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"Holistic" Approach to Branding Among Top Trends in 2003
Corporate Scandal Lessons Prompt Companies to be "True to the Brand"
After a year of exposure to corporate scandals and economic challenges, companies and other organizations will reexamine their values, elevate branding discussions to the executive level, and consider the impact of corporate decisions on their brands. With more than 30 years experience in corporate identity, branding and environmental graphics, experts from Monigle Associates predict branding will take on new significance among corporate executives in 2003, as consumers, shareholders and the government clamor for truth and accountability from American businesses.
"Companies are becoming much more thoughtful and strategic about aligning their brands with their business objectives," said Rick Jacobs, principal of Monigle Associates. "As a result, discussion about branding has evolved to include more than just members of the marketing department. Corporate executives are realizing that successful execution of the brand means a more holistic approach than just approving a new ad campaign. Because the brand is a reflection of what a company wants to be, and how the public sees it, the promise of that brand should direct how an organization behaves toward all of its audiences."
Here are some additional branding trends to watch for in 2003:
Experiential Branding to Increase
As businesses shift their brand strategy to an even more strategic level, Jacobs predicts more corporations will incorporate "experiential" branding - branding in which organizations connect with their stakeholders by enabling them to experience the brand promise through all company touchpoints. "A positive experience with the accounts receivable department will tend to be more personally meaningful to a customer than any broad-based marketing campaign," said Jacobs, "and if the experience validates other communication the customer receives from the company, he or she may be more likely to be loyal to that brand in the future."
Company employees will continue to play a key role in executing the brand, by acting as ambassadors to customers, the community, members of the media, industry analysts, and shareholders. It will be up to company leaders to ensure employees receive an orchestrated presentation of the organization's core values, including its vision and points of differentiation.
Measuring Your Brand's Emotional Intelligence
In recent years, many companies have been focused on measuring their return on investment (ROI) for branding based on numbers alone. In 2003, according to Jacobs, smart organizations will calculate the success of their brands not only by numeric measurements, but also by taking into account the emotional effect the brand has on their stakeholders. "In the 1990s, researchers determined that it wasn't enough to measure a person's intelligence quotient (IQ) as a predictor of personal success," said Jacobs. "Now, we also use a person's emotional intelligence as a success indicator. Since brands resonate emotionally with people who come in contact with them, it doesn't make sense to measure their success strictly on numbers alone."
Jacobs says that companies who measure branding ROI by numbers alone have difficulty getting a true picture of the intrinsic value of their brands. "By nature, the value of a brand is tough to quantify accurately. Often, assumptions have to be included in the ROI metrics, which make the numbers less meaningful overall," he said. Jacobs believes qualitative information gives depth and perspective that can't be measured numerically. Jacobs asserts, "By measuring your brand's emotional intelligence, companies can achieve an unmatched level of depth, strength and richness in their brand positioning."
Creating a Strategic Blueprint for Brand Architecture
When two companies merge, decisions for naming the merged entity often aren't strategic. "The new name maybe the result of closed-door discussions between CEOs or attorneys, without consideration of other brands, business units or future acquisitions, and the result is often brand soup," says Jacobs. In 2003, brand-savvy companies will know the importance of having a clearly articulated brand architecture and naming conventions, which will enable them to incorporate new products, services, business units and companies without having to reinvent their brand hierarchy every time.
"Organizations who plan for growth and extensions of their brands enjoy less risk of confusing or alienating their customers," Jacobs says.
According to Jacobs, successful companies that plan their brand architecture and naming conventions follow these simple tips:
- Involve the CEO - it's all about achieving the mission.
- Keep it simple - do what's smart for the market.
- Don't dictate - use tools to educate about branding.
- Ensure that solutions are strategy-based - not driven by politics and emotion.
- Understand all of the issues - form a multi-disciplined development team.
- Be prepared - understand the legal, financial and operational issues.
- Think long-term - tie tools to business strategy and overall positioning.
About Monigle Associates
With a staff of more than 85 professionals, Denver-based Monigle Associates ranks among the largest branding firms in the country. Over the past 30 years, Monigle Associates has implemented branding and corporate identity solutions for national and international clients. Monigle's list of past and present clients includes Cleveland Clinic Health Systems, Avis, Bank of America, Comcast, Freightliner, Johns Manville, Qwest, Rockwell and the United States Postal Service.
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