This is the premiere of The Brilliant Brand Podcast! 🥳
I’ve wanted to do this for over 5 years now, and it’s finally come together. 🙌🏽
In this episode, you’ll learn what it means to be a Brilliant Brand.
I’ll break down the exact thought process we use at FreshSparks to help businesses like yours stand out, attract the right people, and GROW.
There are 7 essential pillars required for building a strategic, meaningful, and magnetic brand:
❤️ Purpose
🎯 People
💪🏽 Positioning
😄 Personality
🔑 Point of view
🖼 Presentation
📣 Promotion
How many have you developed for your business brand?
👇🏽 Find out now on your favorite podcast platform:
🛠 Resources & Mentions:
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Stay Brilliant. ⚡
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“A brilliant brand is more than just a sharp logo or catchy tagline. It’s more than a clever ad. It’s more than gorgeous packaging. It’s more than what you see on the outside. A brilliant brand is deep, meaningful, and magnetic.”
Episode 1 Transcription
Well, hello, Brilliant Business Owner. Welcome to the first episode of the Brilliant Brand Podcast!
This podcast is something I have put off doing for a very, very long time. It’s almost like I thought I needed to have all the answers before sharing my experience and expertise. But my wise best friend, said something very simple to me. He said, you don’t need to have all the answers. That’s why you have a podcast. And he’s right!
It’s really so that everyone can go on this journey with me. It’s simple. And simple is the best, right?
So here I am, officially a podcaster. I’m consciously trying to tone down my ums and my uhs, even though I know it can be done in post-production by my awesome podcast editor, I know. But most of all, I am thrilled that you are here with me. Thank you for choosing to listen to this amongst a plethora of podcasts out there right now.
Please send me a DM @FreshSparks if you’re also a newbie and you want to be podcasting buddies.
I must have recorded and re-recorded the intro and outro for this podcast about 17 times to make sure I could get it as good as it could be. The microphone, the environment, the sound quality. And I will tell you, this is not the most pro setup at the moment. It involves my walk-in closet and a towel on the bottom of the drawer. So bear with me as this thing evolves. It’s only gonna get better and better.
I think I sort of eight-miled myself there. If anyone gets that reference, by the way, I love you.
So let’s get to it.
In this first episode, I want to talk about what it means to be a Brilliant Brand.
A brilliant brand is more than just a sharp logo or catchy tagline.
It’s more than a clever ad.
It’s more than gorgeous packaging.
It’s more than what you see on the outside.
A brilliant brand is deep, meaningful, and magnetic.
It requires strategic thinking and insight.
And today, I’m gonna tell you the seven pillars you need to focus on to build a brilliant brand.
In fact, this follows the exact process that we use at my agency, the seven P’s.
Now, the first pillar of a brilliant brand is, drum roll:
Purpose.
Purpose is the reason your business exists beyond making money.
It’s as simple as that. If you don’t have a reason for existing beyond making money, then it’s time to look at that.
And here’s a disclaimer. You don’t have to feel like you’re saving the world to have a purpose with impact.
You just need to solve a problem with intention.
I’ll say that again. You just need to solve a problem with intention.
And when you’re not aligning with a purpose, you’re really operating at a surface level where your decisions and your team’s direction can be misaligned. And you don’t really know where you’re going when things are misaligned.
So if you think of a compass, that’s your purpose. The compass is always pointing north and that’s where you need to be going. That’s the direction. Sometimes it goes off from there and you need to reel yourself back up to north, so that you’re following that direction – because you want your decisions to be made based on that purpose so that it’s constantly aligned.
So when you’re not aligned, you’re gonna have less impact internally with your employees and you’re gonna have less impact externally with your customers or clients.
When you are aligning, you lead with your Why. That’s a capital W on the why. This is your compass for all your decision-making.
Because what happens is you’re truly committed to what you value, what you believe in, and what you stand for. And this is the path to foster long-term growth. And this is where you’ll have immense impact with people because you’re creating connections and you’re inspiring them on this level.
If you want a quick refresher on purpose, go to YouTube and search, “Start with why Ted Talk”.
This is Simon Sinek’s famous talk based on his book. It’ll give you a bite-sized lesson. He’s a great speaker. This is actually one of, I think, the most watched TED Talks of all time.
I’m going to dive a lot deeper in future episodes on what goes into solidifying your purpose and being able to communicate it. It’s really a foundational piece of your business if you’re trying to grow a long-standing, sustainable brand.
THE foundation.
So I’ll put a note in the show notes about this YouTube talk that you can look up.
The second pillar of a brilliant brand is:
People.
Some brands come to my agency and still do not have a grasp on who they’re meant to serve and sell to. It’s usually too broad. It’s usually too surface-level.
When you haven’t done the work to understand your people, you likely don’t align with the right people you’re meant for. So you end up targeting too many of who you think are potential buyers, and then you start to offer what you think that they need.
And that’s a lot of assumptions.
So because of this, you’re probably communicating without any emotional connection that speaks to these people’s exact needs and desires.
And then what happens? Low conversions. Lack of leads. And you’re just wondering why. It’s because you’re being too general.
When we’re focusing on people, we truly want to understand who the ideal buyer is through their behavior, through their psychology – so that every offer, every experience, and every message is tailored for them.
It becomes more of alignment with people, and seeing them more than just a target.
So I’ll get more into this during the season as well with our process for defining who the best people are for your brand.
Let’s get into pillar number three:
Positioning.
This is a challenging one.
Proper positioning when it’s done right really lets you put a stake in the ground so that you can show all of your extraordinary value to the right people with what they need.
You’re finding your gap in the market against the competitors.
You’re creating the perception you want people to have of you when they’re evaluating you with the other options.
And trust me, people are doing this all the time. We have so many choices these days. You know this. Unless you’re the only one in your category, which is rare, you have to stand out in some way.
And even if you are the only one, you still have to combat inaction and indecision on the part of your consumer. So if you’re blending in, you’re making it more difficult for people to buy. It’s simple as that. In their mind, they may not be 100 % absolutely sure that you were the right choice. And so they have doubt. And because of the doubt, your brand is not valued as much. It’s comparable to everything else out there.
This is that sameness factor. If you’re the same, the chances that someone does not choose to do business with you is much higher.
What you want to do is confidently claim a space that you can own. This is the place that differentiates you in the market and differentiates you in the mind of your ideal customers.
And it’s not about shouting to be the loudest or being completely contrary or out there. It could be that, that’s totally fine, but that’s not a requirement.
There are really three solid things to focus on with your positioning.
And that is
… being more relevant,
… being more valuable, and
… being more distinct.
And that’s whether you are this rebellious disruptor brand or you’re just, you know, a softer, exquisite heritage brand.
But this is one of the biggest challenges for businesses because of how saturated most markets are. So we’re gonna talk about this on future episodes. Stay tuned for that.
Pillar number four is:
Personality.
All brands need a unique communication style that’s consistently practiced over time. This is what helps you ooze authenticity and relatability for your specific audience. They’re craving that.
Personality basically encompasses your voice and your tone.
So it’s how you’re saying something, not what you’re saying. And without developing your brand personality, it’s difficult to attract the right people, the people from pillar number two.
If you think about who you’re good friends with, they’re most likely people that resonate and align with the person that you are. It’s the same for business.
If you’re not resonating with a certain energy or vibe or voice, you start to come across as irrelevant and you don’t matter. They’re not attracted to you. And when you lack that definition in your brand personality, then your communication is likely all over the place. It’s probably inconsistent from channel to channel.
One day, you’re trying to be cool and funny. The other day, you’re trying to be serious and formal. This confuses people.
And when people are confused, they don’t do things. They walk away.
You don’t become memorable or recognizable. You might be plain. You might be ordinary.
We don’t want any of that. You’re trying to be a brand. We got to get you to stand out.
So when you have personality dialed in and very defined, you’re able to magnetize and attract people to you. In fact, you’re building the relationship with them, just like your friends.
Your voice and style is humanized. You become personified through communication. And that is characterized by your personality and your voice.
These days, customers and clients really want to identify with your business, with your brand. And personality is what helps you resonate and identify with them. There’s so many ways to develop your voice. I’m going to cover that in the podcast. Not this particular one, but definitely future ones.
We’re at pillar five now. We’ve barreled through the halfway mark. Are you taking notes? I hope so.
The fifth pillar of a brilliant brand is:
Point of view.
This is where you start to see more tangible aspects of your brand come to fruition. This is where you can see it, you can read it, you can feel it more.
Your point of view is your unique message and messaging that really strikes that chord in your customer’s heart and mind.
So that they’re taking action, they’re doing something. You’re addressing their needs and desires clearly through your storytelling.
Without the development of this, without the development of your brand’s point of view, it’s difficult to communicate why your business has value or what makes it different. It’s just not persuasive enough. It may not be compelling enough to draw people in. Again, it’s not attracting them.
You can’t create desire and connection without stories and statements that magnetize. And again, just like in personal relationships, it’s the same in business, regardless of what industry you’re in.
We want to create connection. We want to develop that relationship.
So there are many different types of fundamental messages that make up your point of view.
This can be anything from your tagline to your mission statement.
Your USP, which is your unique selling proposition.
It can be the origin story on your about page.
It’s how you articulate your values, your beliefs, what you stand for.
These are all critical pieces of copy that have to be developed and owned by your brand so that they can be constantly communicated. People are seeing it all the time. They’re starting to recognize it. So this podcast is gonna be full of episodes on brand messaging and copy. There’s so much to talk about on that.
We have one of the best copywriters on the planet, and we’ll be talking to her about all this good stuff!
Pillar number six.
First of all, we’ve literally gone through five pillars already of the branding process, all of them strategy, by the way, and we haven’t even talked about design yet.
Who out there is looking at their business saying, “we need a logo redesign”, but none of the pillars I talked about already have been addressed.
(You need to DM me directly @FreshSparks and tell me this. I won’t say a word to anybody, but we need to chat before you think about your presentation!)
Presentation.
… is pillar number six.
And you know what goes into this if you’ve already have a business or you’re starting one up. This is your visual identity.
It’s your logo, your colors, your fonts, images, patterns, your website, your print materials, your packaging. It can be how you deliver a proposal or how you follow up after a sale.
I will tell you the number one thing that is going to influence the success and intention behind your presentation and your visual identity is your brand strategy.
That is all the pillars we have talked about already. The purpose, people, positioning, personality and point of view. Those have to be dialed in and developed so that you have meaning behind your brand when it comes into contact with people on the front end.
That’s in the things they see, and they touch, and they read. The nuances of what color or symbol resonates with people or how this stands out in the market or what emotions it evokes… all of this is lost if you go straight into design. And typically, when you go straight into design, you make assumptions based on what other people are doing or what you like or what you think other people like.
And this way of doing it, jumping into presentation first, can really compromise the experience people have with your brand. And brand experience is everything.
So while this is not going to be a podcast focused on brand design, there will be examples and stories about how brands have effectively created an identity in their presentation. One that is cohesive, it’s trustworthy, it’s attractive.
But guess what? It’s built on strategy first.
Pillar number seven:
Promotion.
This is marketing, right? We just did an article on branding vs marketing because so many people are searching that topic on Google and other search engines.
There’s a definite difference between the two. Again, your marketing strategy and execution will be based on and aligned with your brand strategy. It 100 % has to be. They go hand in hand.
Promotion is really how you reach your audience and communicate your brand’s message.
This is like the megaphone. I’m actually gonna do an entire podcast on this. How the promotion effort of your marketing is fueled by your branding, and all the ways that it can be executed. So let’s put a pin in it here. There’s just so much to go over on this one. And I’m gonna wrap it up.
There you have the seven pillars of a brilliant brand according to our process – purpose, people, positioning, personality, point of view, presentation, and promotion.
I can just imagine my podcast editor tearing his hair out because of all the P’s that I’m saying into this microphone. So I’m hoping that it comes out well on the other end. So sorry if it didn’t yet. I’ve got to figure this out.
We’re going to dive deeper into all these areas with so much good content here. I hope that you enjoyed this shorty kickoff episode and plan to stay for more.
Hit the subscribe button if you like what you’ve heard so far.
And I would love if you could go over to Apple Podcasts or whatever network you’re listening to this on and leave me a quick review of the first episode. I appreciate all the feedback I can get.
I will talk to you next time and stay brilliant.
THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO BUILDING YOUR BRAND IN 2026
Use our step-by-step workbook with tips, templates and guidance to start building a brand for your business! Develop your purpose, define your ideal audience, research competitors…and much more.
