The H2O Branding Formula (2)

Now that you’ve defined your H2O formula, it’s time to turn theory into action.

Let me share how I learned this the hard way.

Some years ago, I worked with a fashion startup that spent months crafting a stunning “brand book”. It was beautiful, expensive, and seriously impressive. We proudly placed it on a shelf and… guess what? Nothing happened.

The customer service team kept replying to emails in their own tone of voice. The designers created whatever they thought looked good. And the social media team? Obsessed with likes, not brand consistency.

Let’s not make that mistake again.

Here are three practical ways to make sure your brand truly “walks the talk”:

1. Set up brand checkpoints

• Before every major decision, ask: "Does this align with our Oxygen and Hydrogens?"
• Turn that question into a reflex at every level of the organisation.
• One company even printed its H2O formula on the bathroom doors. Extreme? Yes. Effective? Also yes.

2. Form a "brand police" team (but never call it that way!)

• Identify the people in your company who instinctively get the brand.
• Empower them to review key communications.
• Their job is to enable, not block: they should help others understand the why behind each brand decision.

3. Introduce a brand score 

• Create a simple 1–5 scoring system to rate how well each touchpoint reflects your brand DNA.
• Score your website, emails, customer service scripts, product packaging (anything a customer encounters).
• Re-score quarterly, track progress and celebrate improvements.

Remember, branding is a marathon, not a sprint. 

Apple didn’t become synonymous with “intuitive” overnight; it took years of consistent choices, from product design to retail experience. 

After 20+ years in marketing, I’m convinced that great brands are defined more by what they say NO to than what they say yes to. Once you’ve nailed your H2O formula, the hardest work begins: turning down ideas, sometimes spectacular ones, that don’t fit.

Take a sustainable fashion client of mine. They were offered a collaboration with a megawatt celebrity. The exposure promised to be huge; the sales forecast, mouth-watering. But the star’s values clashed with the brand’s “Conscious + Transparent + Timeless” DNA, so they politely declined. It hurt in the short term, yet their most loyal customers noticed - and applauded - the consistency.

Saying no is painful. But without that discipline, your brand drifts into the mushy middle, trying to be everything to everyone, and ending up unforgettable to no one.

THE TRUTH ABOUT BRANDING:
IT'S A JOURNEY, NOT A DESTINATION

The H2O Branding Formula is simple, but it’s not easy. Pinpointing your brand’s Oxygen and two Hydrogens demands honesty, clarity and, yes, a few painful choices.

The upside? You don’t need a gigantic budget to build a brand people remember. What you do need is consistency, the discipline to make DNA-aligned decisions when no one is watching, no one is clapping and it feels as if no one even cares.

Branding is like any meaningful relationship: trust accumulates through a thousand tiny actions, not through gorgeous slides or clever taglines. The slide deck may dazzle in the moment, but day-to-day choices forge a brand worth loving.

Branding is a long journey and the sooner you start, the earlier your brand will be born. The magic happens when your H2O formula becomes second nature, as effortless as breathing.

Want me to dive deeper into some aspects lile the Brand DNA Playbook? Just shout. 

Until then, Let's Bold and… never be regular!