If you didn’t take the world by storm in 2022, don’t fret. You’ve still got another shot. 2023 has arrived and it’s ripe with possibilities. There are still around 478,860 minutes up for grabs in the year, so use them wisely if you want to crush it. And if world domination is on your agenda, you’re in luck. This may actually be the Year of the Rabbit, but we’re boldly declaring it should be the Year of the Elephant instead. After all, marketing has never been about maintaining the status quo.

The ideal spirit animal. Let’s talk about all the ways elephants are extraordinary. They’re serious heavyweights, reaching an impressive 6350 kilograms and boasting a supersized brain that exceeds a whopping 5 kilos. That’s a lot of brainpower! It’s no wonder they have a reputation for intelligence and advanced communication skills. Did you know elephants can identify differences in human gender, age, and ethnicity simply by the sound of a voice alone? They can also impersonate human voices and remember things from more than 20 years ago! That’s a steel-trap memory and some cool party tricks all rolled into one.

Emotional intelligence and raw power. Elephants also display emotional intelligence through showings of empathy and grief. They maintain strong friendships and are fiercely loyal over vast distances and periods of time. If that wasn’t enough, they can understand human body language too! But as intelligent as they are, they are perhaps better known as the strongest animal on the planet. Capable of carrying up to 9000 kilos on their back – which is the human equivalent of around 130 adults – elephants truly do represent the perfect combination of brains and brawn.

Channel your inner elephant. If you want to thrive in 2023, you need some muscle, some flashes of brilliance, and a solid plan. Not just any kind of muscle though – marketing muscle! After all, it’s not the best product or service that wins, but the one with the best marketing. So being stronger and smarter is awesome, but making sure your brand is working for you rather than against you is just as essential for growth.

Winning Hearts and Minds: Why Perception Matters More Than You Think!

Perception is always reality. Better isn’t always enough. It can be painful to hear, but it’s true. You can create a product or service that’s 10x better than your competition, but perception trumps reality. So if the market’s perception of your product or service doesn’t match or supersede the competition, it’s pretty much dead in the water. As they say, perception is reality and branding is all about perception. As every disruptor knows, even superior offerings often fail to steal market share from already established brands.

So what can you do to boost perceptions of your business?

1. Examine Your Digital Self. Some people call it their online presence, others their digital brand experience. Whatever you label it, most businesses use their website as the first interaction with prospects long before those prospects turn into customers. So what does your website say about you? From first impressions to core messaging and the overall User Experience, every touchpoint impacts how people perceive your business.

2. Review Your Social Profile. People love to connect with others and they’re using digital platforms every day to expand their networks. So take a moment to look at your brand across every digital platform and evaluate each one independently and in tandem. Then decide where to focus first and let the other channels take a back seat. Master one or two channels first and avoid being spread too thin which can weaken your impact universally.

3. Refine Your Brand Message. As Simon Sinek evangelises: it starts with why. People need to know why you do what you do. And how you will change their lives too before they will start to care about what or how you do it. So put yourself in your customer’s shoes when it comes to writing brand messaging that will instantly connect with and solve their problems. Is the messaging easy for them to understand? Do they feel like you understand them and their challenges?

4. Check Your CX. While 80% of companies think they’re delivering a solid Customer Experience (CX), only 8% of customers agree. Yikes! The best way to check how you’re doing with your customers is to ask them – and to build in regular feedback loops. Ask them how you’re meeting their needs and how can you improve. Make sure to engage them before customer yearning turns into customer churning. Remember customer acquisition is usually more expensive than retention, so regular check-ins can save customer losses.

Combining fierce animal instincts with heavyweight branding is right in our wheelhouse here at Hunt & Hawk. We love supercharging businesses around the worlds with our marketing fleet that combines beauty, brains, and brawn. If expansion, world domination, and kicking butt are on the cards for your 2023, drop us a line at hello@huntandhawk.com, or add us to your inbox by subscribing for more awesome ideas and follow the team at Hunt & Hawk on LinkedIn. Let’s talk! After all, it’s a jungle out there!