Want a magnetic brand strategy? Build it on your beliefs
Rebecca Mackay Miller, brand strategist and author of this guest blog on opinions, beliefs and brand strategy
Introducing unforgettable brands & brand strategist Rebecca Mackay Miller
What makes a brand unforgettable? It isn’t just a striking logo, clever tagline, or even the quality of the service itself. In a crowded marketplace where thousands of businesses look and sound the same, what truly cuts through is an opinion. A point of view is more than a passing thought; it’s the belief system that informs how you work, the values you champion, and the change you want to see in your industry.
In this guest series, we’re shining a light on collaborators who share our approach to building brands that are both strategic and deeply human. This time it’s Rebecca Mackay Miller our brand strategy associate from Bloc & Rose. Her article explores why your perspective is the ‘secret sauce’ of a winning brand strategy—and how leading with your beliefs creates stronger client connections, greater trust and long-term growth.
Like Rebecca, at Wildings Studio, we believe brand and website design should never be superficial. They should be built on a foundation of clarity, conviction and creativity. This post demonstrates exactly that: the power of placing opinion at the heart of your positioning and why it’s the most valuable brand asset you already own.
Wildings is a website designer for small business offering website design. Based in Torquay in South Devon, we deliver small business website design for design-conscious brands like garden designers, interior designers, architects, circular ethos restaurants, speciality coffee shops, organic cafés and boutique hotels. This is our series on the important areas that crossover with branding, featuring guest blogs from our regular collaborators. Whether it’s photography, copywriting, printing or otherwise, find out what makes for a strong, attractive brand.
It's your opinion that fuels a bold, winning brand strategy
There is one sentiment that I impart on every client I work with; “what you do is the least interesting thing about you”. This might seem odd, given that I’m a brand consultant by trade and my clients work with me in a business capacity but hear me out.
There are upwards of five million small businesses in the UK. Tens of thousands of those will share your industry, offer the same services, to the same audience, for a similar price point. Competing on what you ‘do’ alone is no longer enough to cut through, even with beautifully distinctive visual branding and captivating tone of voice.
The brands leading the charge at the time of writing and beyond are those with the courage to take a stance, place their opinions front and centre in their messaging and lead with how and what they think, not just what they do.
What is an opinion and why does it matter for your brand strategy?
The Merriam Webster dictionary offers up two definitions for the word opinion:
“A view, judgment, or appraisal formed in the mind about a particular matter.”
“A belief stronger than impression and less strong than positive knowledge.”
In the context of branding, it’s the perspectives that shape why you you’ve built your business the way you have (or intend to) and the change you’re here to make. Which informs visual language of your brand identity, and the words you’ll use to share your message with the world.
Why an opinion gives your brand strategy a competitive advantage
Whether you put it down to the huge growth in the number of small business, the rise in AI generated content, or fear of raising your head above the parapet and facing the faceless wrath of the internet, we’re seeing the biggest homogenization of brand content in history.
Spend a few moments scrolling through LinkedIn or Instagram and you’ll almost instantly be met with a post after post that looks and sounds just like the last. Aside from being dull as dishwasher, its damaging to the brands swept up in its tides. At best, your content goes unnoticed. At worst, you’ll be written off as irrelevant.
But there’s one thing that neither AI, nor any of your competitors can replicate: YOU. Your lived experience, your beliefs, thoughts and philosophies. Your frustrations with industry norms, the contrarian takes and the opinions you’ve forged that inform how and why you think and act the way you do.
How to use polarisation to power your brand strategy and positioning
Your future clients are more discerning than ever; they want to feel as though they know you, can relate to you, are aligned to your beliefs before they hand over their precious data or bank details.
Trust, over attention, is the new economy, resonance the currency and in this already saturated market playing is safe costs you far more than bold positioning. And while for some the fear of alienating potential customers, being disagreed with or called out is real - this is where having an opinion becomes your secret weapon.
Before you edge slowly to the door in the hope of a French exit…
Your opinions needn’t be political or attached to a cause. They can be as seemingly un work related as chasing Awe in the everyday or focused on something you specifically disagree with in your industry – we’re going for resonance, not shock value.
Glennon Doyle’s “We can do hard things” was born of the belief that we’re all more capable and resilient than we realise. My own client Kate built a gifting marketing place offering help, not stuff on the belief that we’ve lost sight of the art of showing up, and that the £60M gifting industry is behind it.
Opinion-driven brand positioning will fuel your long term growth
When you lead with what you believe, as opposed to what you do you stop being just another service provider; and become the person in your industry who stands for X.
Your name is mentioned in rooms you’re not even in, “you want your home to satisfy your love of print without overstimulating your brain? You need to speak to Freja, her whole thing designing for neurodiversity”.
You attract your ideal clients like magnets, because they’re already sold on your beliefs, before they even get on the call.
Rebecca: An example of opinion-driven brand positioning
You start being pitched to, for opportunities you’d never previously have dreamed of. Like my client Rebecca, who shifted from leading with the photography services she offered to her belief that we need to rewild our connection to nature and was approached by the National Trust to exhibit her work.
You’re able to command premium pricing, because the perceived value of your offering is far higher than the deliverables your competitors are still leading with.
The best bit? With every conversation, every piece of content your impact compounds. For Rebecca, National Trust was just the start. She went on to win awards for conservation photography, global brand partnerships and was elected President of the Board for charity Whale Wise.
All made possible because she made the one strategic move to lead with what she believed, as opposed to what she delivered.
How to uncover your opinion and feed it into your brand strategy
Your unique perspectives aren’t manufactured; they’re unearthed. They already exist within you; you just need to peel back the layers until they reveal themselves (which they absolutely will!)
Here are some prompts to get you started:
What frustrates you more than anything in the world?
What brings you joy and inspiration above all else?
When do you feel at your most powerful?
What’s fundamentally wrong with your industry? What are the practices or it’s always-been-done-this-way approaches that you disagree with?
What do you believe with such ferocity; you’d be willing to risk your reputation defending?
They should be:
Refreshing takes will shift your industry for good, we’re not here to be contrarian for the sake of it.
Born from your actual experience, I’m talking deeply rooted in your lived in experience, and work with real clients.
Relevant to your audience, your opinion should connect to the challenges your ideal clients are trying to solve.
Specific. Vague philosophical statements don't cut it; your opinion should point toward a different way of doing things.
Once you’ve got a shortlist, it’s time to substantiate them. The goal is to create narratives you could share in conversation, not just a snappy one-liner for social.
Abi: An example of positioning a brand using an opinion
For each opinion, jot down the context in which its true, and then why this matters to your audience. Let’s use my client Abi, who hosts transpersonal wellness residencies at the world’s most prestigious hotels, as an example:
Opinion: Luxury has become unwell
Context: The wellness industry has become commoditised, superficial and trend-led Why it Matters: Luxury and wellness have been intrinsically connected, and to hold onto their position as world leaders Abi’s clients offer truly transformational experiences their guests have never had before.
You can almost hear her passionately talking about this on a podcast, or image her in conversation with a potential client. This is what we’re aiming for.
Anything else I need to know about brand strategy?
Your opinions shouldn’t be an afterthought; they’re a fundamental piece of who you are and what sets you apart from the sea of same-same competitors and bland, AI generated content.
The businesses that stand out today aren’t playing it safe; they're the ones brave enough to embrace the perspectives that have shaped them, and strategic enough to build a brand idenity and voice in service of it.
Your opinion isn't just part of your brand strategy—it IS your brand strategy.
Want more insights on brand strategy? Come and find me (Rebecca) on Instagram @blocandrose or explore more resources at blocandrose.com – I’d love to connect.
Previously in the series
In this article:
Introducing unforgettable brands & brand strategist Rebecca Mackay Miller
What is an opinion and why does it matter for your brand strategy?
Why an opinion gives your brand strategy a competitive advantage
How to use polarisation to power your brand strategy and positioning
Opinion-driven brand positioning will fuel your long term growth
How to uncover your opinion and feed it into your brand strategy
About the author:
Rebecca Mackay Miller is the founder of Bloc + Rose, a strategist for multifaceted female founders. She helps women distil their ideas and identity into a clear, authentic voice—building presence, authority and impact through soulful strategy and powerful storytelling.
