Perception is reality
Build Mode™ Issue 02.2025
Hello and welcome to the one-year anniversary issue of Build Mode, a monthly update with brand insights to help you level up your business. When I started writing these articles, I told myself I would do it for at least a year, and now that we’re here, I have no plans of slowing down. So, thanks for joining. We have an ambitious group of professionals working in real estate, architecture, engineering, construction, marketing, design, and development, and you all inspire me to keep sharing.
Haven’t subscribed yet? Consider joining us below and get the next issue delivered straight to your inbox on the first of the month.Over the course of a year, I’ve written about a lot of things: brand ownership, brand touchpoints, brand messaging, marketing framework, brand guidelines, brand effectiveness, brand innovation, brand personality, naming, brand resonance, brand positioning, and brand architecture.
There’s no shortage of things to write about! As I was thinking about what to write next, I went back to my definition of branding, which is…
Branding is the process of defining the internal principles and external expressions of an organization to shape perception
… and I realized many of the articles linked above go deep on either internal principles or external expression, but this last part, shaping perception, I haven’t touched upon yet, so, let’s go there.
As I left employment in spring 2022 and went all-in on building MUDEO, there was a period of time that was… let’s say, uncharacteristic. My website was out of shape – I had project case studies, but no real value proposition. My content was uninspiring – I lacked an understanding of what to share and why. But the worst part (and this might sound trivial to you), I was using my personal email address instead of a business address for correspondence.
Why should anyone care what email address I’m using?!
Well, to me, this tiny brand touchpoint was a signal. The wrong signal. After a few months, I finally upgraded from a personal email to a business email, and in doing so, I was presenting myself as a professional, with credibility and legitimacy, and aiming to earn the trust of others. Without it, I was worried my brand perception wasn’t what I truly intended it to be.
Your email address, and about a million other brand touchpoints, are all within your control. Brand perception, however, is not. By focusing on what you can control, you can influence the perception of your brand in a meaningful way.
What is brand perception?
Brand perception is the way people feel about your brand. Their impression of your brand is influenced by everything (and I mean, everything) from your visual identity, to the words you use, to interactions with personnel, to testimonials and reviews, past experiences with you, and yes, your email address.
Ev-er-y-thing.
And most importantly, perception is shaped through your actions, not your words. You can’t just tell people your brand is innovative, trustworthy, or premium and they’ll take your word for it. You have to be those things for them to perceive you as such.
Let’s look at a couple examples at how a brand’s actions shape people’s perception:
Apple iPhone.
If you’re an iPhone user, you’ve likely experienced the unboxing of a new phone. The pristine white, minimalist box with crisp corners. The slow sliding of the box top to reveal the product in dramatic fashion. The perfectly housed phone and accessories in a molded tray. The attention to detail is second to none.
How does their brand packaging shape perception? Well, beyond the product itself, every detail of the packaging and unboxing experience reinforces their exceptionally high perceived quality, their meticulous attention to detail, their superb taste and minimalist aesthetic, and their customer care with an optimal user experience. (Yeah, all that, just with a box).
Next, UPPAbaby.
At some point around the mid-2010’s, baby gear brands like UPPAbaby, Bugaboo, and Nuna started developing handles with genuine leather handlebar grips. At first, this kind of feature came with an upcharge, but it has since become a staple with premium baby gear brands.
How does this one product feature shape perception? Leather handles make a stroller feel significantly more premium than standard foam padding. It simulates the experience of driving a luxury car, or carrying a designer handbag. It signals craftsmanship and sophistication, and makes parents feel they’ve invested in something special for the child they love.
Your brand perception is shaped by countless touchpoints, including the way you package your product or service (like Apple), or how the secondary features of your product enhance the value of the primary offering (like UPPAbaby), especially key touchpoints like these.
Why does brand perception matter?
People’s perception of your brand directly influences how they engage with your business. And if your brand isn’t leveraging your business, well, sorry to say, you’re doing it wrong.
Here’s why all this really matters:
Brand perception shapes trust and loyalty
A strong, positive perception builds trust and keeps people coming back. People will talk about the brands they love, and that love will spread to others and bring in more business.
Brand perception affirms price premiums
If someone perceives your brand as premium, they’re more likely to justify paying a higher price. If they see you as generic, they’ll compare based on cost alone, putting you in commodity territory. Buyers will either accurately perceive your value and buy, or perceive a disconnect between value and cost and pass on the offer.
Brand perception elevates your authority
Even if what you offer is actually better than others in the market, it won’t matter if others don’t perceive it as so. A weak brand perception will hold you back. A strong brand perception will propel you forward.
Side note:
Let’s not get confused. We’re not talking about the actual quality of your product or service (I’m assuming you’ve got that part covered). We’re talking about matching, or exceeding, the actual quality of your offering with the perceived quality of your promise and delivery. Perception is the only way others will interpret quality. (Again, not through your words, but through your actions).
Brand perception isn’t what you offer; it’s about how people feel about it.
What you can do you next
Now that you know what brand perception is, and why it matters in your business, if you want to shape how people perceive your brand, focus on what you can control.
A few ways to create positive brand perception:
Performance: Ensure the ‘main thing’ you do meets or exceeds expectations
Features: Enhance the value of your offering with elements that provide additional benefits
Reliability: Consistently deliver on your promises, ie. do what you say you’re going to do
Packaging: Wrap your offer in a way that conveys your value and expertise
Communciation: Communicate responsively, clearly, and proactively
If we determine that it’s important to align our intention with others’ perception (it is), consider a mapping exercise in which you create direct ties from brand actions to the resulting brand perceptions, and vice versa. You can jot this down in a two-column layout, or in an A-B-A-B pattern like below.
To demonstrate what I mean, here are a few examples:
Brand action:
Designing a well-considered residential entry, with painted door in brand color, lighting with aesthetic quality that matches the architectural style, a beautiful, accessible address number in a distinct typeface, and a custom door knocker with personality that makes guests smile.
Brand perception:
To the prospective buyer of this residence, this demonstrates thoughtfulness, creativity, cohesiveness, consistency, and an overall quality that assures dependability in other aspects of their experience.
Brand action:
Coordinating a trade show booth design with high-quality images and graphics on premium printed banners, durable marketing collateral, compelling messaging, and personable interactions with personnel.
Brand perception:
To a prospect meeting an exhibiting firm, this demonstrates they are consistent, reliable, and deliver a premium level of finish in their product and service delivery.
Now let’s take it in reverse with a negative brand perception and brand action to fix it.
Brand action:
A property management firm just received feedback from a prospect and they’ve decided to rent with a community across the street. They mentioned slow response times, AI chat that wasn’t helpful, and difficulty in scheduling a tour.
Brand perception:
The property management firm should consider adjusting their communications and marketing systems by conducting an analysis of the prospective resident’s journey to find gaps in their experience. Then, streamline systems to make sure they’re working together and train teams to follow up quickly and personally.
Where there are unknowns, discover them by listening to feedback. Where there are misalignments, fix them by analyzing deficiencies. Bring these two elements — the actions you control and the perceptions you can’t control — closer and closer together.
When your actions reinforce your desired perception, your brand becomes stronger, more trusted, and ultimately, more successful.
That’s all for this edition of Build Mode! If this resonated with you and you think it might help others, feel free to share it with a colleague. And if you want to discuss how your brand perception is shaping your business, just get in touch — I’d love to hear from you.
Best.
Kenny Isidoro
See my latest on Instagram, LinkedIn, or feel free to book a call.
Beauty is in the eye of the holder
Work zone
Some other things I've been up toWatching:
Surprisingly, after a hiatus of not watching much television, I’ve had a few moments to catch up on a couple of my favorite shows this month. Made it through the second season of Squid Games and couldn’t believe it ended after only seven episodes! I’m also keeping up with Severance. Things are getting even weirder! What are you watching?
Naming:
Just recently, we’ve arrived at a new name for a restaurant expanding into a new concept. I probably brainstormed about 200 names, and when I was almost done writing for the day, there it was, the winning name penned. It was so much fun I laughed out loud. The client loved it too. Brand identity coming next.
Standardizing:
After a rebrand, whether big or small, a critical piece of its success is the implementation across the organization. At the moment, I’m supporting an architectural firm with brand implementation across templates, presentations, documents, social media assets, you name it. (Consistent action shapes a perception of reliability.)
If and when you're ready to build your brand, there are three ways I can help.
Brand audit
A free analysis of your brand, plus other industry players, with recommendations for increasing its effectiveness in your business. Get your free audit.
Brand partnership
A new, subscription-based service model to support your firm's practice and build its reputation through branding and marketing. Register your interest.
Custom-built brand
A core service guiding business leaders through a linear process of defining or redefining your brand in four phases: discover, define, develop, and deliver. Discuss your project.
Subscribe to Build Mode™
a monthly update with brand insights and how they can apply to your practice and your projects. Issues drop on the first of each month. Feel free to unsubscribe if the updates aren't valuable for you. No hard feelings.