I rang my hairdresser the other day to book an appointment, however she didn’t have an available time after work for another month. Do I wait for a month or do I go during work hours which was not the ideal situation? The receptionist suggested that I could make an appointment with a new staff member who was out from London.

I remembered receiving an email from the salon a few months back apologising for the long lead times to book a haircut, but they were searching hard for a new hairdresser to add to their team. The email further explained that they wanted to make sure they were totally happy with the person. Did they fit into the salon’s brand; their values, personality, experience, style and expertise. In recalling this email I felt confident to book my next appointment with their new employee because I knew the salon had gone to great lengths to find someone with similar values and skills.

The owner of the Salon is very detailed and customer focused, so I knew that her decision would be well thought out and considered. The fact that she was wanting to grow her business based on hiring the right staff and was willing to wait to find the ideal person, instilled confidence for me to book their new hairdresser. Also the fact that she informed all her customers that they were working hard to shorten waiting times by finding another person, but didn’t want to choose the wrong person.

This is a perfect case of building a team culture based on the company’s values. If you stay true to these values you will grow and create a great brand.

London’s 2012 Olympic logo was specifically designed to appeal to a young, hip audience but research indicates that the London teenagers do not respond to it at all. They actually feel insulted that the logo was designed with their interests in mind with no understanding of their culture. London teenagers are proud, they love their city and they’re savvy about branding. They’re well aware of the brands they connect with and the ones they don’t. They are embarrassed by the image the London Olympic logo is projecting of their city.