Why Do You Get Up Every Morning?

Posted by: Jean Jimenez Greenwell

Hopefully the answer to that question (beyond "pay the bills", "for my family", etc.) is because you have something to do that gives you cause, motivates you, inspires you, or contributes to the world around you in a way that makes you want to go to work each day.

I wonder how we can capture the essence of why we're motivated into how we brand our company or our product? Simon Sinek of TED (Ideas Worth Spreading) said in a leadership presentation about how leaders inspire action, "People don't buy what you do; they buy why you do it." He says effective leaders inspire those who follow them with the "why", not the "what".

So, then, why do marketers lead their marketing copy with a long list of what they do? "We build the best product, that does this, and has these 100s of features which do that and it's better than all the other products out there. Want to buy one?" Nope.

Apple get's this. They build computers like Dell, like HP. But neither Dell nor HP have the cult-like loyalty that Apple drives. Because Apple markets with the why, not the what - - like this. "In everything we do, we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently. The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully designed, simple to use and user friendly. We just happen to make great computers. Want to buy one?"

Hell yes! And I'll stand in line starting at 4am to buy one! And I'll also buy a phone, an MP3 player and a flat screen monitor from this computer company.

Why? Because people don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it.

People can understand vast amounts of complex information on features and benefits, facts and features; but all that doesn't drive behavior. When we communicate from the inside out (the "why" instead of the "what"), we're talking directly to the part of the brain that drives behavior.

So in branding your company, or your product (or you) - - if you don't know why you do what you do but people respond to what you do, then how do you ever get people to buy from you - - or more importantly, to be loyal and be a part of what it is you do? People don't just buy from you because they need something. They buy from you because they believe what you believe.

Tomorrow when you get up - - tap into that "why you get up in the morning" way of thinking and see if you can translate that into your brand way of thinking.