I want to ask you something, and I need you to be honest with yourself. When someone asks what your company does, do you answer with confidence or do you answer with a paragraph? Because there is a difference.
One is a brand. The other is a business card with too much text on it.Here is what the research actually says: according to a 2023 Edelman study, 81% of consumers say they need to trust a brand before they buy from it. Not like. Not follow. Trust. And trust as it turns out, is not built through Canva graphics and a well-chosen font.
The Founding Confusion
Most early-stage founders make the same mistake. They invest in identity: the visual, the aesthetic, the vibe before they have invested in positioning. And the result the get? A brand that looks expensive and communicates nothing. Very chic.
Entirely forgettable.McKinsey's 2022 growth report found that companies with strong brand positioning outperform their sector peers by 73% in long-term revenue growth. Not because they had better logos. Because they knew, with startling precision, what they stood for and said it in a way that made the right people feel seen.Positioning is not a tagline. It is a decision about what you will not be, made before anyone asked you to choose.The Olive Table was built on this distinction.
Strategy is not the thing that happens after the brand is pretty. It IS what makes your brand worth trusting.
