Brand Champions

Branding is More Than a Snappy Tagline

 

Today I read a funny article written by Dan and Chip Heath in the December 2008/January 2009 issue of Fast Company magazine. You might recognize the writers as the authors of the book Made to Stick. They are also regular contributors to one of my favorite periodicals, Fast Company. 

The title of the article is Kill the Slogans Dead. Now, those words might appear to be a bit harsh, but the point of the article is that too often organizations focus too much of their brand building efforts on taglines. In an attempt to get the brand initiative done quickly and on a limited budget, organizations ask their communications staff to lock themselves in a room one afternoon and come up with a catchy slogan. Or as the Heath's say in Fast Company, "How do you know if you're inadvertently sloganeering? Here's a take-home test: If you can envision two exclamation points at the end of your idea, it's a slogan. If you can see it on a mug in Comic Sans font, it's a slogan. Toss it and start communicating."

Taglines do have value, they can help differentiate you from your competitors. I just wish more of them were one of the outcomes of a well developed brand strategy. In other words, the finish line, not the starting line. How well does your tagline work? Is it sustainable, and does it capture the essence of your organization? If not, you might want to read the title of the Heaths' article. Remember, two of your primary brand champion segments, employees and customers, usually do not connect with taglines.

Giving Thanks to Brand Champions

 

A few days ago Americans celebrated one of our nation's most cherished holidays, Thanksgiving Day. An occasion where family and friends get together and celebrate all that they are thankful for, and eat a lot of food. I want to use this space to thank all of my brand champions, and those that champion the BrandED consultants group. I want to give a special thank you to all of my associate consultants, our clients, supporters, partners and everyone else who has championed our brand. I also want to say thank you to all of you who visit and comment on this site.

I am often asked to help organizations develop rewards and recognition programs for their brand champions. These include formal and informal means of highlighting those internal and external constituents who demonstrate on-brand behavior, and those who help recruit and retain fellow brand champions. Formal programs can include financial rewards and ceremonial awards. Informal recognition can include profiling someone in an employee newsletter, featuring them on a blog (like I often do here) and other ways of saying thank you.

What types of rewards and recognition programs do you plan to implement for the new year that give thanks to your brand champions?

Brand Champion of the Day- KieAnn Brownell, President, Metro Denver Sports Commission

 

Yesterday morning I went through my morning ritual of reading the Rocky Mountain News and discovered a story that caught my attention. The headline read, Rugby rivals could play in Denver. Much to my surprise, I learned that my fair city may be hosting the 2009 Bledisloe Cup. For those of you who do not know, that is "The Match" between heated rivals the All Blacks of New Zealand and the Wallabies of Australia. In the Rocky, Metro Denver Sports Commission President, KieAnn Brownell says, "We're pretty close." She goes on to say, "Our job is to get out of the box, to look for events that aren't necessarily on the country's radar."

A few years ago I had the pleasure of keynoting a brand conference in Sydney, where I had the pleasure of seeing the event there. Hosting this event would be huge for Denver, and the United States. Like me, many brand champions for rugby would result. Not to mention having this event in the United States would enhance the US brand and enhance Denver's reputation as an emerging international city. For her efforts, KieAnn Brownell is the Brand Champion of the Day! 

What do you think about Denver, and the United States hosting the 2009 Bledisloe Cup?

The Biggest Loser Brand

 

Last night I watched a favorite American television show, The Biggest Loser. For those of you who are not familiar, it is a weight loss competition reality show. The winner is the biggest loser. The transformation of the contests is simply amazing. The trainers, Bob and Jillian, are miracle workers.

What is also interesting for me is the almost blatant placement ads for in the show for products like Ziploc Bags, 24 Hour Fitness and others. With the economic situation, I think we will see similar strategies like these as common place. At least for those organizations that still think advertising is a sound investment and a primary branding strategy. For most other organizations, I think we will continue to witness more socially responsible and culturally embedded approaches to brand.

Do you think product placements enhance or dilute the brand value of show like The Biggest Loser? Are you a champion of brands that utilize product placements?

Brand Champion of the Day- Harry Hayward, Director of Electronic Media, University of Washington

 

It is my pleasure to recognize Harry Hayward as the Brand Champion of the Day. Harry is the director of electronic media at the University of Washington in Seattle and someone who I consider to be a kindred spirit. I had the opportunity to meet Harry last week at the Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education in Chicago. Harry presented the UW case study on internal branding, while I facilitated a round table discussion on internal branding.

For those of you who know me, you understand my views on the importance of an internal branding program that engages employees in the brand development process, and provides the resources for recruiting and retaining brand champions. Harry's presentation entitled, Building Your Brand from Within- The Power of Employee Engagement, was fantastic. Harry outlined the forward-thinking approach to internal branding that the University of Washington has undertaken. I loved his quote, "This is no a campaign, it is cultural change." Now that is music to my ears.

From my experience I think Harry and UW are pioneers in higher education brand development. I look forward to learning more about their work and hopefully having the opportunity to applaud their efforts again in the future. I am now one of their brand champions. Because of his work leading this innovative work, Harry Hayward is the Brand Champion of the Day!

Brand My Generation

 

Remember The Who hit, My Generation? I thought about that song when I was listening to the keynote address from Neil Howe earlier in the week at the American Marketing Association conference in Chicago. He delivered one of the best presentations that I have seen by the way. I look forward to reading his book, Millenials Go to College.

You might know Neil as the person who coined the term "Millennials" which designates the generation of people who were born from 1982 on. As Neil was describing generations of boomers, gen xers, millennials and others, I was reminded how criticall it is for brand strategists to understand the habits of the generations that engage their brand.

Which generation(s) are your brand champions? Do you know the traits of those generations, and does your brand strategy align with their behaviors?

Brand Champion of the Day- Ralph Lauren

 

Did you see where Polo's Ralph Lauren donated $13 Million US towards the preservation efforts of the Star Spangled Banner? The refurbished flag was dedicated this week at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, DC. For these efforts and understanding what his brand stands for I recognize Ralph Lauren as the Brand Champion of the Day.

Lauren describes his brand as beauty in ruggedness. Quoted in the USA Today, Lauren says, "I believe in long-term things that last." Could this be why Lauren and Polo has so many loyal brand champions? That sounds like good advice for organizations as they position themselves in the new economy. In the past many organizations have thought in short-term, quick fixes, especially when it comes to brand.

How does your brand strategy align with Lauren's?

Internal Branding and Web 2.0 Trends Are Redefining Role of Marketer

 

As I leave Chicago and reflect on my experience at a conference there, I am reminded of two trends that are changing our role as marketers. Internal branding and Web 2.0 are two areas that we need to understand and embrace. As the new economy takes shape, many organizations are going to expect their marketers to do more with less, and to bring higher returns on smaller investments. Internal branding and Web 2.0 are two strategies that can return huge returns on non traditional investments.

Marketers who adapt to balancing their efforts externally and internally are the ones who are going to be the most successful for the foreseeable future. Those marketers who realize that by engaging their fellow employees in the brand development process, and who learn the remarkable advantages of utilizing Web 2.0 resources, are the marketers who will ensure their brands are sustainable. There are more and more resources available for the marketers to help marketers attain this goal.

Are you ready to become an internal brand champion and a Web 2.0 champion?

Internal Branding- All About the Culture

  

On Monday I facilitated an internal branding session at the Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education in Chicago. The room was packed with marketing, communications and other higher education professionals who engaged in a dialogue about best practices, challenges, processes and other issues related to internal branding at colleges and universities in the United States.

As one could imagine, there are varying degrees of interpretation and application of internal branding. Based upon our conversation yesterday, I would say that most schools are defining internal branding as the launch of a new visual identity internally or attempts to get buy in and consistency of visual identities among employees. Only a few schools have developed internal brand programs that are embedded cultural initiatives.

I anticipate that most US colleges and universities are in what the authors of Taking Brand Initiative, (Hatch and Majken) would describe as the marketing wave of branding. Only a few schools are in the corporate wave of branding and fewer still are in the enterprise wave of branding. I am confident that over the next several years, like their corporate counterparts such as Southwest Airlines, Starbucks and other organizations that value their employees, institutions of higher learning in the US will get to the cultural embedding stage.

By the way, I define internal branding as a formal program that engages employees in the brand development process allowing an organization to align its internal culture with its external reputation. An internal branding program is the most effective means for training and developing brand champions.

Brand Champion of the Day- National Public Radio

 

Today I want to recognize an organization that is based on fair reporting, integrity, trust, professionalism and intelligent radio. At least those are some of the attributes I associate with the National Public Radio brand. Even in difficult times like now when many other media appear to be trying to heighten our anxieties, NPR is always the cool cucumber.

For their efforts, National Public Radio is the Brand Champion of the Day. Whether the stock market has taken another dive or there is renewed fighting somewhere in the world, NPR somehow always makes their listeners feel a sense of hope and comfort. I am a champion of their brand.

Are you a brand champion of NPR? If so, what are your experiences with this endearing brand?