How to use or facilitate:
- Download the free template by clicking “Get Template” below.
- Start by imagining your brand as a person. What does he or she look like? Draw out a sketch so you can visualize your brand as a fictional character while you work through the rest of the worksheet. Add a name, gender, location, and description.
- Now, consider this template as your “dating profile,” as if you were signing your brand up on Match.com. Set a timer for 10 minutes and fill out as much information as possible. Really try to imagine all of the nuances of your brand’s personality, and have fun with it.
- If working with a group, take 2 minutes to present each of your profiles.
- After everyone has shared, turn the sheet over. Using the final 3 minutes, imagine your brand just went on a first date – a blind date that went horribly wrong. What happened? Where did you fall short or not live up to the expectation you set? Maybe as you shared your profile with the group, there were some traits that felt awkward or uncomfortable to discuss. What were these? How can your brand personality be adjusted to become more likable by your audience? Who do you NOT want to be, or what qualities do you want to avoid?
The Takeaway:
Branding isn’t just about communicating the elements of your organization, but more so about your audience’s perception of your brand. Blind Date is a Design Thinking exercise that allows us to take a step outside of our comfort zones and think about brands as embodiments of human concepts. If your brand was a person, how might he or she come across to someone meeting them for the first time? This exercise will ultimately help inform brand articulation, voice and tone, and the narrative from which messaging and content is created.
