1. Know yourself.

The first step to developing your brand is to know who you really are as a company–not who you want to be or who you want clients to think you are. We decided to take an honest look at ourselves by holding in-depth discussions with our leaders, employees and customers. Some of the highlights from the discussions were: “We go deeper than most bankers,” “We get things done…fast,” and “We are honest, transparent and personable.” The result was the development of this positioning statement: Scale Bank is a next level banking experience. Our resourceful business experts get deep within your business with transparency and honesty, to help you realize your vision of success.

2. Know your customer.

Once we clearly recognized who we are, we asked our customers what they really wanted from us. They told us:

• Personal relationships still count.
• Access and speed are essential, with questions answered quickly and accurately.
• Having deep knowledge develops trust.
• Being proactive, flexible, and listening supports our success.
• A genuine desire to see me succeed means everything.

We then integrated our customers’ desire for us to help them do more by providing next-level service and relationships into our brand.

3. Shape a values-driven culture.

The brand must also be supported by the company culture and reflect how we act. The marketplace can spot a fraud quickly, so it’s important to develop a brand that you can live up to and deliver.

During the brand development process, we talked with every employee to determine what they needed to live the brand. We also reexamined our customer experience standards and reinforced our promise of a next-level customer experience by ensuring things like:

• Answering the phone so customers can connect with an expert without needing to be called back.
• Getting a decision within hours, not days, and explaining that decision in a way that makes sense for the specific situation.
• Asking questions, even tough questions, to get deeper.
• Anticipating and solving the next problem, before it even arises.

Having spent the time and resources to know ourselves and understand our customers, Scale Bank did more. We wanted a name that reflects what we value and promise. We changed our name from Fidelity Bank to Scale Bank because we know our customers want to “scale up” in big ways and small, and we want them to know we have the tools and expertise to help them do more to achieve their vision.

If you are on your own journey of finding a unique position for your business in a competitive market, I suggest you try this simple (but not necessarily easy) approach to developing a brand that reflects both who you really are and what your customers actually want.

Scale Bank is an independent, privately-owned business bank that is proud to call Minnesota home for over 50 years. Come find out why our business expertise sets us apart and helps you to do more.