What people do say when you are not in the room?

Who do others think you are?

The American Marketing Association defines brand image as, “The perception of a brand in the minds of persons. The brand image is a mirror reflection (though perhaps inaccurate) of the brand personality or product being. It is what people believe about a brand-their thoughts, feelings, expectations.”

The way to meet people's expectations is consistency. Imagine you went into Starbucks and got a cup of Dunkin Donut’s coffee. You might like both, but it would not meet your expectations, because it is not consistent with your last experience.

Your brand image is set by the sum total of all experiences people have with you, your employees, your product, website, business cards, voicemail messages and everything else that communicates with them.

Do an image check: Ask you friends, family and customers to describe you and or your business with five adjectives, Then ask them for five that do not apply to you. You may be happy or not! Remember that it is not the image you project, but the image people perceive that is your brand image.

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