What's in a brand?

Brand means different things to different people, even when you think they're saying the same thing. Understanding what brand means to and for you is critical before developing it further or investing in it. Its also important to understand what agencies do and don't do when it comes to branding.

Brand Perspective

In "Brand: It ain't the logo" by Ted Mathews he indicates its what people think about you and stresses that its the culture of the organization. Arlene Dickinson in her book Persuasion also says its how people perceive you. And I believe Seth Godin is attributed with saying "Your brand is what Google says it is". But its not that simple. Its more than just what people think or perceive internally and externally. Its a combination of factual accounts - how long you've been in existence and your financial performance; what your internal culture is and if it is aligned to what you say in your recruiting campaigns; what your advertising says or claims and what is actually being delivered; what your clients/customers say about you; and its a bit about vision, what you want to be.

Representing and Conveying Brand

Then there is how the brand is represented - for some small companies it may just be a name or logo; for others it also includes colour families, fonts, styles, photo type (both style and content including action), and messaging (including word use and style).

And then there is how the brand is conveyed through different channels including print collateral, ads in print, online ads, online properties, and even office facility signage etc.

Phased Approach

The main mistake agencies make when being engaged to create a brand is only talking with executives. Every agency takes a consulting phased approach - discovery/research, assessment, strategy, implementation/activation, measure/review.

Discovery Phase

During the discovery or research phase most agencies interview or meet with executives and they forget that the brand isn't just a vision, its also what is going on in the depths of the company and how that is being conveyed to customers. I've found that you get the best perspective by asking the receptionist, the call centre staff, IT personnel, finance, human resources - recruiters and talent managers, marketers and any front line staff. Sure the C-Suite know where they want the company to go and they have performance figures but true understanding of what a company is comes from staff. And then the same goes for interviews of clients - its not enough to ask a few executives what they think but also the staff that deal with the services and products - that is if you're brave enough to get a full perspective.

Assessment Phase

The next thing in a branding strategy is for the agency to assess all the information they've gathered and feed it back to you to tell you what the perspectives are about you. Here is another mistake agencies make because they are conscious of who is paying their fees - they will allow the executives to reinterpret the assessment to fit in with what they want it to be and thereby create a gap from what is to what is desired. If that gap isn't addressed, i.e. how are you getting from current state to desired state, then the gap will widen and there will be problems for the company and not just the brand.

Brand Strategy

This plays right into the strategy for the brand as well, if the executives want to continue doing everything they've been doing because that is their comfort level rather than setting achievable objectives and developing tactics to reach the defined goals, they'll resist any new development or positioning for the brand. This is especially tough when you're asking for budget to do new things that the executive don't understand. You need to continually educate the executive on what the value of the brand is and what can be achieved by promoting it.

Implementing the Brand

That leads to the implementation or activation phase. Its not enough to give employees a poster or a promo item like a pen and say there you go that's our brand. Even providing new templates doesn't give the brand its due. Employees need to understand what the brand has been defined as and why. They are your first line into customers and if they don't have it right your customers won't either. A strong internal and external communications strategy needs to be implemented to rollout your brand effectively. And you need to be consistent in your use and messaging otherwise you dilute the brand.

Reviewing the Brand

Finally, you need to review and measure what you've done. I've seen brands rollout with rules that couldn't be implemented because they didn't take into account the online use - both in terms of how and where the logo is used and colour use. Agencies aren't perfect so they can miss a key component. And your business strategy may change or you may need to have a specific focus and need to adapt the brand slightly to incorporate a new direction - be it an acquisition or new line of business. You also need to track on how the messaging is being conveyed and whether its resonating with your customer base - after all, no matter what you think a brand is, it should help your business.