🔒 It’s a Matter of Trust
🧼 Families Are Messy
🏆 Point of Pride
🔒 It’s a Matter of Trust
If you have an opportunity to call your company a family business, do it. Customers trust family businesses more.
The family business brand is a mark of trust. It may not be the reason why a customer buys a company’s products and services, but it can enhance brand loyalty and affinity.
A distinct family business brand creates a halo effect. According to a research report by the Institute for Family Business, the family business brand enhances perceptions of trustworthiness, social responsibility, quality-orientation, and customer-orientation.
The report also found that it didn’t matter if the brand was B2B or B2C. Two-thirds of family businesses find their corporate reputation is superior to non-family competitors.
A family business may not be the largest brand in the category, but the family business brand adds weight. It creates a story and legacy that can place the business on equal footing with its larger rivals.
One Stat to Watch
32 Million
family businesses in the United States that contribute 83.3 million jobs and $7.7 trillion annually to U.S. gross domestic product, according to Family Enterprise USA.
🧼 Families Are Messy
I know a few family-owned businesses that refuse to acknowledge they are “family businesses” publicly. They believe that family doesn’t mean professional.
This can be true. Families are inherently messy. We all have our issues, and sometimes that can spill into the operating company. The irony is the messy factor can humanize the brand.
Public companies are often called “faceless” and “soulless.” This isn’t exactly fair, but it highlights how the family story enhances the brand. A more human brand creates a point of reference that we can know, like, and trust.
The caveat is messy is fine unless the behavior is fraudulent or incompetent.
A family has a responsibility to the brand. They are the holders of the founder’s vision, and the family brand is intrinsically linked to the business brand.
🏆 Point of Pride
Being a family business can be a source of competitive advantage — provided you’re proud of being a family business. The data backs this up!
Ernst & Young and Kennesaw State University’s Cox Family Enterprise Center studied 2,400 of the world’s largest family businesses. The researchers published a fascinating report that highlights a few key insights:
- 76% of the companies studied refer to their enterprise as a “family business” in corporate communications.
- 64% of the respondents said that being a family business helps to differentiate them from competitors.
- 64% said being a family business improved the reputation of the company with customers.
The researchers also discovered that the business was a source of pride for the family. 68% of the respondents said the family strongly identifies with the company, “It is part of who we are.”
A family business brand can radiate inside and out. It’s the cohesion of the family unit and its relationships with customers, partners, and employees that build a Sticky Brand. The family isn’t simply building a business to sell. They are building a business to grow through the generations.
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