Throughout my career I’ve been involved in numerous naming and branding initiatives and am always struck by not only the intrinsic challenges of getting a group of people to agree on a particular name/brand for a company, product or service— but also by the enormous amount of angst and emotion that becomes part of the process.
In truth, the process of coming up with a name—whether for a company, a product, a campaign, a department, or whatever is a process (more…)
At Strategic Communications, we have worked with companies, large and small, in a variety of industries on branding and rebranding initiatives. One of the biggest areas of misunderstanding that we encounter is that a rebranding initiative means updating the company logo and marketing materials. That’s potentially part of the process, certainly, but rebranding involves a lot more than that. Rebranding is a significant undertaking and one that shouldn’t be taken lightly. As we note in a related blog post, “Exercise caution before you attempt to rebrand,” a brand takes a great deal of time to develop, and businesses should think twice before throwing that effort away.
Having gotten that disclaimer out of the way, there are some legitimate reasons companies may need to overhaul their image. So how do you know when it’s time to rebrand? There are a few things that might justifiably point to the need: (more…)
Recently, we discussed the sincere contemplation and soul-seeking that should go into any decision to rebrand your business. Entrepreneur’s infographic “The 8 Must-Follow Rules for Rebranding Your Company” notes that competition and a changing audience are two primary reasons for rebranding, and points out some successes and failures among a few big-name brands.
So, even though we’ve covered this, it can’t be overstated: think long and hard about rebranding. Still want to rebrand? Ok, here’s how we suggest going about it. (more…)
Your business’ brand is its identity to the outside world. More importantly, it’s your identity to your target audience, including your current market and your potential market. Your brand is how these audiences see you, your products and your services. It is, therefore, a fundamental part of your organizational success.
Brands are generally developed and reinforced over time. Once built, brands represent great value and should be changed only based on good, sound reasons. For some businesses, though, there may come a time when it seems like a good idea to rebrand — to toss aside your current image and pursue something new. (more…)
1) Clarify how the client would like to be perceived. We generally go through a two-part exercise, including some kind of projective exercise (e.g. “if your organization was a house, what kind of house would it be; draw a picture…,” or “if your organization were a person, what would that person look like; tear out pictures from magazines…”). We develop a list of desired attributes based on these discussions.
2) Assess how their target markets currently perceive them. This includes employees (because they play a critical role as brand ambassadors), customers, prospects, community leaders, etc. The specific audiences vary by organization. We generally accomplish this step through research while might include both qualitative (focus groups/interviews) and quantitative (surveys). This step can also be a great communication tactic to help engage various audiences in the process and convey to them the core attributes you wish to be known for.
3) Identify the gaps between desired and perceived brand image. In some cases, this may mean that the audience doesn’t perceive you as strongly for a particular attribute as you would like to be perceived. In other cases the opposite is true. And, sometimes, you may find that your audience has positive perspectives of you that you hadn’t even considered and may wish to emphasize. Based on this gap analysis, you would prioritize the gaps to focus on; this will drive your communication strategies and tactics.
4) Develop a plan to close the gaps; this includes both marketing communication and operational strategies and tactics.
Most of this process is fairly straightforward and it’s not that difficult to get to step #4. But that’s where the challenges emerge. Why? Because most organizations view branding as a communication process. While communication is certainly part of the branding process, it is just a part. Operational issues also play a major role in how companies are perceived. For service businesses (e.g. health care organizations, professional services firms like law firms, consultancies, etc.) brand management is especially challenging because every interaction their target audiences have with their organizations serve to form impressions: this includes everything from how clean their parking lot is and how easy it is to find parking, to how their staff answers the phone, to how staff are dressed, etc., etc., etc.
It’s a worthy challenge though. If you’re up for the challenge, we have a number of additional blogs related to branding that you may find helpful.
Strategic Communications, LLC, works with B2B clients to help them achieve their goals through effective content marketing and management with both internal and external audiences. We work with clients to plan, create and publish high-quality, unique content. Whether on- or offline, or both, we’ll help you achieve desired results.
(Strategic Communications is certified as a Woman-Owned Business Enterprise through the Wisconsin Department of Administration.)
Recommended Reading
21st Century Secrets to Effective PR: Tips and Best Practices for Gaining Media Exposure
This is an older story, but still an important lesson for organizations that decide to “mess with” their brand and its related images–like logos.
Late last year, the University of California system unveiled a new logo and they were immediately met with a firestorm of protest from various audiences. So, they decided to stop using it and go back to their original logo. Good move? (more…)
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