5 Tips to Create & Maintain Brand Consistency

What is brand consistency? Why is this important to your theme park or FEC? Your brand is your logo, everything the total brand stands for, and the very foundation of your identity. Presenting the same values, tone and colors, helps to deliver your company message to your customers in a very distinct yet unique way. Keeping things similar and using your brand in a repetitive manner, over time becomes ingrained in your guests. They remember your brand because it is easily recognizable and they automatically cling to it when they are faced with a different brand or logo.?

Creating That Competitive Edge to Stand-Out from Other Brands

There are three specific areas that that should portray brand consistency in order to ensure guest loyalty:

• Core values: you want to always back up your words with actions to follow your core values.?
• Elements of brand identity:?these are your visual components that make your specific brand stand out from your competition and keep them recognizable to your guests.?
• The guest experience:?consistent positive guest experiences will enable trust and confidence to thrive with your brand.?

The greatest benefit of brand consistency is obviously, recognition. You should strive to make sure that your brand is easily recognizable by your target audience. Having a person immediately recognize your brand and associate it with a great guest experience is your primary goal.?

Your brand should be building a deep connection and association between your message, your core values, as well as the visual elements such as the colors of your brand. Here are a few other benefits of brand consistency:

• Shaping perception: You need to shape your brand in the minds of your target audience. To do this, you simply introduce your key messages alongside the other brand elements.?
• Stimulate positive emotion: You need to connect brand consistency to positive emotions in your loyal and potential guests. When it is correctly managed, the emotions are immediately invoked when a person is exposed to your logo or brand. This simply means that you want to bring happiness, joy, excitement to any person who views your brand. That association is what you are trying to achieve.
• Create trust and loyalty: Consistency equals trust and loyalty. It is a confidence that is present among guests. For example, think of the things that you use in daily life. How about your favorite video game that you like to play? There are a ton of different gaming systems on the market. But when you hear the brand name of one or two of those systems that you enjoy, you automatically think of good experiences and cling to it as being of “superior quality.” The same should be happening when people come across your brand or see your logo.?
• Differentiating: Let's face it, in our line of work you have many theme parks, water parks, and FECs that offer similar experiences. So, you need to make your brand different from the rest. Let people know that not all theme parks, water parks and FECs are the same. You “must” stand out from the crowd.??

5 Tips for Creating and Maintaining a Consistent Brand

These are a few tips that can help you when you are creating or trying to maintain consistency:

1. Mission statement/core values: this is a good place to start that can clarify the point of view that represents your company.Try to keep it small and easy to read but one that will encompass The values of your facility. One example is Napa Auto Parts. “Napa Know How" is their motto. When people need auto parts they automatically associate that Napa “knows how” to help them find the right parts that they need. That gives them a competitive edge against their competition.
2. Color palette: Your colors should be consistent throughout your facility. Everywhere your guests go from the time they enter your parking lot to the time they leave, they should be able to see the same colors being used in a consistent manner. From the bathrooms to restaurants & bars, your colors should be utilized in a creative manner. They should also be incorporated into all marketing strategies. This helps to create instant recognition.?
3. Make sure that your logo is on everything you can possibly have it on throughout your facility. And, I do mean everything. Never miss an opportunity to put them on display.
4. Sell merchandise that has your motto, logo and colors on them. Hats, t-shirts, keychains, etc. is a great way to advertise and drive in more customers. These things can also be used as prizes in contests.
5. Be sure to use your motto, your logo, and your colors online as well as offline when you are developing your marketing strategies.?

Remember, being consistent creates stability in your brand. Repetition is essential to making your brand memorable.?

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07-09-22

?Tim Murphy is CEO of APX Operating Company, dba Boomers Parks, under the ownership of Cerberus private equity ($55B assets). Boomers Parks owns six family entertainment centers and two water parks with locations in California, Florida, and New Jersey.

As CEO of Boomers Parks since 2020, Tim took these eight parks from bankruptcy to profitability in just a year – in the middle of a global pandemic. When Boomers acquired these parks, they were operating at a $10 million loss. Tim transformed the customer experience and added new revenue streams to generate a 180% increase in revenue in 2021 (and on track to be a 250% increase in 2022).?

Tim launched his 35+ year career at Walt Disney World and has since served more than 150 entertainment, restaurant, and food & beverage brands across more than 10,000 locations in C-suite and senior positions.

?Additionally, Tim is a Board Director with Coney Park, Happy City, and YuKids - Family Entertainment & Amusement Parks, part of The Carlyle Group ($275B assets), a private equity firm that operates 150+ family entertainment centers and amusement parks in Latin America.?

?Tim has worked with top-tier entertainment and restaurant brands including Disney, Rebounderz Trampoline Parks, Darden Restaurants (Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, etc.), Red Lobster, Jimmy John’s, Applebee’s, Sonny’s Bar-B-Q, Denny’s, El Pollo Loco, Hardee’s, Golden Corral, and Firehouse Subs.?

Tim has overseen more than 35 purchase transactions involving over 1,200 restaurants, stores, and park locations.?With extensive experience in buying and selling businesses, handling negotiations with buyers and sellers, and creating strategic partnerships to build strong brands, Tim has facilitated deals ranging from $11 million to $350 million+.

?Tim is a member of IAAPA, CAPA, FAA, AAMA & WWA. He is a licensed commercial real estate broker in the State of Florida. Tim earned a BS/BA in Accounting from the University of Central Florida and?an MBA in Finance from Orlando College.