The Vibe

While teaching at UNC-CH one day, I asked my students if they understood the difference between a brand and a logo. This is a classic question, and it’s always fun to watch students light up when they understand the difference. A student raised their hand at the back of the class. 

Is the brand like the ‘vibe’ of a business or organization?” 

I had never heard anyone say it like that, but yes, it is the vibe. That term still reverberates in my head today. It’s up there with the time my ex-girlfriend told me that type was not an after-thought. It hangs out with Maseo of De La Soul casually mentioning the term, “creative economy” while sitting in my Jeep. It still has an effect on me. 

I’m writing this because I’ve realized when I work, I build a vibe. I change my surroundings, my light and my music depending on the feelings I want to express. I protect the vibe I create by turning off my phone’s sound and refraining from checking my email in order to create or work.

Right now, my soundtrack is “Dxngxr” by Ufo Fex and Big Ghost, Ltd. Ooooh baby...so dope...get that. 

When that energy comes together, it mixes with our perspectives and feels like magic. The vibe has to feel a certain way, and that feeling should be reflected in what I’m building. It’s the soundtrack to my “movie.” No matter the genre, it’s a feeling. 

My business has a vibe. Some would say it’s “written” all over our website, but it’s more than that. It’s who we are and it’s the way we are. It’s the culmination of our diverse backgrounds, musical tastes and freedom in creation. We refine the way we communicate who we are all the time. It’s important because it’s our vibe. We keep it real. We have no choice. 

Protecting the vibe is important. The brand is important, but the vibe of it, the way it feels, is the aspect often lost when starting something. It’s easy to pick an aesthetic from Instagram, for example, but crafting an authentic vibe is the art of learning how to communicate it. How we express our businesses gives insight on what it should feel like to do business with each other. 

Brands are personal. Business is never “just” business. 

Yooooo, y’all remember when Wesley Snipes said, “Always business, never personal” in “New Jack City?”

Too many people took that to heart, and too many people paid attention to this in movies they watched. Business taps into personal desires in order to operate. The brand’s power is in promising something and backing it up. We go to McDonald’s because we know what it’s going to be like. It tastes familiar. The inside feels a certain way and we can expect it, no matter the location. 

When the vibe doesn’t match the promise, you confuse your consumers. When brands are authentic–when they understand who they are and who they aren’t–it’s easier to intentionally build this. They are not one-dimensional. Therefore, why would we only consider what it looks like? Brands are multi-sensory engagement vehicles. We want to know what they look, smell, sound, taste and feel like. The brand is a living entity. We change its clothes and we clean it when it’s dirty. I teach students design is multi-dimensional, engaging multiple senses to communicate a value proposition. Like movies using sound cues to communicate an emotion, your vibe can be directed and communicated through a multi-sensory approach. This is an exercise visionaries, business owners and CEOs can utilize when working through branding.

For a new business, you’re world building. You’re crafting the world through which you communicate. Selecting the soundtrack and purposely crafting the vibe, the playlist, the colors, etc. is the essence of branding. Think about what you want, what other people want, and find the middle ground. 

Translate your vibe authentically through your value.