Brand Affinity. Why Your Employees Need to Love Your Strategy?
Employees won’t advocate for what they don’t understand—or feel.
Too many companies mistake “brand awareness” or internal campaigns for advocacy.
But without emotional connection to your strategy—without brand affinity—you’ll never build a true culture of alignment, ownership, and advocacy.
And that means your machine won’t run. Not the way you want it to.
If you want your company to operate like a well-oiled machine—if you want every team, every person, every message pulling in the same direction—there’s one thing you cannot overlook:
Brand affinity.
Episode 199: Brand Affinity: Why Your Employees Need to Love Your Strategy
Welcome to episode 199 of the Story-Driven Business Podcast.
I’m your host Susanna Rantanen, author of Story-Driven Employer Branding and creator of the Magnetic Employer Branding Method™.
Today we’re talking about a game-changing concept for CEOs and founders who are ambitious, who can achieve their vision—but whose company sometimes feels more like a loose collection of teams than a single, aligned force.
If that’s you—keep listening.
Because brand affinity is the missing ingredient that turns your strategy into shared purpose, and your employees into true advocates.
This episode will go deep.
We’ll explore what brand affinity really is, how it differs from awareness or recognition, why it matters for internal alignment, and how it creates ROI that’s impossible to ignore.
I’ll also give plenty of examples—real-life moments you’ll recognise—and practical ways you can build brand affinity inside your organisation.
Let’s dive in.
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What Is Brand Affinity?
Let’s define this clearly.
Brand awareness is when people know your name.
Brand recognition is when people can identify you—logo, slogan, product.
But brand affinity?
That’s when people feel connected to your brand.
It’s when your strategy resonates with them emotionally. When they don’t just understand what you do, but why it matters—to them, personally.
When employees have brand affinity:
- They take pride in working there.
- They talk about the company with enthusiasm.
- They connect their own identity to the business.
- They stay longer, contribute more, and promote you to others—organically.
It’s the difference between an employee saying “I work at Company X” vs. saying “I belong at Company X.”
What is employer brand affinity?
Why Brand Affinity Builds The Machine You Want
Most CEOs want systems, processes, and people that work together—smoothly, efficiently, predictably.
But here’s the truth:
Alignment starts with emotion.
People will only align to strategy if they believe in it. Not because they were told to. Because they feel it.
Think of elite sports teams. Military units. World-class companies. Alignment isn’t forced. It’s emotional.
When employees love the strategy—when they believe it serves a purpose bigger than profit—they give more than compliance. They give energy. Innovation. Loyalty.
That’s what creates the well-oiled machine you’re after.
The Problem: Campaigns Don’t Build Brand Affinity
Many CEOs still think branding is a marketing campaign.
Too many companies continue to mistake “brand awareness” or internal campaigns for advocacy.
Run an EVP campaign, launch a new video, share a few values—job done.
But campaigns alone don’t create affinity.
Employees won’t advocate for what they don’t understand—or feel.
Without emotional connection to your strategy—without brand affinity—you’ll never build a true culture of alignment, ownership, and advocacy.
And that means your machine won’t run. Not the way you want it to.
Why?
Because affinity is not built through one-way messages.
It’s built through shared meaning, emotional resonance, and consistent storytelling that connects strategy to personal identity.
Examples CEOs Can Relate To
Imagine this:
You walk into the office—and overhear two engineers explaining the new company vision to a new hire, in their own words.
You’re at a client dinner—and one of your team passionately tells the story of why your product really matters, linking it to the client’s business impact.
You scroll LinkedIn—and see employees organically posting stories about what they’re proud of, without being asked.
A competitor approaches your talent—but they stay, because they feel this company is part of who they are.
That is brand affinity.
It’s employees becoming ambassadors. Not because they were told to, but because they want to.
And when that happens—your machine doesn’t just work. It thrives.
Emotional Connection, Belonging And Status
Brand affinity is about more than belief. It’s about belonging. It’s about status.
People want to belong to something that enhances their identity. Something their peers respect. Something they’re proud to post about.
When your strategy, culture and leadership storytelling create that emotional connection—employees start to view the brand as part of their story.
That’s when they:
- Advocate externally
- Stay through tough times
- Attract like-minded talent
- Raise the standards for themselves and others
It’s how you go from “just another job” to a true talent magnet.
Brand Affinity Examples From Real Life
Think of Apple in the early days under Steve Jobs.
Employees didn’t just understand the strategy—they believed in “Think Different.” It gave them status. It made them proud to belong.
Or Patagonia—where employees and customers alike feel part of a tribe that stands for environmental activism.
Or even a local tech firm I worked with—where after we built brand affinity through storytelling, the CEO started getting messages from employees saying: “This is the first place where my work feels part of something bigger.”
No campaign alone can create that. But strategic storytelling, done consistently, can.
And it’s not just me saying this. Some of the most iconic founders and CEOs are vocal advocates for the power of brand affinity:
Howard Schultz (Starbucks) — Built an entire global brand on the idea of the “third place” between work and home—creating deep emotional connections with customers and employees.
Richard Branson (Virgin Group) — Believes brand and culture are inseparable. He says: “Your brand is only as good as your reputation—and your reputation is built by your people.”
Satya Nadella (Microsoft) — Transformed Microsoft’s internal culture through storytelling around empathy, growth mindset, and mission, leading to renewed employee pride and external advocacy.
Sara Blakely (Spanx) — Constantly shares her personal leadership journey and behind-the-scenes company stories—building incredible brand love from employees and customers alike.
When leaders embrace storytelling, affinity grows—and with it, business results.
How To Build Brand Affinity As A CEO (Founder Or Other Business Leader)?
Here’s what you can do—no marketing magic required:
(1) Clarify your strategic story.
Don’t just state your mission. Tell the story of why it matters—for your customers, your people, your industry.
(2) Lead with story.
As the CEO, share your leadership moments. Show what the strategy looks like in action.
(3) Give people meaning.
Show employees how their role connects to the bigger story.
(4) Encourage storytelling.
Make space for employees to share their own stories—internally and externally.
(5) Be consistent.
Brand affinity isn’t built in one campaign. It grows through repeated, aligned experiences.
Why Brand Affinity Matters To You And The Business You Lead More Than Ever?
In a world of hybrid work, changing talent expectations, and fast-moving competition—brand affinity is what keeps your best people aligned, motivated, and engaged.
It’s what makes your business resilient.
Because people don’t just work harder for love.
They sell better. They stay longer. They innovate more.
Key Takeaways From This Episode
- Brand affinity is emotional connection to strategy.
- It’s what turns employees into advocates.
- It’s built through consistent storytelling, not campaigns.
- It creates alignment, loyalty and business results CEOs can feel.
If you want your business to run like a well-oiled machine—start with the engine: your people’s belief in your strategy.
That belief comes from brand affinity.
And affinity is built through story.
Learn how to lead with story: storydrivenemployerbranding.com
My name is Susanna Rantanen and this is the Story-Driven Business podcast. One step further from building a modern employer brand to reach the entire business and its stakeholders.
Until next time—keep leading with story.
