Communication. We all know it. It's a bit about what we say. A bit more about how we say it. But mainly it's our body language.

Well, it's no different for brands.

This has always been true for Retail and Service businesses, with their frequent interactions with customers. But in today's ever-more connected world, for any brand, there's no place to hide.

So how do you control your body language?

You can try and orchestrate every single interaction. And certainly, every element of the customer experience that you can design, should reflect the brand.

But as the frequency and variety of interactions explode, as every retailer knows, it's about your employees, and your culture.

I remember some research I was doing in the US into Retail and Service brands. I was trying to understand why customers were so clear which ones gave them good service and which ones didn't. The answer was blindingly simple. As one respondent put it: "In these stores the employees enjoy working there, in those they don't".

This wasn't because interactions were being carefully orchestrated by these stores. It was just their culture shining through.

In today's ever-more connected world, your brand reflects your culture. That culture needs to live your brand.

And if it's strong enough to inspire your employees, your body language will inspire your customers.

Such are Loyal Brands...