Yesterday morning I was driving home, and the mailman waved me down. At first, I thought he was just being friendly—hi, neighbor!—then I realized he had a package for me. I live about 3 miles uphill outside of town, so catching me while I was out and about meant he didn’t have to drive far off his route. Luckily, few cars were out at 10 am on a Tuesday. I stopped short of entering the main traffic circle, pulled slightly off the road, and rolled down my window.
“Barbara Body, giusto?” he asked in Italian as he passed the small box through my passenger window. I smirked a little and didn’t bother correcting him on the pronunciation of my last name. I nodded, smiled, thanked him, and commented on the joys of a small town.
The funny thing is that he probably recognized me by my car, not by my face. Around here, people know who’s who by the car they drive. If you get a new car, it takes a month or two before acquaintances catch on and begin waving to you again when you drive by.
Your brand ecosystem is like that. People may not know your name, but they know your “car”—the type of vehicle you drive, i.e., the platform you use so they know where to find you; the color, i.e., the logo and design of your brand so they recognize you as soon as they spot you in the distance; and the make, i.e., the tone you use in your branding language so they know what to expect from you. You likely change your clothes every day and maybe your hair color or style every few months, but your car is a fixed, reliable identifier for at least a few years. You want your brand to be like your car: people see it, recognize you immediately, and—in the best of all worlds—flag you down to engage.
To continue the car=brand analogy, all the parts of the car work together to create a vehicle that transports you from one place to another, just as all the parts of your brand ecosystem transport your business from one place to another (hopefully toward greater success and a solid reputation and not in the other direction).
So where does your book fit in the car=brand analogy? Is your book the engine, an integral part of moving the vehicle forward? Is it the tires, the support system that keeps things rolling? Is it the horn that tells people you’re coming through and they should pay attention? Is it the windshield that allows the outside world to look in?
When I work with clients, one of our early conversations focuses on the ecosystem of their personal or business brand and how the book they want to write fits into that ecosystem. We discuss the audience they want to reach and home in on an ideal reader avatar. We talk about how the book solves a reader’s pain point and how the reader can help the author reach their own objectives and goals. Writing a book isn’t just about writing. It’s also about getting that book into the hands of readers. The brand ecosystem works both ways: people recognize you and the value you bring and buy your book, and people read your book and then want to know more about you and your brand.
Where does your book idea fit in the ecosystem of your brand? Is it the engine driving the vehicle forward or it is the tires that support the weight of all the other parts?
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