Building a Brand to Last, How To, Small Business 0 comments Brand Strategy, Small Business Advice

Create your Small Business Core Values with these 4 simple steps

Billy

January 20, 2023

Read Time: 9 Minutes

Introduction

Does your business feel disconnected?
Does your business feel like a different company day to day?
Do you even know what your brand stands for?

Does this sound like your business? In that case, your business appears amid an identity crisis, similar to what some teenagers experience when entering high school. They often feel disconnected and lost, leaving them anxious and unsteady as they move forward.

Don’t fret! The answer to your troubles is simple to fix. Create Core Values for your business. They are a collection of adjectives or nouns that serves as a foundation for your business’s values. These words give your team the skills to tackle fresh issues and make sensible choices that steer your business in the right direction. You’ll be all set up for success!

This blog will help you create core values for your small business

Core values are essential pillars of your business, helping define your business identity and ensuring that employees stay on track to attain your business’s vision. This blog will help you create your Small Business Core Values.

Table of Contents
- What are Core Values
  - Core Values Are
  - Core Values Are Not
- Why should you care about hacing Core Values?
- 4 Tips on creating your Core Values
- 4 Simple Steps in Creating Your Core Values
  - Example of My Core Values
- Using my Core Values
- Key Takeaways
- Summary

What are Core Values?

An organization’s core values are pillars of its business. They indicate how the company should work and conduct itself- Through a selection of words, they outline the brand’s parameters of how it should act if it were a person. They are the guidelines you use (or should be using) daily in everything you do on behalf of the company.

In essence, your company values are the beliefs, philosophies, and principles that drive your business. They are your company’s DNA and its being, and they help you differentiate your business from the competition by its actions. That’s why you can only make critical business decisions with core values in mind.

Core Values Are;

Govern personal relationships
Guide business processes
Clarify who we are
Articulate what we stand for
Help explain why we do business the way we do
Guide us on how to teach
Inform us on how to reward
Guide us in making decisions
Underpin the whole organization
Require no external justification

Core Values Are Not;

Operating practices
Business strategies
Cultural norms
Competencies
Changed in response to market/ administration changes
Used individually

Why should you care about having Core Values?

Having clear company values helps ensure that all your employees stay on track to attain your business goals; pursuit of your vision. Your core values guide what you should and shouldn’t be doing. It does this by shaping your business culture and empowering everyone to act in accordance with the business’s beliefs.

Without core values, a business isn’t built to last; it’s like a train with no train track. Destined to derail.

Creating your corporate values early in your brand’s infancy can have a practical and positive effect on your organization and its culture. It’s easier to develop core values when your team is still small. After all, it’s much easier to steer a four-person speedboat than a 2,000-person cruise ship. Therefore once your team grows, reaching a consensus around your values may be challenging.

4 Tips on Creating Your Core Values

Values are often expressed as single nouns or adjectives, such as ‘innovative’, ‘reliable’, ‘fun’, ‘humility’, ‘profitability’, or ‘customer focused’. Organisations will typically define 5-10 core values, and you can be as creative as you want with them. (Bright Hr)

Below are 4 tips to help you in your core value selection:

#1 Wordsmithing

Is the first step within your core value-seeking journey. Finding the right word to fit your organization is the most crucial step.

#2 Refine your selection

It’s important to have a handful of core values that truly represent your business. It’s tempting to have a laundry list of values, but having too many can dilute their importance. Your core values should give others a clear picture of who you are and what you stand for. Think about creating character traits that others can easily connect with. When you find individuals who share your beliefs, goals, and vision, it’s the perfect match!

#3 Make Meaning

Did you know that the meaning of a word can influence the kind of company you build? To know its true meaning, it’s best to look it up in a dictionary. But remember, depending on the context, the meaning of a word might change. So, while building your brand, what definition does that word hold for your company?

#4 It’s Not About You

When it comes to your brand, remember it’s not all about you – it’s about your business. Unless you happen to be the brand itself, it’s important to maintain a distinction between yourself and your company. Sure, you can share similar traits and ambitions, but your business is its own unique entity. By establishing important core values, you’re essentially infusing your brand with a soul and helping it to flourish on its own.

4 Simple Steps in Creating Your Core Values

To craft fundamental principles for your small enterprise, follow these four crucial steps: Fine-tune your language, polish your picks, instill significance, and remember that it’s not solely about you.

Step 1: WordSmithing

Grab a dictionary(Or use Google), your thesaurus, and be prepared to look for Synonyms.

Write down as many core value words.
- Don’t hold back, the aim is to brain-dump as many words as possible.

Note: Values are often expressed as single nouns or adjectives, such as ‘innovative’, ‘reliable’, ‘fun’, ‘humility’, ‘profitability’, or ‘customer focused’.

Step 2: Refine your Selection

Let’s talk about how to choose the perfect words for your brand. This part might be a bit challenging as you’ll need to narrow down your word choices to just three core values. But don’t worry, we’ll guide you through it!

Pick the right words (Slim it down to 3 or 5 words)

Then REVIEW
- With the 3 words, review their meanings.
  - It might sound a bit funny, but we all have our own ways of understanding and using words. To make sure you’re using the right ones, why not check your trusty dictionary? Take a look and see if they’re the right fit for your business!
- If they don’t feel right, try another three until you find your three.

Step 3: Make Meaning

Now you have the dictionary meaning of your words, it’s time to create your business definition of these words.

What does that word mean to your business?
- If you can rewrite the meaning with your business in mind, what would the definition be?

Let’s have some fun! Start by writing down your initial reaction to what the word could mean for your business. Don’t overthink it, just let your instincts guide you. Trust yourself and enjoy the process!

Step 4: It’s Not About You

This can be the most challenging part of your core values.
Your brand is starting to shape its own humanized persona, and to do this, it needs its own values. This helps with separating yourself from your business, so ensure that the words you select are right for your brand.

Write each core value on a sheet/slip of paper.
- Write down the dictionary and your brand definition of the words below them.
Place these in a room that you visit often.
- I recommend the bathroom
  - It’s here where you shut off but is still active enough to have a clear head.

Give it a week or two, share it with friends, and see if these connect with what you want from your business.

NOTE: BE MINDFUL

Don’t fall into the trap of selecting numerous words for your core values. It’s paramount that you stick to only 3-5 words. Why? Because being selective is crucial in communicating a precise and comprehensive picture of your identity and values. If you exceed 5 words, your brand transforms into a symbol of everything and therefore loses its true significance – and that means you stand for nothing. So, choose wisely!

Free Download: Big List of Core Value Words

56 Core Values Examples to Guide Your Organization