66 Brand Values Examples To Inspire Your Own Brand
It's no secret that strong branding is essential for any business - big or small. But what makes a brand truly great? How do you create values that will inspire customers to keep coming back?
Well, taking a look at some great brand values examples can be a good place to start. In this blog post, we'll share some of our top examples of strong brand values and how you can use them to inspire your own brand.
Brand Values 101
What are brand values?
We've written before about how to write - and promote - your brand values. But what exactly are they?
Brand values are the beliefs that your company holds and stands for. Your brand's core values should align with your brand story and wider brand strategy, engaging your target audience and positioning your brand as you wish to be positioned.
Your core values work as brand guidelines, informing decision making and shaping the behavior of both your employees and business on a wider scale. To ensure everyone is on the same page with your brand values, you can create a brand value statement, which should be short and to the point, clear yet inspiring.
It should also be authentic – make sure your values reflect your company's true goals, ethics, and actions that you can follow through on.
Why does your brand need them?
Creating a brand starts with strong brand values.
Establishing brand values allows you to then establish brand loyalty, because customers want to support companies that align with their own personal values and beliefs. This can also lead to increased customer advocacy - when customers share their positive experiences with your brand, promoting you to others.
Core values matter, as they also help you attract and retain the right employees for your company culture - those who truly believe in what your brand stands for and will work to promote those company values throughout their work.
Core brand values craft your company culture, building morale within your business and creating real connections with customers, employees and even investors.
Research shows that around 80% of consumers say they are more likely to purchase products and services from brands whose values align with their own. So what does that mean for your brand? It's time to establish those values, make sure they're in line with the wants and needs of your target audience, and let them shine.
How to identify your brand values
If you're wondering how to determine your own unique brand values, start by thinking about what sets your brand apart from the competition. What do you believe in? How do you want to be perceived by customers and employees?
You can also look for patterns in customer feedback – are there certain themes that come up repeatedly when it comes to your audience research? For example, in one Amazon survey, 87% of UK consumers felt that brands should do their part in helping make changes for social good.
In addition to this, two-thirds of consumers state they are more prepared to buy from a brand that is willing to take a stand on social issues.
So, as an example, if this aligns with the interests of your target audience and with your own beliefs and actions as a brand, social responsibility or sustainability could become one of your core values.
Once you've determined your core brand values, make sure they are clearly communicated to both customers and employees. Strong core values should inform all aspects of your business - from the products or services you offer, to how you craft your customer experience and treat employees with rewards.
Now, let's take a look at some examples of brand values to inspire you if you can't quite put your finger on what it is that makes your brand stand out.
66 Brand Values Examples To Inspire
- Accessibility
- Excellence
- Love
- Accountability
- Excitement
- Loyalty
- Achievement
- Expertise
- Mindfulness
- Adventure
- Exploration
- Open-mindedness
- Alignment
- Fairness
- Passion
- Authenticity
- Family
- Peace
- Awareness
- Fearlessness
- Perseverance
- Balance
- Flexibility
- Precision
- Beauty
- Focus
- Progress
- Boldness
- Fun
- Quality
- Bravery
- Generosity
- Reliability
- Collaboration
- Gratitude
- Respect
- Community
- Growth
- Responsibility
- Compassion
- Happiness
- Teamwork
- Consistency
- Honesty
- Transparency
- Creativity
- Humility
- Trust
- Dedication
- Innovation
- Unity
- Diversity
- Integrity
- Uniqueness
- Discipline
- Intelligence
- Vision
- Discovery
- Joy
- Wellness
- Efficiency
- Leadership
- Wisdom
- Empathy
- Legacy
- Zest
How to use these brand values examples
To use the brand value examples listed above, think about how each one applies to your own brand. Do any of them align with the beliefs and actions you already have in place? Are there any that you could incorporate into your brand's mission and messaging going forward?
Your brand values shouldn’t just be a list of barely relevant buzzwords. While it makes sense to start with a word list like that provided above, your brand values need to be developed into something tangible and actionable. For example:
If you choose sustainability as a core brand value, you should make it a point to incorporate eco-friendly practices into your business operations, or offer sustainable products and services. You can also use this value in your messaging and advertising, highlighting the steps your brand is taking towards sustainability.
Remember, it's important for these values to be authentic to who your brand is - don't try to adopt values that you can't back up with actions or beliefs. It's also important to regularly reevaluate and reassess your values to ensure they still align with the direction in which you want your brand to grow.
Happy value crafting! And don't forget to share your unique brand values with customers, employees, and stakeholders alike – let them be a driving force for all that you do.
Examples of brand values in action
As we mentioned above, you need to be able to put your brand values into action to stop them becoming just another list of words. We thought we’d inspire you to action with a few examples of great brand values in action, so here are our top picks.
In Google's philosophy, they outline ten core values, or as they call them, 'Ten things we know to be true'. These include:
- Focus on the user and all else will follow. (User-focused)
- It’s best to do one thing really, really well. (Excellence)
- Fast is better than slow. (Quality)
- Democracy on the web works. (Fairness)
- You don’t need to be at your desk to need an answer. (Accessibility)
- You can make money without doing evil. (Morality)
- There’s always more information out there. (Intelligence)
- The need for information crosses all borders. (Diversity)
- You can be serious without a suit. (Fun)
- Great just isn’t good enough. (Leadership)
In our eyes, Google gets it right here. It truly lives up to these values in everything they do, from their user-friendly search engine and accessible mobile apps, to their dedication to diversity and equality in the workplace.
And not only does it provide a list of their core beliefs as an organization on their website, but they provide key details on how they’re putting these values into action through their business practices – like committing to developing their company culture and their speciality focus on search.
Slack
Slack provides its core values on their careers page, defining themselves as living and working by values of:
- Empathy
- Courtesy
- Thriving
- Craftsmanship
- Playfulness
- Solidarity.
This example of brand values in action highlights a great use case for your core values – it’s not only important for your team internally, but it can also attract the right job candidates. By outlining your brand's core values in your recruitment processes or employer value propositions, potential employees can easily see if they align with your company’s beliefs.
Slack proves the importance of these values in their day-to-day work, such as fostering a culture of empathy and courtesy through their inclusive benefits (such as 26 weeks parental leave for the primary caregiver) and prioritizing craftsmanship through continuous learning opportunities for employees.
Looking for expert support with your branding?
With our expert branding services, we can help you determine and communicate your brand values, as well as create a cohesive and impactful brand image.
At Huddle, we believe in the power of authenticity, integrity, and collaboration – and we use these values to guide us in all that we do for our clients.
When it comes to branding and rebranding, we're the dream team and can provide everything from strategy and research to design and implementation. We'd love to chat about how we can help elevate your brand image.
Interested in working with a values-driven branding agency? Submit a brief today.