In this post, I thought I’d share a little about the OPEN DOOR brand and what I hope it will become.

Like other purpose-driven brands, the OPEN DOOR seeks to improve society and have a positive impact on people’s lives. And like any great brand, it needs a strong, clear vision, mission, set of values, and brand personality. These may adapt and change over time, but I thought it’s as good of time as any to get something down in writing.

In essence, my intention for the for-purpose nature of the OPEN DOOR is to bring together the head and the heart – combining logical and informative content/resources with heartful support, encouragement, and community. It’s through this pairing that I hope to inspire and engage others in creating more meaningful lives.

What follows below are my thoughts on the vision, mission, values, and brand personality of the OPEN DOOR. It’s a moving target that will get refined over time, but having defined statements will be a pleasant reminder of the positive change I wish to invoke in future homeowners.

 

Vision (the “why”)

Purpose-driven brands place their “why” front and center. They want the vision to consistently remind themselves and their followers of the long-term desired change they wish to see in the world resulting from the work they do today. The vision speaks to both the current mission and the aspirations for the future.

The OPEN DOOR Vision:

“To help aspiring homeowners lead happier, healthier, and more meaningful lives.”

 

 

Mission (the “what”)

The mission is more focused and explains what I plan to do or create to achieve the vision.

The OPEN DOOR Mission:

“The OPEN DOOR provides resources, tools, support, and community to aspiring homeowners seeking to build a perfect home and wanting a welcoming, empowering, and inspiring place to learn, take action, and succeed.”

 

 

Values (the “how”)

I thought about the OPEN DOOR values and what the brand should represent. I started imagining how I wanted the brand (and people associated with it – employees, clients, followers, and partners) to behave, relate to it, and think of it. I essentially created a set of beliefs the OPEN DOOR will exemplify.

The OPEN DOOR Values:

  • Integrity – do everything thoughtfully and to the best of our abilities, actively listen, be open to improvement, give feedback respectfully, be open-minded
  • Equity – acknowledge and celebrate strengths and differences of others, create environments that allow voices to be heard, treat others with respect
  • Empowerment – empower followers and clients, build confidence in others, be supportive and encouraging
  • Community – we’re stronger together, create environments to spur connection, encourage others to share
  • Altruism – cooperate rather than compete, be unselfishly concerned for or devoted to helping others, work to service others, create a positive impact in people’s lives

 

 

Brand Personality (the tone, style, & attitude)

Defining the values helped to identify the personality of the brand. I created a list of the emotions and adjectives I wanted to associate with the brand. I imagined these adjectives describing what I want the brand to stand for in the eyes of the people benefiting from our services.

If I were a fly on the wall hearing someone else describe the OPEN DOOR, I’d want them using these words:

  • honest, genuine
  • trustworthy, credible
  • people-first
  • unbiased
  • highest respect for varying opinions and viewpoints
  • non-judgemental
  • welcoming, accepting, inclusive
  • encouraging, supportive
  • easy to understand

 

 

And finally, tying it all together:

The hope is that a clearly defined brand vision and mission for the OPEN DOOR will create a greater positive impact on society than just going at it willy nilly. Through the values and brand personality, I hope the OPEN DOOR will grow to resonate with & inspire you, create loyalty, connections, and collaborations, and differentiate us from other in the industry.

 

Said best by Simon Sinek in his 2009 TED Talk:

“People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it… The goal is not to do business with everybody who needs what you have, the goal is to do business with people who believe what you believe.”

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Feel free to share them in the comments below.
– Yvonne