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This lesson offers a brief overview of how and why to define a tourism business's brand essence and personality.

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

• Understand the value of brand essence and personality and how to apply these across all touchpoints in the tourist experience.
• Summarise your tourism business's brand essence in short, everyday words.
• Select one to three archetypes that represent your business brand's personality.

Brand essence

Think about your favourite essential oils: one quick whiff of frangipani essential oil carries with it so much more than just smell, doesn't it? Not only can you imagine the beauty of that tree but the purity of its petals. And so much more.

Or what about tea? Just let the smell of fresh-brewed tea rise to your nostrils, and you can already taste it, right?

Just a small whiff and your imagination comes alive.

There you go: now you understand brand essence.

Brand essence is the heart and soul of your business. If it were a person, you'd think of it as the person's character: of fundamentally who they are underneath everything else. So... If your brand were a person, what would their character be like?

Once you define brand essence for your business, you can use it as the basis for the rest of your reputation-building strategy. When you are clearer about the essence or character, it's much easier to design logos, marketing campaigns, and even taglines that speak to your audience.

Finding the essence. Defining the character

A brand's essence should be able to be described in a few words: ideally no more than three. For example, Nike's is "Innovation and Inspiration," or Airbnb's "Belonging." These words highlight the company's reason for being and let customers know if they're connecting with the right people.

The formula for a brand essence definition would look something like this:

Brand Essence = Goals + USP + Values
In other words:

Brand personality

You understand how character and personality are related but different, right?

Two sisters might have the same character: they are honest, hard-working and reliable.

But they might have very different personalities: the one is very chatty and giggly while the other is quiet and serious.

Just so your brand. Brand personality refers to the human characteristics, emotions, and attributes embodied by a brand. Your brand's personality is how it shows up and acts in front of people: not just what it says but how it says it.

Marketing expert Felicia C Sullivan advises that you think of it like meeting people at a party:

• There are some you immediately connect with because something in them evokes feelings of comfort, familiarity, awe, or respect. It may be their look, the way they talk, how they think, what they say, or how they make you feel. This is like a brand attracting the ideal customer — the customer digs the brand and what they have to offer.
• Finally, there are those we dislike on first sight. This is a brand repelling customers it doesn't want to attract.
• There are other people you'll like and value in time — the relationship just requires more work.

Personality types

That most famous of all psychiatrists, Carl Jung, developed 12 archetypes that he believed summarised all recurring behavioural patterns and motivations. Sullivan suggests we use that as a basis for defining our business's brand personality.

Go ahead: give it a try:

1. Which one-to-three archetypes best describe you personally?
2. And which describe your brand right now?
3. Which is the one you would most like to describe your brand in the future? What are two other supporting archetypes?

As you read through the following descriptions, summarised by Felicia C Sullivan, remember that none is better than any other. What you want to do is achieve an understanding of who your brand is. Then the way that the brand communicates - the words and images and logos and messages - should all reflect that personality.

1. The Innocent is the one sharing optimistic quotes on Instagram. They're romantics, dreamers, and they ache for the traditional and nostalgic. Brand example: Little Debbie exemplifies nostalgia to the core with their name and iconic 1950s packaging.
2. Sage: The Sage hunts for the truth and believes in self-reflection. Hungry for knowledge in all its forms, they're detectives, scholars, academics, philosophers, thinkers, and data junkies. Brand examples: Harvard, Stanford, and Cambridge Universities (and research facilities) epitomize the perennial student and information-seekers.
3. Explorer: The Explorer eschews boundaries and limits. Don't ever box them in. They're nonconformists, iconoclasts, nomads, and pilgrims. Brand example: Harley Davidson attracts older men with sleeve tattoos as well as millennial weekend warriors. At the core of their brand promise is freedom—their customers can go wherever they want, whenever they want.
4. Outlaw: The Outlaw wants to fight the system. They're rule-breakers and misfits who want to disrupt, shock, and destroy the status quo. Brand example: When Apple launched iTunes, iPods, and iPhones, they revolutionized how people purchase, collect, and listen to music; they transformed the phone into a pocket computer.
5. Magician: The Magician is about making magic happen. They're charismatic visionaries who make their wildest dreams a reality. The magician is an inventor, healer, doctor, creator, and transformer. Brand example: Disney embodies a world where we frolic alongside princesses and cute mice.
6. Hero: The Hero's uniform is a cape, and they're always up for a challenge. They're fearless, strong, competent, and agile. They're on the front lines as warriors, superheroes, and soldiers. Brand examples: Marvel and the U.S. Army represent our imaginary and real heroes.
7. Lover: The Lover is all about intimacy, relationships, passion, and compassion. They're partners, friends, team-builders, support staff, and sensualists. Brand examples: Agent Provocateur, Victoria's Secret, and Hershey's Kisses all quicken and warm hearts.
8. Jester: The Jester is the joker, the kind of person living their best life right now. Their goal is to get you to giggle by any means necessary. They're comedians and pranksters. Brand example: Wendy's annual Twitter roast made people laugh, cry, or a combination of both.
9. Every Person: The Every Person is the one you want to grab a beer with. Pretension-free, they have solid values, are free of artificial sweeteners, and serve as a relatable neighbor. Like Patrick Bateman said in American Psycho, they want to "fit in." Brand example: Dunkin Donuts, whose tagline is "American runs on Dunkin." It's coffee for the everyday person on the go.
10. Caregiver: The Caregiver is altruistic, generous, kind, and empathetic. They believe in a life of serving others, nurturing others, and as a result, they elicit consumer trust. Brand examples: World Wide Fund for Nature, Greenpeace, and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital all exude selflessness.
11. Ruler: The Ruler wants to crush the competition. They're powerful leaders who believe in winning as the ultimate goal. They're role models, leaders, aristocrats, and politicians. Brand example: Tesla is a leader in the luxury car market.
12. Creator: The Creator is the artist with a boundless imagination. They're visionaries who use their skills and talents to represent the world in a new, unique way. They hunger for innovation, creativity, and perfection. While both Creators and Magicians inspire imagination, Creators dig in tactically to create covet-worthy products. Brand examples: Crayola and LEGO are prime examples of Creators.

Summary

• Brand essence is the heart and soul of your business. If your business brand were a person, you'd think of it as the person's character.
• Brand essence should be ablet to be summed up in three words.
• Brand personality refers to the human characteristics, emotions, and attributes embodied by a brand. Your brand's personality is how it shows up and acts in front of people: not just what it says but how it says it.