All Aboard: Getting New Brand Buy-In
Written by Guest Blogger Katie Woods
Mark’s recent blog post, Branding Leads to Top-of-Mind Awareness, reminded us that a company’s logo and slogan carry a lot of weight to customers. He visited several long-time successful brands that stay memorable and relevant. Companies like these teach us that branding should not be taken lightly. If you are establishing a new company or are ready to rebrand an existing company, there are many factors to consider, including design and messaging that will resonate with target audiences and stakeholders.
Steps to Achieving Brand Buy-In:
Bring the right players to the table: Gather feedback from a diverse group of stakeholders to gain perceptions of different groups. This feedback can be gathered by survey, focus groups sessions, even by interviews. These groups might include clients, potential clients, employees, vendors, advisors, etc.
Let them know they are valued: Developing a new brand is an important task. Assure each participant that you want to hear their unique view and opinion on the strengths of the company.
Define the goal: Ensure that everyone understands the goal is to develop a clear and distinctive brand that champions company strengths and emphasizes differentiators.
Let them know they have a job to do: The responsibility for truly adopting the brand through the company rests on the shoulders of the stakeholders. Design and messaging can point the way, but it is necessary for all to embrace the new brand and weave it throughout every aspect of the company and culture.
Identify agreements: With many different perceptions of the company, there will be many unique opinions on the direction of the new brand. Identify those overarching, unique company qualities that all agree the company does well. These elements may include company culture, benefits, location, iconic products, history, and perhaps even key demographics of the target audience.
Choose wisely: With many different strengths identified, carefully choose the element that best represents your company and will most resonate with clients. This will provide a new direction that will enhance company pride and allow for a cohesive, well-defined identity. The new brand should be easy to remember and capture the attention of clients and potential clients.
Champion your brand: Lastly, remember that getting full buy in may be difficult. There will always be naysayers, but by involving many perceptions and making strategic choices, the chances of this will be greatly diminished.
Brand New Approach?
Perhaps the process described above is news for your company. If this method would be beneficial for your new brand or rebranding project, give us a call!