PUBLISHED: September 28, 2018
When you think of the phrase “family business,” what values come to mind? For American consumers, those values tend to be trust, relationships, and quality.
Numerous polls suggest that the vast majority of consumers would prefer to purchase goods and services from small, family-owned companies as opposed to corporate giants. Much of this has to do with perception: Consumers perceive of family businesses as more honest. We associate the term with companies built from the ground up, owned and operated by multigenerational families that know all their customers by name and reinvest their profits into their local communities.
But the success of family businesses is also due to strategic marketing campaigns. Visit the website for SC Johnson & Son—the manufacturer of various brand-name household products, including Drano, Windex, and Ziploc—and you’ll find the following phrase in bold letters at the top of the page: “A family company since 1886.”
Family business marketing—a variant of relationship marketing—announces to consumers, in both subtle and explicit ways, that this company is trustworthy. Mark Hastings, Director General at the Institute for Family Business in the U.K., suggests that clearly communicating a family identity gives businesses an edge and an advantage in the market. “Consumers want to connect with brands they believe are aligned with their own beliefs.”
So, where do you begin? How do you communicate your family identity clearly and consistently?
There’s no doubt that family-controlled businesses can be successful; after all, major corporations like Wal-Mart, Ford, and Campbell Soup are all built on family names. Whether your own family business marketing strategies are successful—and whether your business survives for future generations—really comes down to the clarity of your communication.
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Article originally published in Community News.
About Brand Poets
Founded by Tana M. Llinas, Brand Poets is a collective of strategists, visual storytellers, and digital artisans crafting smart, poignant campaigns that command attention. www.brandpoets.com