Utilising Authenticity In Your Brand & Marketing: Highlights from Talk At The Vulcan Works, Northampton
On 23rd May 2024, I had the pleasure of hosting a branding masterclass alongside Chris Lowe at the Vulcan Works Northampton, delving into the question: Can a brand ever truly be authentic?
Why are we still banging on about authenticity?
Authenticity is the marketing industry's current buzzword and has been so overused that the word "authentic" has become a gimmick; a very specific way of speaking and presenting yourself online, like a persona that you adopt that can be spotted a mile off.
Instead, authenticity should actually be the exercise of exploring and harnessing your own values and truth to connect with others. Authenticity is the practise of being truthful to yourself and your customers.
So we examined the idea of "truth" in the marketing context and used real world examples to demonstrate what can happen when your communications are (and aren't) authentically true.
Let's get stuck in
The event kicked off with an introduction that explored the essence of authenticity and truth, and how you can measure authenticity in communication, before exploring authenticity's relationship with branding and values led strategy.
Once we had a framework for how to analyse whether a brand is truly "authentic", Chris and I delved into some (less than flattering) real world case study examples to show how NOT to do it.
Lunchtime
Let's be honest, we are usually more excited about the free food than we are about learning, and a masterclass wouldn't be a good masterclass if the attendees cannot concentrate due to rumbling bellies. So I enlisted Blah Blah Catering to sort us out with (a delicious) lunch whilst we mingled.
Throughout the break, our attendees were deeply involved in discussions surrounding the topic, including the (un)truthfulness of social media, more in-depth analysis of the brands featured in the workshop, and personal experiences they'd had with brands that had been dishonest in their communication.
Comeback in the second half
After a rather cynical first half where we looked into companies that were leaving a lot of authenticity to be desired, Chris and I delved back in to showcase people who are redefining what success looks like in their businesses and the world in general.
When we take away profit as being the ONLY marker for success, and also prioritise things like sustainability, supporting communities, product innovation and quality, and using your brand as a platform for social good, we create a better world for all.
With this concept in mind we took a look at brands that are showcasing true authenticity in their communication by putting their money where their mouth is.
Finishing touches
To round off the masterclass, we offered attendees actionable insights on how they can align their values with genuine actions that their SME or start-up can take.
Then it was open to the attendees to ask any questions they had. We had both insightful takes on the topic, and encouraging comments of how much the talk helped to affirm to the attendees that the work they were doing would make a real difference.
The workshop was a wonderful success, attracting a community of SME's and start ups who were enthusiastic and eager to learn. I am so grateful to everyone who attended and cannot wait to host more events like this in the future.
For those who missed it, Keep your eyes peeled for updates on my LinkedIn about future talks and workshops, or sign up to my Frazzled Minds Photographers Newsletter for first access to tickets.
Thank you for joining me!
If you would like to find out more about my workshops and creative work, then contact me here or email me at hello@emmaanniecolton.com
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