Brand Messaging has become such a focus in recent years, with data warehouses collecting user data en masse and marketing that "viability" to other companies so that they can pop up that ad.  It feels like just now are we starting to understand what the consumer really wants, and that is the experience of your brand. But let's face it, that is a hard to thing to create with authenticity. 
 
There are many levels of good brand equity, and one way to receive it is by developing what I like to call the 'peoples' ear. To illustrate this, let's take the audio engineer as an example. Great audio engineers have the awesome ability to 'hear' what isn't there, picking out the missing pieces in the mix to make it shine. Not only do they listen to what's being played back in real time, but they also become interpreters of what that artist is trying to communicate emotionally. An experienced ear tells them to take their time with the song as if it were a person, tweaking each frequency until the right message is conveyed.

Much is the same with your audience, in this case though we are both the artist and the listener. If we aren't invested enough in the 'song' we're trying to 'sing' just singing it by ourselves, what makes us think that someone else will listen? Secondly, if we haven't taken our 'song' to a fresh set of 'ears' for perspective, it will undoubtedly fail. 
 

Two things to think about:

1. Brands are built with the consideration of the many. It takes multiple points of view to deliver a concise and clear message repeatedly. Gain some insight from those who have had success in the business and ask them to critique your approach unabashedly without the fear of what their response might be; take it at face value and do it again. The cool thing about branding is that it lives and breathes communication. We have to be willing to open up our communication both about the brand and to those who will interact with it and discover the why. It may take a little time, but all things worth the attention do.
2. Sometimes decisions need to be made solely on gut feeling and not just with the data provided or what the statistics show. I've found that knowing WHEN to use this can be a great thing. Though it can feel risky, it also can be one of the differentiators in a brand's success. Talking through it and explaining why the feeling is there can both inspire and encourage great thinking with positive action and influence. Getting behind an idea that feels right is how some of the world's biggest brands have experienced surges in popularity time and again, keeping things feeling fresh and new.

Know that the 'song' we 'sing' can get old after a while, and could move us into the 'one-hit wonder' category of the brand 'music store'. Changing the tune of your brand, or even the key that you 'sing' in can greatly enhance the experience of those who listen, and increase their love for how you connect with them.