Council Post: Be More Than A Brand: How To Position Your Products As A Lifestyle

President and CEO, Massage LuXe International.

If you’re wrestling with how to market your brand, the problem might be that you’re thinking of your product or service as just that: simply a brand. But to me, it’s not just a brand. It’s a lifestyle.

At least, you should think of your brand in that way. If your product or service is part of somebody’s lifestyle, I’ve found marketing can become easy. Your most loyal customers know your brand, and they use your products or services regularly. It’s almost a part of their identity.

But that can’t happen if your brand is just a brand and not part of a lifestyle.

Why do I feel this way?

Your customers don’t need you.

At least, until they become familiar with your brand, they don’t think they need you. Your job, of course, is to convince them that they do need you — very much. But before you start pushing your products or services on anybody, you have to remember that your customers already have rich and full lives. They were getting along just fine, presumably long before they ever heard of your business.

This is why you need to convince them that there’s a hole in their life — a hole that perhaps they didn’t know existed and a hole that you will fill.

But that’s not easy. Customers are understandably skeptical of new products and brands. They have every right to be. We’ve all encountered lousy customer service at companies. And with counterfeit products being sold online, it makes sense why some people might be wary of trying new things. Con artists are constantly spamming us. Many consumers don’t want to just try any new thing. You must make the argument about why it’s worth giving your business a shot.

And one of the best ways to do that, especially if you want repeat customers, is to make it clear how you can fit into their lifestyle. Here’s how:

Tell a story.

You’re looking to tell a story that fits in with the story your customer is living. If you own a tree-trimming service, you’re probably going to promote the values of having a home — and how it’s safer to trim branches or remove dying trees before a lightning storm does it and there’s suddenly an oak or an elm in the middle of the living room. If you manufacture granola bars, you’re probably going to tell a story that hits on the importance of health and nutrition and exercise.

If you believe your customers are tired and need a break, you might talk about how your business provides people with an escape from the stresses of daily life, a message that could apply to my business but also motorcycles or swimming pool manufacturers and probably numerous other products and services.

And I’m not talking about making up a story. Your story should be nonfiction. But there probably is an interesting reason you got into your business that you’ll want to share with your customers. If you own a cleaning service, maybe your story would be about the satisfaction you feel taking a residence or office building from an untidy mess to something your clients can be proud to spend time in. If you own a bakery and you spent your childhood helping your mom or dad bake cookies, maybe that’s the story you’ll be telling on your website or in marketing materials.

Who knows? You know your story. I don’t. What’s important is that you tell it.

Target your customers’ subculture.

You might want everybody in the world to buy your products or services, but you’re usually better off when you share your story with your most likely customers. That’s where aiming to fit into the customer’s lifestyle is so important.

Every customer you have is part of a subculture (and probably several subcultures). Let’s say that you own a floral shop. Your floral consumer might also fit into a coffee subculture, be a devoted parent and pet owner, and love to read or ski or both.

Understanding this is your job: When you’re marketing, you need to figure out what subcultures are going to be most attracted to your brand and take steps to appeal to them. A floral business owner can make the argument that everybody loves flowers, but they might want to target parents at the beginning of the school year and point out that when everybody’s rushing around, perhaps this would be a good time to stop and smell the flowers.

Or, I mentioned swimming pools earlier: Similarly, if you sell pools, you might aim your marketing to the subculture who exercises daily or the parents who feel stuck at home during the pandemic.

Given that I lead a massage company, a business like mine is obviously stressing the safety measures we’re taking. But we’re also sharing a message to those who want to refresh their body, mind and soul so they can feel normal and relaxed during these tumultuous times.

Whatever your customer’s subculture is, you want to meet them where they are and become part of their lives. Until that happens, you’re just a nameless brand in a world full of people who don’t think they need you.

Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?