What You Can Learn From Retail Therapy.

Let’s face it, we all love a bit of Retail Therapy every now and then, some more than others.  But what is it that makes an experience that we will want to keep coming back for time and time again.

Obviously there’s a lot that goes into making a Brand and any number of reasons as to why we would want to keep shopping with 1 particular Brand over another.  But I believe the main reason why we love going in to certain stores more than others is their sense of “Identity”

Identity is at the very core of how they see themselves.  Identity is more than just how a store looks, it’s more than how the products look or even how they make you feel.  It’s more than just how the staff act and how they interact with their customers.  Identity is all of these things and more.  Identity is mindset which drives every aspect of the business.  It’s that “feeling” part of your shopping experience that you can’t quite put into words.

When I think of my favourite Retail Therapy experiences, I think of places such as Aveda, Lush and Dusk.  I absolutely LOVE their products.  I love how they look, I love the quality that goes in to them, I love how they make me feel when I use them, and I love the feeling that I get when I walk into a store.  They all have exceptional service from the moment you walk in.  It’s this deep seeded belief in who they are as a company that permeates every aspect of their business.  When they develop products, they’re asking, “Is this consistent with who we are as a brand?”  When they’re designing the layout of the stores, they’re asking the question, “Is this consistent with who we are as a Brand?”

It filters down from the very top of the company to the people who serve you in the stores.  We all know the difference between someone who can scan your products, swipe your card and say have a nice day as opposed to someone who we really feel has a genuine interest in US enjoying the experience of buying from them. 

I’m sure you can think of your own examples of places that you love to go.  But for me, whenever I go to any of these places I mentioned, I enjoy the experience of shopping there every bit as much as I enjoy the products themselves, and I know it’s a consistent experience.  I can walk into any one of these stores and the experience I get each time is as uniquely genuine as the individual that serves me, yet consistent in how good it always makes me feel.

Now here’s the question for today, how can you take this idea of Identity that YOUR favourite store uses and use that in your own life?  Well, when you think of which Brands you really love, and why you love them, I’m sure you’ll find some similarities there.

They are consistent in their sense of identity.  They convey the same message in all that they do.  It’s the same with people.  Whether we like it or not, whether we even realise it or not, we are being judged by how WE consistently act and the message that we convey about ourselves in all that we do.  This is true even if the people around us are unaware that they are judging us, rest assured that at the subconscious level they are noticing what we do and judging us accordingly. 

So today I want you to ask yourself a question, what is the Brand that you are consistently displaying to others.  Are you consistently inconsistent?  People will pick up on this.  Do you have a consistent message that you convey to people, not through what you say, but by what you do.

Whenever you think of ANYBODY there are usually things that come to mind about that person.  What are the things that come to mind when people think about YOU?  This message WILL have an effect of every aspect of your life.  It will affect your personal relationships, your work, your business and just the people you interact with. 

Believe it or not, you already have a subconscious idea of your Brand, of who you are, and your subconscious will make sure that you act in a way which is consistent with your beliefs about who you are.  So ask yourself this question, what is the Brand that you are putting out there.  Is that Brand a good thing which is going to serve you or could be perhaps a bad thing which will hold you back.

Here’s your assignment, describe to me what Brand you’re putting out there.  How does the rest of the world see YOU?

If the Brand that you’re putting out there is a good Brand, then what can you do to take that to the next level to make heighten that experience people get from being around you.  If your Brand is not so good, what can you do to bring about a change in your personal Brand that other people will really notice?

Leave your answers in the comments below….