| On Thursday I co-facilitated a workshop with Brian Greenwald of The Benevolence Group on the topic of business brand. He introduced a really interesting concept: Brand Delta. Brand Delta is the gap between what you say you are and what people actually experience when they work with you. You can’t control your brand. You can only influence it. It reminds me of a quote from Gandhi that I love: “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” Brand Delta is what happens when they’re not. You probably know by now that branding and marketing aren’t my focus. What I care about is the human experience: yours as a business owner, and your clients’ experience working with you. When the behind-the-scenes of running your business feels chaotic, it shows up on the front end. The gap between what you say you are and how your clients experience you is almost always hiding in your systems and communication, not your logo. Which brings me to a question I get frequently: “Do I need a professional email address with my domain name to be taken seriously?” Some people wouldn’t dream of launching a business with an @gmail.com address. But a lot of the people I work with have been operating just fine with one for years, and only recently started wondering if it’s time for an upgrade. My honest answer is always: that’s a brand decision. I redirect it back to the business owner because creating or maintaining a certain image is their choice, not mine. I’m all about authenticity. What feels right? What lights you up? What feels most like you? Once there’s clarity and direction, then I can help. The things that actually build your reputation don’t live in your email address, domain name, logo, or fancy brochures and best-looking business cards. They live in how it feels to work with you. We all have something we’re convinced we need to fix before we’re ready. Absolutely, some systems need to be in place proactively. Others are just a distraction from the real work of finding paid clients. If the budget is tight and managing tech isn’t your thing, keep things super simple. Do it with confidence. There’s no judgment. The right clients will recognize alignment and a good fit when they see it. If you want a quick way to find your systems gap, I put together a short quiz that gives you an honest snapshot of where your client experience actually stands. Take the Quiz: How Smooth Is Your Client Experience? → It takes about three minutes. The results might surprise you. Hope you have an amazing week ahead! |
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