How to Define Your Brand Personality (and Why It Matters)
Your brand personality is the human-like traits and characteristics that shape how people perceive your business. It influences everything—from your messaging and visuals to how customers emotionally connect with your brand. If your brand feels undefined or inconsistent, it's time to refine its personality.
Why Brand Personality Matters
Differentiation – It helps you stand out in a crowded market.
Emotional Connection – Customers relate to brands with strong personalities.
Consistency – Guides marketing, messaging, and design choices.
Trust & Loyalty – A well-defined personality builds customer confidence.
3 Simple Steps to Define Your Brand Personality
Step 1: Categorise Your Brand’s Traits
Start by listing as many personality traits as possible, then start sorting these traits into three categories:
🟥 Not Applicable – Traits that don’t fit your brand or industry.
🟦 Our Competitors – Traits that define your competitors.
🟩 We Want To Be – Traits that you aspire to embody.
👉 Action Step: Use the Hack-a-Brand worksheet to select your top 10 traits for each category for a list of 175 personality traits.
Step 2: Rank Your Traits
Now, refine your list by sorting your top 10 traits in order of importance:
Compare the first two traits. Ask yourself, “Which one fits better?”
Keep the stronger one in place or swap them if needed.
Repeat this down the list, allowing less fitting traits to “bubble” to the bottom.
Repeat the process until no more swaps are needed.
💡 Pro Tip: If your list is already well-structured, it may take just one pass to finalise. If it's in the worst order, it could take up to 9 passes for a list of 10 traits.
Step 3: Identify Your Top 3 Defining Traits
Once sorted, your top three traits in each category give you clarity:
✅ Top 3 Traits of Competitors – How they position themselves.
✅ Top 3 Traits of Your Brand – The core of your personality.
✅ Top 3 Least Relevant Traits – What your brand is not.
How to Apply Your Brand Personality
Now that you have your defining traits, use them to:
Shape your brand voice and messaging.
Guide visual identity (colours, typography, imagery).
Align marketing and advertising strategies.
