self storage units, moveable storage, portable storage, moving storage containers, steel containers, drive-up storage, container storage sales, container cost.

More and more, you’ve heard of keywords and how they relate to SEO. Businesses are learning how to manipulate their online ranking with keywords.  Keywords work to spread your company’s purpose. They help your customers find you and understand what you offer. They also help you interact with your target audience. Keywords are terms that people type in search engines when they want to find specific information. 

Having a dominant online presence is one of the most effective ways to attract potential customers. Did you know that between 66% and 81% of customers conduct some form of online research before making a purchase? So, what are your potential customers searching for, in particular? Popular keywords in the self-storage industry will give you some insight on what to highlight and promote. Find out what these keyword searches are. And use these keywords anywhere your brand exists online, including your website, within your blogs and social media posts.