brandUP Your Business Podcast

Episode 8: Stop Blending In: The 3-Step Formula to Define Your Brand DNA

• Matt Jackson • Season 1 • Episode 8

Share episode

Ever wondered why some businesses thrive while others struggle despite offering similar services? The answer lies in something far more potent than technical skills or competitive pricing—a well-defined brand that creates genuine emotional connections with customers.

In this revealing episode, I crack open Chapter One of my new book "Brand Up Your Business" to share the exact framework that transformed my pressure washing company from just another service provider into a sought-after brand. The journey begins with a humbling truth: "If you don't define your brand, the market will do it for you. And it probably won't be flattering."

The pivotal moment in my business came when I stopped marketing "pressure washing services" and started selling "the feeling homeowners get when their property looks brand new." This shift from feature-focused to emotion-driven messaging changed everything. Suddenly, price-sensitive shoppers became eager clients saying, "I don't care what it costs, I want my driveway to look like the ones you post."

At the heart of brand development are three deceptively simple questions: What do you do? Who do you do it for? Why should they care? Most businesses stumble by trying to appeal to everyone, ultimately connecting with no one. I'll guide you through narrowing your focus to target specific customers whose emotional needs align perfectly with what you offer.

Whether you're just starting out or looking to revitalize an existing business, this episode provides actionable steps to define your brand DNA—purpose, mission, values, unique selling proposition, and brand story. Each element builds upon the others to create a comprehensive framework that guides all business decisions and separates you from competitors fighting price wars.

Ready to build a brand that actually makes you money? Download this episode now, grab my book on Amazon, and start applying these principles to your business today.

👉brandupyourbusiness.com
📖Get Our Book on Amazon

Speaker 1:

What's up guys? It's Matt Jackson and welcome to episode 8 of Brand Up your Business Podcast. Can't believe it's already episode 8. It seems like we just started this thing and we've been rocking and rolling it since and trying to be steady and consistent here. That way we can deliver value and pretty much help you guys learn branding, marketing and everything else as you watch us live here or if you're listening to us later on on the podcast. So let's break this thing off. Welcome to Brand Up your Business, the podcast, where I keep it real, about building a brand that actually makes you money. No fluff, no corporate jargon, just straight up strategies that work in the real world.

Speaker 1:

I'm Matt Jackson and today we're cracking open chapter one of my new book, brand Up your Business, titled Defining your Brand DNA. If you guys don't have it, make sure to check it out on Amazon. It is called Brand Up your Business Elevate your business from branding, elevate your business with branding. It is going to be about 200 pages and we put the entire framework that we use of branding and marketing in here. So if you guys are complete newbies or if you guys are veterans and just want to sharpen up your sword and see how we do it. Make sure to check out our book. It is on Amazon Brand up your business. It is available for free on Kindle Unlimited, and you can purchase the paperback or the hardback. So let's kick this thing off.

Speaker 1:

Listen, if you're tired of blending into the background while others, sometimes less experienced, less talented are getting all the attention and customers, this episode is for you. We're going deep into the foundation of every successful brand your brand identity. I'm sharing lessons straight from my journey building Matt the driveway guy, launching the Wash Bros podcast with Clay, and growing Brand Up your Business into a platform that is helping business owners like yourself stand out and sell more. By the end of this episode, you're not going to understand what a brand is. You'll have a clear, actionable steps to define your brand DNA and apply it to your business, starting today. So let's jump in Step one the identity crisis. Now, if you're like me, we all have an identity crisis when it comes to our business and our branding, especially in the beginning. So let's talk a little bit about a story of mine with Matt the driveway guy.

Speaker 1:

When I started Matt the driveway guy, I thought do good work and the customers will come. Spoiler alert that's a lie. If you're relying on good work alone, you're leaving a fortune on the table. I was thrown out generic posts like we pressure wash houses and guess what? Crickets.

Speaker 1:

Here's the reality. If you don't define your brand, the market will do it for you. It probably won't be flattering. So let me repeat that If you don't define your brand, the market will do it for you and it probably won't be flattering. So what does that mean? If we're not putting our best self forward, if we're not positioning ourselves in our brand and our company, the market will. So what does that mean? If we're not going out of our way to paint the picture of who we are, the market will respond and it will be a negative representation of who we are. So you're not going to be seen, you're not going to be relevant and you're going to miss out on a lot of opportunities because you're actively choosing not to invest and create the brand that you want. You're actively choosing not to invest and create the brand that you want. Trust me, the market doesn't care if you work hard or have competitive prices. They want to know why you. Why should they trust you over the next guy?

Speaker 1:

Here's when it hit me I was just another guy with a pressure washer until I made it personal. Because, let's be real, we all work hard, we all do the same thing. What's separating us from the other? Most of the time the customers don't care. They see price. There's 10 guys who do this, 10 guys who are hungry for work, 10 guys who are willing to jump on your project and do it today. So we're all just noise to these customers. We have to figure out what we're doing to separate ourselves, what we're doing to connect with this customer, what we're doing to create an emotion to that customer where they say, wow, that one guy, he is the obvious decision, he is the obvious choice. And when we create our brand, that's what we're about to be doing. We're not just shooting something into the wind generically and then it's a price shopping of a commodity. Here we go.

Speaker 1:

One day I saw a competitor less experience, worse results raking in jobs. Why? Because their message was clear and specific. They weren't just a pressure washing company, they were the fastest, cleanest driveway cleaning pros in Greenville. I realized I wasn't selling pressure washing. I was selling the feeling homeowners get when their property looks brand new, that pride, the curb appeal and the satisfaction of having the best looking house on the block. So the first takeaway I want you guys to know don't sell the service, sell the feeling. When we changed our message to we make your home look brand new without you lifting a finger, everything shifted. So let me tell you when a customer called and said, I don't care what it costs, I want my driveway to look like the ones you post, I knew we had cracked the code.

Speaker 1:

What we did here? We figured out we're not selling the services, we're not selling a clean driveway, we're not selling how fast our machines are, we're not selling what we can do, we're selling that feeling the customer gets. And this is where we really want to dive into what we're doing, and not just what we're doing, but who we're serving and the emotions that those people have towards what we can provide to them. I know this sounds crazy If you guys are like me and we're a technician. We know how to pressure wash, we know how to do something, whatever our trade may be. Why do we have to think about all this stuff? Well, this is what separates the guys who do and when versus the guys who feel lost and just can't ever get a hit. So you could be overqualified for the technical, you could be overqualified for the service. But if you're not standing that this game is a sales and marketing game first, then you're going to lose every single time because it's not a fair fight, because somebody, like what we're able to do with our businesses, is flipping the script on his head and saying we're not a brush washing company, we are a sales and marketing company and this is why we are the number one choice for you.

Speaker 1:

Step one I want you guys to know first thing you need to do you want to clarify your core message. So this is the first action step. Ask yourself three questions what do you do? What do you do it for? What do you do? Who do you do it for and why should they care? So here you go, get out that pen and paper. What do you do it for? Be specific and don't be vague here. Be really specific on what you do. A lot of the guys I see try to do everything.

Speaker 1:

You're a jack of all trades, a master of none. That's not what you want to be. You don't want to be a handyman. You want to say man, I can put the best welds in the country, I can put the best drywall in my area, I can paint the best house. What do you do? Narrow that down to what you do best. We want to position ourselves as what we do best here. We don't want to say, oh, I can do that I, and then we're just handymen. We don't have any strengths, we don't have any expertise. So here we go.

Speaker 1:

Number two who do you do it for? What's that ideal customer? And we don't want to be broad here. Either we don't want to say, oh, I do it for homeowners or I do it for businesses. We want to narrow down that specific ideal customer that we work for. In our case, with pressure washing, I want to work for a dual income family that lives in a $500,000 plus home, has teenage children, doesn't have the time to pressure wash, doesn't care to pressure wash. They want their house to be nice. They care about what their house is and how that makes them feel they're active in the community. So it's important that they take care of things and they're willing to spend $500 to $1,000 to have their house cleaned every year or every two years. That's my customer. I can even go deeper into the demographic and say, hey, the decision maker is a 55-year-old woman in an upper middle class family that is involved in social media groups and is involved in reading community journals and is involved in Google ads and word of mouth. So those areas is where that person hangs out and that's where I need to be seen the most.

Speaker 1:

So we figured out what we do. We narrow down exactly what we do. We clean that house for those people who we do it for the 55 year old plus homeowner that cares about their property, their curb appeal and they are willing to spend 500 to $1,000. And then why should they care? This is where we create the emotional win with people. We're not just doing stuff for the task of cleaning a home. People don't care about the clean home, they care about why. So why should they care? This is where the emotion pulls in. We can find it by asking questions and understanding what our target market is Springs right around the corner. People are getting ready to go outside. People like to enjoy their home.

Speaker 1:

That emotion that we're going to create is how do you want to feel when you come home and you have the cleanest house on the block? And then that would be the positive emotion. The negative emotion would be man. Doesn't it stink? To come home every day and see your house is dirty? That's just another thing on your to-do list. That's just another thing on your to-do list. That's just another thing where your neighbors are looking at your home and saying man, do they even take care of their property? Man, they're the eyesore of the neighborhood. So we understand the emotion, positively and negatively. That way we can work them both. So here we go. Here's your first lesson Write it down, simplify it and use it everywhere your social media, the website, even how you answer the phone.

Speaker 1:

So those exercises we just did of clarifying our core message we want to really narrow down who we're going after. We're not fishing everybody here. We're fishing for these three questions narrowed with what we do, who we do it for and and why should they care? And then, once we figure out exactly the person, we're going to tailor our messaging towards that person. And then that's when we take it, simplify it and we use it everywhere. We keep that congruency on our social media, our website and even how we answer the phone. We want to know that, hey, we're speaking to this exact person at every single interaction.

Speaker 1:

So for you guys, if you can't answer these three questions clearly. You don't have a brand. You have a business card. That's not being harsh, that's just saying okay, we have a business, but we don't have a business that's specifically targeting these people. We don't have a business that is going after this specific way and is an expert at what we do. We are above and beyond everybody else because this is how we're going about our business. We're not shooting for everybody here. We're shooting for these people to over deliver. So they are absolutely sold on us and they love us and they're customers for life, and that's all we mean here.

Speaker 1:

We're trying to figure out how to be the best small business, how to be the best customer experience for these specific people, and it's not one of those things where you have to go wide, because if you're going wide, you're going broad, and that shotgun approach just doesn't work. In the beginning you can get business and get work this way, but then you end up dealing with clients that are not ideal, and those clients can cost you money, and those clients are a headache and you're not an expert to those people. So the objective here is to lock down the core message be an expert at that one person and over-deliver every time, and this is how we're going to create amazing referrals and amazing repeat business. So let me transition this into a personal reflection. I struggled with this at first, as a lot of you guys probably did. I wanted to sound professional, but people didn't care. Shocker, right. So the big mistake here is people don't connect with polish. They connect with authenticity. And Once I dialed in our message and we stopped chasing customers, they started chasing us. We stopped using the buzzwords, we stopped going after the same generic soft wash your house, clean your house, do this, do that. We put ourselves out there, our personality out there, and we were authentic and it was refreshing to people. So let's break this down and talk about how this is relevant in our Wash Bros.

Speaker 1:

So, if you guys aren't aware, my buddy and I, clay, have a podcast geared towards the pressure washing industry called the Wash Bros Podcast, and we have a good rapport. We talk to each other and, long story short, we figured out hey, we have a good thing and we helped each other grow our businesses independently, just from talking daily and sharing our stories and our wins and losses with each other. So why don't we take that, make it a podcast and help other people and build a community behind it. So we created the Wash Bros podcast and it really took off. We've got multiple seasons and we have 3,000-plus downloads of it. So if you guys haven't, make sure to check out the Wash Bros podcast.

Speaker 1:

But when we started this, we tried to be super polished. We tried to be super professional, like, oh, this. We tried to be super polished, we tried to be super professional, like, oh, we have to bullet everything out, we have to write everything perfectly, and it lost all the personality. So what we decided to do was go off the riff a few episodes and those episodes we ended up connecting with more people and getting more downloads and it was a bigger hit. Just because we are our authentic selves, we shared the stories of what we were doing, the battles we were facing and how we were growing and learning. And that was a great learning lesson with the podcast because it allowed us to be open, authentic and real and resonate better with people than trying to read off of a script and all that stuff. So what I learned there people don't connect with polish, they connect with personality and in you guys is brand less about the polish, less about the fancy jargon, less about all this stuff that sounds great because people don't care and in fact, you lose them.

Speaker 1:

So takeaway number two your brand isn't just what you do, it's how you make people feel. So step two this is a big hack and this is how we start to translate things into how we make people feel. Embrace your personality. Authenticity is what people like. We resonate with humans, to humans. So you're not going to win everybody, but you're going to win those specific ideal customers. Think about this one what makes you you? For us, it was the humor, the honesty and not taking ourselves too seriously while delivering massive value. That's the personality we pour into our podcast, the Wash Bros.

Speaker 1:

Here's your homework. Write down three words that describe your brand personality. Are you fun, are you reliable? Are you bold? Own it and let it bleed into everything you do. So here's our turning point.

Speaker 1:

When we embraced our personality, something clicked. People started messaging us saying I feel like I know you guys personally, that connection, the magic of branding done right. We want to speak to you individually, we don't want to speak to everybody as a whole. And is this common to when you see great speaker speaking in public? They're not speaking to everybody, they're looking at one or two people in the crowd and speaking with them and pointing it out to them, because that's connecting and we want to connect with people. We don't want to connect with everyone because we connect with one or two people. Then that authenticity is going to spread and people are going to like it and it'll be personable.

Speaker 1:

Let's wrap it up with an action plan that you can implement right now. Number one clarify your core message. Answer the three questions above what do you do, who do you do it for and why should they care? Number two embrace your personality. Identify with what makes you unique and pour that into your messaging and customer interactions. Number three share your story. Open up about your real journey, the highs and the lows. Number four simplify and repeat your message. Should be clear enough that a 10-year-old could explain it. Let's go through the book now. So we're going to talk about our five-minute lesson. I don't want to bore you guys with the references or the lessons behind things, but what we're going to do in this is break down chapter one, defining your brand DNA. So a brand is a voice and the product is a souvenir.

Speaker 1:

Lisa Ganeski, your brand is not just a logo or a nice tagline. It's the heart and soul of your company, the emotional connection that goes beyond the functional aspects of what you sell. It's how customers feel when they interact with your business and it's built on everything they see, hear and experience about you. The promise your brand makes to customers should be clear, concise, consistent and powerful enough to influence their decision-making and loyalty. So what does that mean? What is a brand? A brand is a set of ideas and links that are associated with your company. It is the process of creating a brand image in the customer's mind when they think about your company. This is what many people find wrong. A brand is not just a logo, the product design or the physical appearance. A brand is the attachment, which goes beyond the features of the products you offer. It is the feeling that customers have when they deal with your company, and it is made of everything they learn about you. The brand promise that your brand makes to its consumers should be very well defined, clear and compelling to drive consumer behavior and loyalty.

Speaker 1:

Let's think of brands such as Apple, such as Nike and Starbucks. They don't just offer products, but experiences, lifestyles and identity. Apple is known for being innovative and having products with very simple design. Nike is associated with dedication, sportsmanship and the famous slogan of just do it. Starbucks is associated with a feeling of belonging, comfort and premium coffee drinking culture. Thus, all these brands have gained loyal followers as they effectively convey their values, vision and promise to the target market. For Matt, the Driver Guy, the brand isn't just about pressure washing driveways. It's about transforming homes and making people's spaces look beautiful and cared for. We brand ourselves as the detail-oriented, friendly and trustworthy local pressure washing service that cares for your property like it's our own.

Speaker 1:

Your brand is defined by three concepts here what you say, what you do and what others say. So here we go. This includes the messages that you put across in advertising, social media and public relations, what you do, the actions you perform in providing your product or service. The level of customer service you provide. And then what others say the perception that the customers, employees and partners have formed based on their experience with your brand. So a strong brand is one that relates with these three factors, that is to say, the coherence of all of brands, contacts, and those contacts are going to be like how you interact with the world. So let's simplify all this stuff building your brand's purpose, mission and values.

Speaker 1:

Every brand has a purpose, and yours is no different. It is the why of your business. It is the purpose that motivates you and the purpose that drives you and the cause that you strongly believe in. Your why is where you start, because that's the heart of your brand. This is the foundation that will help you inform all other aspects of your business, from your product offering to your customer service Brand purpose. Your purpose goes beyond simply providing goods and services. It's about meeting a need, addressing a desire, in a way that is in line with who you are. Remember our brand purpose at Matt the driveway guy is simple professional quality from a friendly neighbor. Our job is to provide properties with expert pressure washing, while providing exceptional service and building lasting relationships. Our values are quality, integrity and respect. These values inform every decision, from the way we handle our equipment to the way we treat every customer. We make all our decisions with our brand promise in mind. We make all of our decisions with our brand purpose in mind. By doing so, we may have to look past short-term financial or logistical setbacks. There have been countless times where we have made a logical decision based upon our purpose and have lost money only to have made it up in referral business and or learn priceless, valuable lessons.

Speaker 1:

Once you've identified your brand's purpose, you need to define your mission. Your mission is the tangible way you bring your purpose to life. It is the day to day operations in the specific impact you aim to achieve. The mission is the what and the how of your brand. So here's your brand mission. Your brand mission should be measurable, specific and in line with your brand purpose. Finally, your values are guided principles that shape your behavior and decision making. They help you stay true to your purpose and mission, even when faced with challenges. Your value should resonate with your target audience and should be something your team can rally behind. Brand values these are the beliefs that define how you operate. For instance, if your brand values transparency, you might share behind the scenes contacts with your customers or openly communicate about sourcing and production processes. So here's an exercise Define your brand's purpose, mission and values.

Speaker 1:

Number one what is the purpose of your brand? Why do you exist as a company, aside from making profits, what is the issue that you seek to address? Number two what is your brand's mission? How are you translating your purpose into concrete activities in the real world. What are specific activities that you are doing to make a difference? And then, what are the brand's core values? What are the most important values which you and your company will follow?

Speaker 1:

Number three finding your unique selling proposition. To be frank, it is very important to be visible in the modern world, especially in the world increasingly high level of competition. This is where the unique selling proposition, usp, comes in. The USP is a competitive advantage that sets you apart from others in your industry. It's the reason consumers should buy from you and nowhere else. Our USP is an attention to detail and personalized service. Unlike larger chains or DIY services, we pride ourselves in doing the job right every time. A memorable example of this is when a customer called after using another company, saying their driveway still looks a little dirty washing cleaning. To us, it was a really easy fix and we were in the neighborhood, so we offered to clean it for free and redid the job, going above and beyond, exceeding their expectations. They became a loyal customer and referred us to five of their neighbors and left us a five-star google review. They also plugged us into the Neighborhood Homeowners Association, where we got a bid for the entire neighborhood community project.

Speaker 1:

So what makes you different. Your USP answers this question by focusing on what your brand does better than anyone else. It's not enough to say you offer great quality or exceptional customer service. These are often expectations, not differentiators. Your USP needs to be specific, unique and meaningful to your audience. So here's an example of a powerful USP for Domino's Pizza. We're going here with the bigger corporate change just because everybody knows we deliver hot, fresh pizzas to your doorstep within 30 minutes, and if you don't get it, it's on us FedEx. When it comes to delivering something, this has to be done overnight and there is no other option. M&ms it won't melt in your hand, will melt and in your mouth. An excellent USP should be always relevant to what the customers want and how you can add value to it. A great USP does emphasize not only the benefits of your brand, but also addresses the needs of your target market and what they want or need. So here's an exercise identify your USP. What specific benefit or result does your product or service offer that no one else can? How does this solve your customers pain points in a way that's unique? Use your answers to begin shaping your USP and make it the cornerstone of your marketing and messaging strategy. So write that down, guys.

Speaker 1:

Number four crafting your brand story. Every brand has a story, whether you're aware of it or not, the way you communicate your brand story has a profound impact on how customers perceive your business. A brand story is a narrative that captures the essence of your business its history, its purpose, its mission and evolution. A great brand story is engaging, emotional and relatable. Here's an example.

Speaker 1:

When we started Matt the driveway guy as a small business, we saw a need for reliable, high quality exterior cleaning services in our community. I was tired of seeing homeowners get subpar service, so I decided to build a business that didn't just offer great results but also built trust through every interaction. This small business with a big heart approach resonates with our local clients, who appreciate the personal touch. I leaned on the energy of going door-to-door as a college student making money during my summer break. That same energy is with us today as we care for our customers the same way we care for our neighbors. We are here to serve first, understanding that relationships matter most. The brand story is huge in how we position ourselves in our marketing. People remember the story even long after the service was completed. So why do stories matter. People are more likely to connect with stories in their day-to-day lives.

Speaker 1:

A good brand story can help your brand be more relevant, establish an emotional connection with the consumers and gain their loyalty. Your story should tell you why you do it, how you have come through certain obstacles and where you are now. It is about telling a story that reflects your purpose, mission and values, while engaging your target audience. Remember, the target audience is who we defined in the beginning with those sets of three questions. So here is key elements of a brand story.

Speaker 1:

The hero your customer, is the main character of the story. Your brand is the guy that assists them in achieving their goals. The problem what is the pain point your customer faces? What challenges are you trying to overcome? Solution how does the product or service solve the problem and make our lives better? The transformation what does success look like for your customer after using your product or service? Here's your example. The hero for me, a local entrepreneur with a passion for quality, service and community, setting the tone for a brand built on care and expertise. The problem Homeowners in Greenville are dealing with subpar exterior cleaning services or struggling to do it themselves with poor results. They need a reliable, trustworthy service that delivers consistent, high-quality results. The solution Matt created a pressure washing business that focused on an attention-to-detail, eco-friendly solution, personalized service and a long-term customer relationship. The transformation Matt's customers experienced a renewed sense of pride in their homes and a transformed living space, along with sense of trust and reliability in Matt's brand. The results was a growing loyal customer base and a strong community reputation.

Speaker 1:

Here you go, let's get an exercise for you to craft your brand story. Who is your brand hero? In other words, who is that customer? Two, what kind of difficulties or pain points does your customer experience and how does the brand help solve these challenges? Four, what positive change does the customer need to go through when interacting with your brand? So, in conclusion, your brand's DNA is made up of the purpose, the mission, the values, the USP and the story that make you unique in the marketplace. These elements form the core identity of your brand and set the foundation for everything else you do in your business. By clearly defining these components, not only do you stand out from your competition, but you also build a brand that deeply connects with the audience and drives lasting success.

Speaker 1:

So if you guys like that, get our book Brand Up your Business we will be going through all of these chapters and really tying it in as a reference for this Brand Up your Business podcast series, and once we do that, we'll loop some guests back into the mix. I just want to make sure that there's a format so you guys following along can get at least one insight every single week. I know in these lives it helps out. A few of my guys on here comment and then I see them implement into their activities, which is really cool when I see you guys watching something on a Monday when it's dropping live and then that week their posts start to change because what they listen to or there's like a call to action. So the objective here is to gain brand clarity and to really grow your business, and you do so by figuring out one or two things you can do that you can learn from one episode. Apply that week and see how it is.

Speaker 1:

So make sure, if you haven't go to Brand Up your Business, check us out online. Check us out on YouTube. We're working on growing our youtube channel. We're posting all of our shorts there, we're posting long-form content through this and we're going to be, uh, dropping that seven day brand breakthrough. Check out our audiobook on youtube if you want to listen to it and if you want to leave us a review. We much appreciate that on amazon. So search us, brand up your business on Amazon, leave us a review there. That helps us get the word out. And if you guys are liking our podcast, make sure to share it with another entrepreneur or give us a like there, give us a review. We are looking to grow and expand our network, so till next week, hope you guys brand up your business and make some money.

Podcasts we love

Check out these other fine podcasts recommended by us, not an algorithm.

The Wash Bros Podcast Artwork

The Wash Bros Podcast

The Wash Bros Podcast