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In this video, we’re going to do a quick exercise that will help you evaluate your brand personality.
New terms:
- Personality trait spectrum - The range between two opposite personality traits used to determine a brand personality - For example: fun vs. serious, or casual vs. formal
Website Examples:
Further Reading:
12 Brand Personality Types To Consider For Revved-Up Retention
5 Ways to Define Your Brand Personality
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Okay, in this video we're gonna do a quick exercise
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that will help you evaluate your brand personality.
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So think about your website or app and the UX content you create for it.
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Or, if you don't have a site,
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think about the type of personality you would like to have.
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Take a look at these pairs of personality traits.
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Each pair represents a spectrum, and your personality could fall anywhere on it.
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The left, the right, or anywhere in between.
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For example, casual or formal.
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When you write copy, product descriptions,
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or create other UX content, would you say it's casual and conversational,
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like you're talking to your best friend and you're comfortable saying whatever?
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Or do you keep things more formal, on a professional level,
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practicing proper grammar like you're speaking to a very important executive.
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Or do you fall somewhere in between?
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Take a few minutes here and consider your website and
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app with each of these traits in mind.
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Feel free to pause the video and download our exercise and
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mark where you fall on each scale, but don't think too hard about each one.
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Pick a spot that feels right and move on.
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Do you like to keep things casual or strike a more formal tone?
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Do you prefer to be stylish or more conservative?
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Are you spontaneous or prefer to plan things out?
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Is your brand fun or is it serious business?
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Are you warm and friendly, or more detached from your users?
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Maybe you're kinda quirky and unconventional, or
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you might prefer to do things in a conventional, more familiar way.
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And are you inclusive interested in including or being available to everyone?
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Or are you more exclusive focusing only on a select group of users or customers?
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Once you've completed this exercise, here's how you can interpret the results.
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If you find you've marked yourself more towards the left hand traits,
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things like casual, spontaneous, fun, and quirky,
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then you have definitely got a more modern energetic kind of identity.
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If you create UX content with these traits in mind,
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it will probably be fun friendly and inviting for your audience.
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This kind of personality is often seen with start-ups, or
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newer companies, trying to appeal to younger audiences,
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who, big surprise, also demonstrate these personality traits.
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If your choices are more toward the right-hand traits,
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more conventional, formal, and more of a planner,
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then your personality is one that's more grounded and serious.
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Your approach may be more conservative
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because you're trying to appeal to a specific type or group of users.
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Ultimately, being professional and more formal is an asset for you,
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so you embrace that.
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This kind of personality is used more with older,
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established companies who target audiences looking for a stable, reliable brand.
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It is worth noting that while some of these traits might sound negative on
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the surface, it's all about perspective.
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Sometimes it makes a lot of sense to be conservative to show stability and
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build trust, like within the healthcare industry, or if you're trying to promote
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your app to manage stocks and other financial holdings.
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Other times it helps to be exclusive because you want to promote an image of
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luxury or extreme high quality to a very focused niche audience.
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You need to be true to who you are and who you're trying to target.
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But if you find your measurements in our exercise fall in the middle of each scale,
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it might signal that you're not too sure about what your personality is.
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You're not exactly one trait or
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the other, which means your communications probably don't show much of a personality.
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UX content like that is usually boring and forgettable.
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You need to resonate with your audience.
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And creating an emotional response requires a strong connection
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with a compatible personality.
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So think about your audience and what their personalities are like.
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When you interact with them, in person or on social media,
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are they serious and formal, quirky and fun, snarky and
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intelligent, or maybe they're passionate and direct.
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Think about traits that feel natural for you,
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a personality that fits you without forcing it.
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And use those traits to create some UX content with a new kind of edge to it.
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That content has a much better chance of resonating with your audience.
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So review these ideas about a brand personality.
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And go through the exercise to see where you and
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your brand fall on the various spectrums of attributes.
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Seeing this all mapped out can be a helpful way for
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you to understand the kind of approach you should be taking with your UX content.
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