You’ve seen the "About Us" pages. They’re usually a graveyard of stock photos featuring people in blazers shaking hands over a glass desk. The copy is worse. It's a word salad of "innovative solutions," "client-centric approaches," and "synergy." It’s boring. It’s fake. Most importantly, it’s failing. In a world where every single interaction is logged, reviewed, and scrutinized on social media, the phrase this is who we are has transitioned from a boardroom platitude to a survival mechanism for modern businesses.
People are tired. Honestly, we're all exhausted by the polished veneer. When a company stands up and says, "This is who we are," it shouldn't feel like a marketing campaign; it should feel like a confession or a manifesto. It’s about the messy reality of how things actually get made, who actually makes them, and what those people actually believe when the cameras aren't rolling.
The shift is massive.
The Death of the Corporate Mask
For decades, the goal of business communication was to appear as large and impenetrable as possible. You wanted to look like a fortress. But the internet poked holes in the walls. Now, transparency isn't a choice you make; it’s a state of being imposed upon you by a transparent world.
Think about Patagonia. They don’t just sell jackets. Their entire identity is wrapped up in a specific, almost aggressive stance on environmentalism. When they took out a full-page ad in the New York Times that said "Don't Buy This Jacket," they weren't just being cheeky. They were saying: this is who we are, even if it costs us a sale today. It’s counterintuitive. It’s risky. It works because it feels human.
Contrast that with the "vibe shift" we've seen in tech. For years, companies like Meta or Google leaned into the "don't be evil" or "connecting the world" tropes. But as the curtain pulled back on data privacy and algorithmic bias, those slogans started to feel like gaslighting. When the internal reality doesn't match the external "this is who we are" statement, you don't just lose customers. You lose soul. You lose the benefit of the doubt.
Why "Brand Voice" Is Kinda Dead
We used to talk about brand voice like it was a costume you put on. "Let's make our social media manager sound like a snarky teenager," or "Let's make our email newsletters sound like a trusted professor."
That's over.
Authenticity isn't a voice; it's an alignment. It’s when the CEO’s private emails match the public press release. It's when the customer service rep is empowered to be a real person instead of a script-reading robot. If your "this is who we are" statement requires a 50-page brand guidelines document to maintain, it's probably a lie. Real identity is effortless because it’s true.
Radical Transparency in Practice
Let’s look at Buffer. They are famous for their "Open Salaries" policy. You can literally go to their website and see exactly how much every single employee makes, from the CEO to the junior developers. That is a terrifying level of exposure for most business owners. But for Buffer, it’s the ultimate way of saying this is who we are. It eliminates the "black box" of corporate politics. It builds a level of trust with both employees and customers that money simply cannot buy.
Then there’s the case of the "unfiltered" startup.
Take a look at how companies like Liquid Death have exploded. They sell water in a can. That’s it. But their identity is built on a "middle finger" to traditional, soft-focus beverage marketing. Their "this is who we are" is loud, punk rock, and intentionally polarizing. They aren't trying to be for everyone. In fact, they thrive on the fact that some people hate their branding.
- They embrace the "dumb" idea.
- They lean into heavy metal aesthetics.
- They treat marketing like entertainment, not a sales pitch.
This works because it’s consistent. If Liquid Death suddenly started posting "Heart Health Awareness" tips in a corporate font, the brand would die instantly. The authenticity would evaporate.
The Psychological Hook of Vulnerability
Why does this matter so much? It’s basic psychology. Humans are evolved to detect deception. We have a "BS meter" that has been finely tuned by a lifetime of being sold to. When a company admits a mistake—truly admits it, without the PR speak—we lean in.
Remember when KFC ran out of chicken in the UK? That’s a catastrophic failure for a company that has "Chicken" in its name. Their response wasn't a formal apology filled with excuses about supply chains. Instead, they took out a full-page ad showing an empty bucket with the letters rearranged to spell "FCK."
That ad was a masterclass in this is who we are. It said: "We messed up, we’re embarrassed, and we’re as shocked as you are." It turned a PR nightmare into one of the most successful brand-building moments in recent history. They traded perfection for humanity.
It Starts From the Inside Out
You can't fake a "This is who we are" moment for the public if your employees don't believe it first.
Company culture is often treated like a perk—free snacks, bean bag chairs, maybe a ping-pong table. But culture is actually the collection of behaviors that are rewarded and punished within an organization. If you claim your identity is built on "innovation" but you punish every small failure, your identity is actually "fear."
I’ve seen dozens of companies struggle with this. They spend millions on rebranding, new logos, and fancy taglines. But then a Glassdoor review comes out and reveals a toxic management structure. The "this is who we are" facade crumbles.
The Audit: Finding Your True North
If you're trying to figure out your own organizational or personal identity, stop looking at your mission statement. Instead, look at your calendar and your credit card statement.
- Where do you spend your time?
- What do you spend money on when no one is looking?
- What are the "non-negotiables" you’ve stuck to even when they cost you profit?
Those are the real indicators. If you say you value "work-life balance" but you send Slack messages at 10 PM on a Sunday, your "this is who we are" is actually "we are always on." Be honest about it. Being a "hard-driving, always-on" company isn't necessarily a bad thing—if that’s who you actually are. There are plenty of people who want to work for and buy from a company like that. The friction only happens when you pretend to be something you aren't.
The Risk of Being Real
Let’s be honest. Being authentic is scary. When you say this is who we are, you are essentially saying, "And this is who we are NOT."
You will lose people.
When a brand takes a stand on a social issue or reveals its internal quirks, it draws a line in the sand. Some people will be on the other side of that line. This is the "mushy middle" trap. Most businesses are so afraid of offending anyone that they end up appealing to no one. They become a beige, flavorless soup.
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But the most successful brands of the 2020s are the ones that are comfortable being a "particular flavor."
- Tesla (under its original brand promise) was for the early adopters and the tech-obsessed.
- A24 is for the film nerd who wants something "weird."
- Peloton is for the person who wants a high-intensity, community-driven cult-like fitness experience.
These companies don't apologize for their intensity or their niche. They lean into it. They know that a small group of "true believers" is worth more than a million lukewarm followers.
How to Communicate "This Is Who We Are" Without Sounding Like a Jerk
There is a fine line between being authentic and being self-indulgent. We’ve all seen the "Main Character Energy" brands that make everything about themselves. The key is to connect your identity to a value for the customer.
Don't just say "We are passionate about quality." Everyone says that. It’s meaningless.
Instead, show the "Why."
"We spent six months sourcing this specific leather because we couldn't find anything else that didn't crack after a year. We’re obsessed with this stuff because we hate buying things that break."
See the difference? The first one is a claim. The second one is a story. The second one explains this is who we are by showing the actions that define the identity. It’s the old writing rule: Show, don't tell.
Actionable Steps for Defining and Using Your Identity
Identity isn't a static thing. It evolves. But it needs a foundation. To actually implement a "This Is Who We Are" philosophy in a business or personal brand, you need to move past the abstract and into the concrete.
1. Document the "Default"
Look at how decisions are made when the "boss" isn't in the room. What is the default path? If the default is to save money at the expense of quality, that's your identity. If the default is to over-deliver for a customer even if it hurts the margin, that’s your identity. Document these defaults. They are the truest reflection of who you are.
2. Kill the "Corporate Speak"
Read your website copy out loud. If you wouldn't say those words to a friend over a cup of coffee, delete them. Use contractions. Use "I" and "We." Stop using passive voice. "Mistakes were made" is cowardly. "We messed up" is human.
3. Share the "Behind the Scenes"
Transparency is a great shortcut to authenticity. Show the messy office. Show the prototypes that failed. Show the debate that happened in the meeting. People don't want to see the finished product as much as they want to see the struggle that went into it. It creates a sense of shared journey.
4. Hire for "Values Fit," Not just "Skill Fit"
You can teach someone how to use a software package. You can't teach them to care about the things you care about. If your this is who we are includes a commitment to radical honesty, don't hire people who are conflict-averse. It will never work.
5. Be Ready to Lose Money
This is the ultimate test. If your identity doesn't cost you something eventually, it’s just a hobby. Be prepared to fire a high-paying client who treats your staff poorly. Be prepared to discontinue a profitable product that doesn't meet your new sustainability standards. These "losses" are actually long-term investments in your brand equity.
The most powerful thing a brand can do in 2026 is to be unapologetically itself. In an era of AI-generated content and deepfakes, the only thing that cannot be automated is a genuine, human-driven identity. When you finally stop trying to be what you think the market wants and start saying this is who we are, you’ll find that the market has been waiting for you all along.
Stop polishing. Start revealing. The world is looking for something real, and honestly, you're the only one who can provide your specific brand of reality.
Next Steps for Real Alignment
To move from theory to reality, conduct a "Shadow Audit" of your brand. Ask five long-term customers and five employees to describe your organization in three words—without using any words found on your website. Compare their answers to your official mission statement. The gap between those two lists is your "Authenticity Debt." Your job for the next quarter is to close that gap by changing your actions, not your marketing. Focus on one core behavior that contradicts your stated identity and fix it at the systemic level. Authenticity isn't found in a logo; it's found in the consistency of your "No."