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Michele Levy www.brand-strat.com

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Meet today’s speakers

•  Presenter: Michele Levy, brand strategy consultant •  Hosting: Sam Frank, Synthesis Partnership •  Assisting with chat questions: Chris Dumas,

FirstGiving

It’s a fact of (brand) life…

Regardless of where you are in terms of brand development,

your brand must be actively managed (and if you’re not

doing the management, your marketplace is doing it for you!).

Agenda

•  Delivering on your brand....how to make sure that your board, staff, volunteers, etc. all communicate and live your brand in a consistent, high impact manner.

•  Communicating your brand…building and executing a cost-effective integrated communications plan.

A caveat

Assuming that you have already built a strong foundation…that you:

–  Are clear on how you want to be perceived –  Understand what your target audience segments

need from you –  Understand what other resources you compete

with for your audiences’ time, attention and affection

Delivering on your brand

"I reckon about 20 percent of a brand is its physical attributes,

like a logo, color, letterheads. The rest is all about behavior.

Employees bring a brand to life; they are its ultimate custodians.”

-Ian Buckingham, Interbrand

“What goes on inside an organization is critical to any branding effort; the employees are the organization and embody the brand values. Without them, a brand is merely a hollow shell, and it will be obvious to the world that there’s nothing there to support it.” (Hampton Bridwell, branding consultant)

“Internal branding is the process of aligning day-to-day activities, business processes, job designs, and recognition & rewards with the brand identity to drive business results. It is part of a focused brand strategy that helps employees understand and integrate brand value(s) in their respective roles to ensure they can effectively deliver on the brand promise.” (Edelman, Inc.)

“Internal branding is designed to instill employees with an organization’s brand vision and provide them with the tools to translate that vision to the customer.” (CMO Magazine)

It’s not easy…

•  Challenges of internal branding –  Getting people’s attention (and in some cases, just getting

to them…think large volunteer or chapter-based orgs) –  Making the brand real for employees and other internal

stakeholders: clients, board members, donors –  Balancing competing needs, initiatives and priorities –  Helping people understand the value of changing their

ways –  Avoiding brand fatigue

•  What’s fulfilling? –  Hearing when the message sticks, and when it inspires the

appropriate response –  Having a real influence on the organization –  Seeing the concrete results of a strong brand and

consistent brand behavior

A quick example…

•  Ritz-Carlton's reputation represents "brand equity that has built up over the years, obviously, and a lot of it is defined by the service element that we offer.”*

•  An increasingly competitive marketplace, even at the higher end of the market (boutique luxury hotels, excess inventory in many cities)

•  Diminishing business travel budgets, decline in personal travel

*Bruce Himelstein, Vice President, Marketing

“Putting on the Ritz”

•  An empowered staff –  "Each person is responsible for finding and recording the

preferences of individual clients…so that they can get things before the client even knows they need it. And each employee is empowered to break away from whatever they're doing if a client needs something. When you've built up that kind of culture over the years, it all starts to stick.”

•  A consistent approach –  "The Ritz-Carlton Basics," is 20 “rules to live by” every single

employee is expected to read, memorize and act upon –  The Three Steps of Service…Proffer a warm and sincere

greeting, using the client’s name; anticipate and comply with all of the client’s needs; and offer a fond farewell, again using the client’s name.

–  "Never lose a client," warns Basic (rule) No. 13. "Instant client pacification is the responsibility of each employee. Whoever receives a complaint will own it, resolve it to the client’s satisfaction and record it.”

And keeping it on…

Ongoing training and reinforcement –  Annual training and certification required –  Collective responsibility for overall quality of

experience (cleanliness, responsiveness, etc.)

A recent example from the nonprofit world

Some best practices

•  Great PR coverage (just google it) •  A consistent set of talking points •  A comprehensive brand style guide •  Pre-launch and post-launch webinars •  Good balance of consistency and flexibility •  Ongoing support

So how can you do it???

Cover all the touchpoints

•  Your brand perception results from every single experience or contact a person has with your organization.

•  You build that brand perception on four key foundational elements:

–  A set of relevant, consistent core messages; –  A visual brand identity (logo, fonts, color palette, imagery)

that effectively (and efficiently) communicates the essence of your brand;

–  An agreed-upon set of consistent brand behaviors; –  An integrated plan to communicate the brand across all

touchpoints.

Provide a messaging and visual foundation

•  Context (why we dedicate resources to building our brand) •  Goals/objectives (what we hope to accomplish through

our marketing communications efforts) •  Competitive landscape (what other options do our

supporters have?) •  Audience insights (who are we communicating with?) •  Brand promise (internal rallying cry) •  Elevator pitch (answer to the question “who are you?”) •  Proof points (reasons to believe that elevator pitch) •  Message matrix (approved versions of messages to be

used as secondary points when talking with audience segments)

•  Brand personality (what’s it like to interact with us?)

Provide a messaging and visual foundation

•  Brand book •  Style guides/templates •  Samples of all creative

Translate brand attitudes into action

Brand attitude (“”I WILL”) •  "I appreciate your

business.”

•  "I will devote my full attention to your needs.”

•  "I will take ownership of your needs.”

•  "I will be knowledgeable and professional.”

•  "I will be responsive to your questions and requests."

Employee actions (“I DO”) •  Greet the client with

enthusiasm. Use the client's name.

•  Focus on the client. Stop other activities. Listen, and ask clarifying questions.

•  Transfer the client no more than once; the first transfer will own the issue.

•  Provide the client with insight and information to help him achieve his goals.

•  Fulfill commitments in a timely fashion. Recognize that the client's time is valuable.

OK… but how do you bring it to life??

Behind every strong brand, there’s a brand champion

•  SOMEONE with the vision and clout to make it really happen…and keep it happening

•  SOMEONE who owns the brand and cares passionately about its successful development and maintenance

•  Probably not at the Executive Director level (although they have to clearly sponsor and support the effort)

•  Requires a strong presence, effective negotiation skills, attention to detail, pragmatism and an understanding of how to pick your battles!

Use the brand champions in your midst

•  Identify internal and external stakeholders who “get it” –  They epitomize the brand –  They are well-respected –  They are enthusiastic about the organization and brand –  They embrace change

•  Let them lead at the local level –  Crucial part of the initial discovery process, rollout and

ongoing measurement –  They understand and can help communicate context

and relevance •  Say thank you, conspicuously

–  Reinforces their positive impact –  Encourages others to do the same

Make brand matter

•  Make a little noise… –  Take a moment: An event (staff meeting, offsite

planning session, etc.) –  Share the tools: brand style guide, templates, FAQs –  Make it memorable: branded giveaway

•  Maintain some volume… –  Brand training workshops –  Integrate into new hire orientation, etc. –  Incorporate brand updates into staff meetings,

leadership team meetings, internal communications

The goal… everyone’s a brand champion

•  Identify and “manage” naysayers –  Listen to them –  Respect their opinions –  Ignore them at your peril

•  Help everyone understand their role as champions of the brand

•  Give them the stories, factoids, etc. that best illustrate the brand

•  Address issues as they arise

Remember to train your board

•  They are some of your most passionate and connected supporters (at least they should be)

•  Include them in the brand rollout •  Make regular reports on progress of the rollout and

success against metrics

Give them the stories

•  Framingham: A welcoming community (“where you start the American dream”)

•  Framingham: The classic American middle-class town/the power of diversity

•  Framingham: A vital crossroads

•  Framingham: A tradition of volunteerism

•  Framingham: An economic engine for the region

•  Framingham’s place in the history of the nation

Build the brand through those stories

•  Framingham: A welcoming community (“where you start the American dream”)

•  Framingham: The classic American middle class town/the power of diversity

•  Framingham: A vital crossroads

•  Framingham: A tradition of volunteerism

•  Framingham: An economic engine for the region

•  Framingham’s place in the history of the nation

Campinelli First Catholic church

Immigrants then and now Refugees

Academy Clinton visit

Railways, water, highways

Heart Study, militia, veterans

Mills; corporations then and now “Creative economy” effort

Bonnets

A quick sidebar on consistency

•  Consistency = impact •  Think about it…if your communications are not

consistent (look and feel, as well as tone and messaging), you are reintroducing yourself every single time

•  There is room for variety, for versioning by type of product, by audience, etc. –  But there has to be a master plan!

•  Consistency is NOT boring for your stakeholders –  One of the biggest mistakes organizations make?

They get bored with their brand and want to change it

Critical success factors

•  Help people connect the dots to the bigger picture…Why are we doing this? How will it impact the organization?

•  Make it relevant to them…Why it is important to me that we have a strong, visible brand?

•  Reassure them that this does not mean a change in the mission (unless, of course, it does)

•  Make it easy to “do it the right way” and hard to “do it the wrong way” •  Keep it top of mind •  Keep it coming from the top •  Show you mean it (correct brand misbehaviors, consider killing off an effort that’s

clearly not on brand, etc) •  Be consistent…but adapt as organizational goals and external factors change. And

never adapt in a vacuum. •  Pick your battles. Carefully. •  Measure, recognize, reward. •  Brand never sleeps.

For example… Why does brand matter to you and your staff?

•  Efficiency: faster to create the communications tools you already need to create (no need to make it up every time!)

•  Impact: a strong master brand, and clear linkage between your services and that master brand, allows you to build greater prominence for your services

•  Focus: like an effective mission, a strong brand can help staff stay focused on what’s most important to the organization

•  Momentum: the strongest brands become increasingly compelling to those most important to you

Communicating your brand (the abridged version)

Now tell your brand story…

•  An effective communications plan is: –  Targeted….you’re not wasting money reaching people

not in your target audience –  Holistic…”surrounding” that target with a variety of

media likely to reach them –  Compelling….with a strong call to action –  Integrated….reflected across all your touchpoints –  Measurable…grounded in strategic goals and

evaluated against those goals

Sample: Plan table of contents •  Brand blueprint (elevator pitch, message matrix, proof points,

brand attributes, etc.) •  Target audience (who your audience segments are, their needs

and expectations) •  Competitive landscape (a brief overview of alternative options

available to your served populations and supporters) •  Communications goals (what you want your activities to

accomplish) •  Communications strategies (the high level ways you plan to

accomplish your goals) •  Communications tactics (specific activities you will engage in,

with timing) •  Measurement and evaluation (how you plan to track results) •  Budget •  Editorial calendar •  Communications calendar

SAMPLE: Communications strategies

Leverage the opening (and related activities) to re-engage with current stakeholders

June - September October - December Spring semester

Continue to build the relationship with those who re-engage as a result of opening activities

Leverage exhibits and re-installation to begin to engage with new: New stakeholders from current audiences, as well as new audiences

PHASE I

PHASE II

Brand awareness activities (buzz)

Continue to build the relationships…

Ongoing

Sample: Marketing communications tactics

Leverage opening celebration (and related activities) to re-engage with current stakeholders

June - September October - December

Continue to build the relationship with those who re-engage as a result of opening activities PHASE I

Print collateral Invitations to opening with targeted phone follow up Guide to the Reinstallation Flyers/posters Friends of Art brochure E-collateral Evite e-flyers e-flyer for Family Day Signage (decisions to be made) Kiosk Banner/windows Sandwich boards Plasma Screen Campus Center signage Media Paid media (see page 18) Press Releases Calendar Listings E-communications Newsletters, as appropriate Other Personal attendance at meetings with targeted academic,

administration and union Letter writing campaign to targeted groups First – Year Orientation Aug 27

eNewsletter (3x/year, all) eBlasts (as relevant, all) Events Museum printed piece (replaces

Calendar of Events, ready to mail October)

TACTICS

Brand awareness activities (buzz) Ongoing

NOTE: throughout, make every effort to track results in order to have a better understanding of what’s working, and what’s not (and to adjust tactics as necessary). Each tactic will support a different tracking mechanism:

• Track press success with press clips

• Track print advertising and arts calendar via data collection with on-site events form.

• Track events listing via click through to web site (make sure event is listed on site!)

If you do nothing else…

How do I know it’s working?

Well….what were your goals?

•  Clarify your success metrics (tangible and intangible) •  Tie the metrics to strategic goals •  Think broadly and creatively (e.g. visitor traffic, referral

volume, inbound inquiries, hits to Web site) •  Set reasonable timeframes, based on communications

volume and timing •  Measure against your own baseline, as well as industry

benchmarks •  Keep the dialogue going internally and externally

–  Understanding and acceptance of brand, messaging, communications tactics, etc.

•  Track what works and what doesn’t, then refine as appropriate