In marketing there is a lot of talk about creating a brand evangelist, but what is a brand evangelist and what does it take to get one, let alone many?

Branding is like trying to cultivate a relationship. You can woo her (your customer) all you want, but what it comes down to is whether or not your efforts are in fact giving her the creeps or earning that first date.

Relationships don’t work without a little give and take, and most important, trust. Your first date is your chance to make a good impression that gets her talking to her friends about you. Her decisions about you are based on a feeling she has in her gut, which tell her to keep you around or let you go.

If you pay attention to her wants and needs, she’ll be sure to stick around. If you show that her feelings don’t matter to you anymore, the relationship is over and she’s taking her business elsewhere.

You are not just a logo, identity or a product, you are the whole package; brains, beauty, and most of all a living, breathing “brand.”  It’s important to have a strong sense of self. You must know what you do better than your competitors and what values to drive home. These qualities tell you how to dress, smell, groom and so on.

You are not the one who decides how your customers will interpret your brand, you can only influence it. Show your customers you are listening to them and give them a reason to trust you. When your brand learns how to speak to the emotions, your desirability will grow.

Your brand evangelists are your loyal customers, you count on them to spread awareness about your brand organically, by word of mouth and through the conversation and credibility levels of the web.