It’s pretty simple, if you don’t want your users to feel like they got stuck talking to the dullest person at a party when using your website, make your brand personality clear.
You don’t need to go overboard by creating characters or personas for your brand to play, just be authentic and let your personality show.
Here are five ways to help you add personality to your website:
#1 Humour – If it suits your brand personality why not try adding some humour to your site? I’m not suggesting you start telling jokes to your audience but you can add silly quirks to help create a light-hearted relaxed feel, which can be very appealing for the user.
Consider our call-to-action buttons, when you click on them the text flips upside-down. It’s not going to win us any comedy awards but it’s a lot more relaxed than a big bold MORE button.
However, if messing about with CTA’s isn’t for you why not add some images or colours to help display the personality of your brand.
#2 Multimedia – Make use of the wide range of media options available today. Videos can be a great way to introduce the user to who’s behind your site, this is a great way to help the user relate to you.
Even just experimenting with multimedia can help to display characteristics of your brand personality. This really helps you stand out from more one-dimensional competitors.
Try to distil the core characteristics of your brand personality and consider how these characteristics could be displayed through different types of media. You can have some fun with this, as long as you stay authentic to brand your audience will get on board.
#3 Story Telling – Sharing your stories is a great way to express your personality. When you share your experiences you also share how you reacted in that situation which really helps to display the real character of your brand.
Why not tell your users stories of how you have worked with previous clients or some of the best and maybe worst things you’ve seen in the industry lately? Giving the user this insight into your brand personality can help them to better understand your organisation and how you can support them.
#4 Opinion – Another great way to showcase your brand personality is to share your opinions. A top example of this is Econsultancy’s weekly digital marketing stats post. Each week they give us a refresher on their personality and value.
You can use social tools to get your opinion out, you might even be able to get discussions going with your followers. That engagement and extension of personality is often rewarded with consumer loyalty.
#5 Share Your Mistakes – well, this one is really about being open and honest but sharing mistakes gets more attention. In the same way people make mistakes so do organisations, why? because in the same way people are constantly learning and developing so are organisations.
So now we’ve established there’s no shame in making mistakes let’s start sharing them with our audience. while you’re there why not show your audience what you learnt along the way?
Consider the personality traits of some of your comrades in arms, you’ll see the ones you hold dearest are the ones that can own up to their mistakes, learn from them and help you to avoid making the same mistakes.
In Summary
People buy from people so give your audience something to connect with by showing your brands true personality. Try using our five tips to add personality to your website. And if you’re not convinced on the importance of brand personality take a look at our article The Importance of Brand Personality.