The day after we finished training our staff for the new Ford Garage in Gainesville, Florida, a family showed up at the door. They thought we were open because they saw the team in the dining room. We could have told them to come back when the restaurant opened to the public, but instead, we invited them in and they had a fantastic dining experience. That was in 2022, and they still come as frequent guests.

This is just a wonderful story of hospitality. It's one of the “seven commitments” from our brand philosophy that our Gainesville team brought to life beautifully. By living our vision, they created lifelong guests, which shows the importance of getting your team on board with your brand philosophy.

A company's brand philosophy it is often called the North Star, after an age-old technique used by early seafarers. Like the ancient sailors who first steered their ships by it, you can help your team find their way with a well-thought-out vision that is communicate with everyone and is reinforced every day. It has to be something real, not just a poster on the wall in the break room, and it has to come alive through the sharing of stories like the Gainesville example.

Related: If you want customers to be passionate about your brand, follow these 10 commandments

From the numbers

Of our brand CONCEPT it has always been about hospitality and fun. The restaurant was designed to evoke a classic American service station, from the Ford Motor Company-inspired logo to the decor and menu; what is NOT fun about that?

Our goal was to customize it for our unique vision, so we updated our brand philosophy to what we call “1-4-7”: a vision to “drive a unique dining experience,” four principles (people , products, performance and package , meaning atmosphere and spirit), and seven commitments (integrity, quality, hospitality, excellence, teamwork, community and fun).

It took a team of 16 people from all levels of the company to develop our new philosophy. after senior leadership gave them the broad strokes of our overall vision, we hired an outside moderator to lead the effort. Every company I've worked for has turned to an outside expert for projects like this. You should because your people will be so close to the brand that they may have trouble seeing what you are trying to achieve.

The moderator led us through exercises to identify principles and commitments, starting with a list of 57 and eventually narrowing it down to seven. We talked about our identity as a hospitality business as opposed to a service business – and we probably spent three hours on that alone.

Now, in every decision we make, whether it's about building design or marketing imagery, we pull out the guide and ask if the new project works. Everything we do is channeled through the brand's philosophy.

Related: This is why it is so important to articulate your brand values

Getting him on the team

Coming up with a brand philosophy doesn't end when you've drafted it and put it in writing. You need to train your team so that they put ideas to work every day. It is a constant PRocess. You need to talk about it all the time, work it into team building exercises, and measure new initiatives against it to make sure you stay in line.

No matter what industry you work in, a great way to start each morning is to get your team together as a group. I've seen these happen while walking into various retailers when the store opens for the day. At our company, we have a daily meeting called an “alley rally,” where we talk about what's important that day: specials, tasting menu items, and anything new and notable. We love telling stories about how someone on the team brought one of our principles to life the other day in their interaction with a guest.

You must incorporate your brand philosophy in the hiring process, too. Within 30 seconds of talking to a candidate, you should know if they “get you” and can bring your company's vision to life. You require eye contact and a friendly demeanor in a hospitality business. Do they smile? Do they talk about their family and friends? (We want people willing to share a bit of themselves.) If they are the guests, how do they want the staff to take care of them, and can they provide the same caring approach?

The brand philosophy should be something the whole team can support. It's not directed at guests, but if your team is living it, your guests will feel it in the way they're treated when they walk through your door. You will feel it when they come back to get that positive experience again and again.