What happened?

One of the most common mistakes that causes a brand strategy to fail is in the area of alignment.

Branding and marketing communication is more complex than ever. Media channels are fragmented. Disruptive technologies are transforming entire industries, causing giants to fall and upstarts to thrive. The reality is Chief Marketing Officers and creative agencies are forced to deal with the unknown on a monthly basis.

Branding is no longer isolated to a cool logo or fancy slogan. Sure your YouTube video may have gone somewhat viral. And your Facebook and Twitter accounts might be pretty popular. But none of that ensures success. Companies need to consider the integration of its brand strategy across all facets of an organization. This is were alignment can make you or break you.

There are four areas we recommend for careful consideration when it comes to brand strategy alignment. They represent the front lines of today’s most successful brands. We’ve integrated these areas into our Brand MDNA model. Whether you are familiar with Brand MDNA or not, they are just as important and can be equally addressed through a multitude of marketing models and concerted effort. They are:

DIGITAL CHANNEL ALIGNMENT

Mass interruption-based media is no longer effective. Brand MDNA allows the identification of digital channels that offer the highest leverage and target market penetration. Some company cultures are better designed for certain types of media. While certain target audiences prefer specific digital content.

SOCIAL BUSINESS ALIGNMENT

The consumer market is becoming savvier than ever when it comes to authenticity of a company’s alignment with social responsibility. Brand MDNA allows a company to integrate socially responsible initiatives with its core culture for a seamless blend of “for-benefit” marketing and earned media.

VALUE ANALYSIS & ALIGNMENT

“Eyeballs” or the size of a social network no longer represent the same value. Social networks and media are no longer a novelty. And although most social media is initially free, a brand strategy integrating social networks is a substantial investment on multiple levels. Part of the Brand MDNA process is the ability to establish value metrics and authenticate results for an ROI on every dollar spent on strategy.

PEOPLE, PEOPLE, PEOPLE

The majority of brand strategies fail due to poor execution. And it’s not for a lack of effort either on the part of management and other stakeholders. Using Brand MDNA, a company can align its internal stakeholders, all the way from reception to executive management, to truly live the company’s culture and participate in the brand strategy.

So don’t forget the alignment when it comes to your brand strategy–especially before launching an initiative after resources have been invested. Alignment will substantially increase the chances of success. And if you’re feeling like your current brand strategy just isn’t getting the traction you want, try analyzing each area objectively.

And if all else fails, contact us. We’d love to help.

While there is no limit to the amount of information out there with experts and coaches offering their advice, we like to take a somewhat different approach. I’m going to try and break it down for you here because understanding WHY you are doing something is just as important as WHAT and HOW.

Social media is called “social media” for a reason. It is all about being social. And that comes down to people and their personalities. How one person goes about being social is completely different than others. Therefore it’s natural to take this understanding into the realm of social media.

This is why we always start with the unique brand of the person of company when it comes to launching a social media campaign. (Now we’re not going to argue whether or not people can be brands or not. But just look at icons like Lady Gaga or Donal Trump and you will see that people can be brands very easily.)

Every brand breaks down into three parts:

1. Product – What are you selling?
2. Promise – What can people expect if they buy it?
3. Personality – How will you deliver that promise?

Every brand’s product, promise and personality must be clearly defined and consistent. (Many companies get stuck here upfront which needs to be addressed before any social media is even attempted.) This is what we consider the brand’s “DNA.” It is the very essence / ethos / positioning / whole-point-of-existence for the individual or company.

This brand DNA needs to be imprinted into every aspect of social media. In genetics, every fingerprint is unique to the DNA of the individual. In social media, every digital footprint must be unique to the brand. This is the WHY of social media that needs to be answered before the WHAT and HOW. The answer is in your brand’s DNA.

This is why we spend so much time analyzing the DNA of a brand before coming up with any strategy. In fact that’s why we developed a process called Brand MDNA. (The letter “M” standing for seven “motivational profiles” that are part of our model.)

One you understand the brand’s DNA, the next step is to do a Brand Network Analysis to identify a strategy that gives your social media the best chance of success. I’ll discuss Brand Network Analysis in a later post, but for now, just make sure you clearly understand your product, promise and personality before taking your first step in creating your brand’s digital footprint.

Here are two simple yet critical questions to ask of yourself and your company when it comes to designing a winning brand strategy:

“Why?”

and,

“Why Not?”

Sounds a little too simple? This is actually a technique we have developed by combining some of the best design and success practices modeled by thought leaders and innovators.

To first establish a company’s challenges, ask the “Why?” question. (Many times we know there is a problem, but the trick is to define what the exact problem is.) Then ask the “Why not?” question when it comes to deriving opportunities and potential solutions. Here is an example:

“Our company is not growing.”

“Why?”

“Not enough people are buying our product.”

“Why?”

“We aren’t recognized as a viable choice next to our competitors.”

“Why?”

“Because they have a stronger social media campaign. We should use social media like they do.”

“Why not?”

“Because we don’t have the expertise in-house.”

“Why?”

“Our team doesn’t use it themselves.”

“Why?”

“We aren’t training them. We should train them.”

“Why not?”

“There really isn’t a reason not to train them if we properly budget for the time and bring in the right expertise. Let’s do it!”

The trick is not to dismiss the simplicity and bluntness of the questioning. Some people feel this is too juvenile and as adults we should be able to have a meeting. But unfortunately meetings are proven to be a rather ineffective way to creatively solve problems. Take a risk and try this method. We think you will be pleasantly surprised at the results. And if you need help facilitating these transformational conversations–let us know.

Zipcar, which now has 605,000 members in 50 cities and revenues of $131 million, didn’t always have such appeal. In 1999, its first year, 75 people signed up. By 2003, Zipcar had a mere 6,000 members in three cities and was running through its venture capital. They fired their CEO.

What happened to create the turnaround?

They focused on target audiences that increased brand density.

What does that mean?

First, they stopped trying to take over the world and carefully selected a few target areas. They used psychographics to establish areas where people would be interested in different types of cars and specific levels of convenience.

Then they loaded these areas with specific cars. They made Zipcars so easy to access there was a density created for their brand. Cars are now available five minutes away for everybody. They is a distinct competitive advantage compared to having to spend hours organizing a car rental for longer periods. This allowed them to jump to other markets with the same strategy and market equity.

This is called “Hyper-Localization.” And in the world where social media and digital marketing are cluttering up our lives more than ever, it is a critical strategy if you want your brand to be a big deal. Start local and small SLOWLY to eventually go national and large very, very FAST.

If you’re not sure where to target your branding and marketing, think locally and focus on where you will achieve the most density as a platform for future expansion. It works.

Take a look at the image to the left. Is it a vase or two people having a conversation face-to-face? Well that depends on your perception of course. It can be both until somebody is convinced one way or the other.

How do you perceive your company’s brand and marketing communication? You may see it one way when in reality, it is perceived by your target market as something completely different. It is really important to step back sometimes and get an external perspective. This is one of the intangible benefits of working with visual communication professionals and agencies.

Don’t let your perception become deception.

We see many times people get entrenched into their brand image and marketing strategy. This can become a deception that causes ill-advised decisions to be made. The results can be fatal.

Many times while speaking with clients, an entrepreneur or manager will convey their brand with true passion and clarity. If you were stuck in an elevator with these individuals for just an hour, you would come out of the experience being completely sold on their company, products and services.

The question is: Then how come that same passion and clarity is not reflected in marketing collateral and brand communication?

This always brings people to a pause and moment of reflection. And if the client is able to get really honest with their brand, deception is averted. Then there is freedom to ask simple questions like, “Is our branding strategy working?” “How do we know this?” “How can we measure it?” “Do we need to change?”

These are all very valuable questions if you are willing to be honest. After that, reaching your goals when it comes to marketing and branding becomes much more possible.

White space (sometimes called negative space) can include space in the margins, space between headlines and space between lines of copy. It isn’t always literal “white space” but more so an absence of words and pictures. A rest amongst the visual noise that is the content.

An article posted in DesignModo by Roxanne Peterson focused on the great importance of white space in web designing. She writes that, “White space is associated with something that is expensive and high quality”. This can be all too true. Think, for example, about expensive purse or shoe stores where there is often only one item per shelf. Or perhaps a museum, where there is nothing but white walls surrounding one piece of art. This display approach creates an environment where one can appreciate and seek to understand the art or object to be purchased for what it truly is, without distraction by colorful surroundings. Just as white space assists in giving full attention and emphasis on a work of art, it also gives greater value to website content that it accompanies.

Web design is a lot like print design in that the ultimate goal is to convey information or the big idea effectively. Information can be organized in such a way that the viewer can understand the important points immediately and white space helps achieve this.

Arranging a good (and balanced) mix of typography, imagery and white space can make a page feel less confusing or overwhelming. It gives the viewer clues to the most important points that you want them to take away. In her article, Roxanne not only wrote about how white space is important to create breathing room for main content but she also noted that there are dangers in overusing it. Too much white space and not enough content leaves a reader questioning if there is a great importance to the website and the information it contains.

How can you best put to use white space in your website? Have you really captured the core of your content? Don’t let your message get lost in the excess. Remember, sometimes less is more.

That’s right folks, I would like to encourage you to step outside of the box, forget about paper, chalkboard and whiteboards. Unleash your creativity and take the marker to the wall! Whether in your office, at school or at home, a dry erase wall is an exciting and affordable way to add a little spice to your life. It is perfect for brainstorming, writing up “to do” lists, playing hangman, and letting your kids (or the kid inside you) express themselves through extravagant doodles. With IdeaPaint, any wall can be your canvas. The sky is the limit!

As the Intern, one of my first projects this summer was painting the border around, what is now, our very own dry erase wall. The lovely Laura, Envision’s project manager, painted on the actual whiteboard with the award-winning IdeaPaint. Terri, our talented design specialist threw together a few border option and I had the privilege of bringing to life her designs, putting the final touches on the wall!

Check out the final product!Save money, be expressive and personalize it for your needs. What’s not to love?

Thus far, I have been privileged to continue as an intern at Envision where I have been learning from and observing the finest of ladies. These women work together to hone in on and develop the core of what companies stand for. Guiding their clients through the excess, to uncover their essence. It is a beautiful concept, boldly put into action.

My role at Envision often varies, as most interns will encounter. Some of things I have done are: Salesforce entries, attending staff meetings, running errands, painting a border around a whiteboard, e-blast writing, cleaning, copy-editing, putting stamps on envelopes, etc.

Outside of Envision, this summer I am babysitting for two different families. The first is the Beaudry family. Which, if you are reading this blog you might already recognize the last name as the owners of Envision: Jeff and Liz Beaudry, who have two energetic little boys adopted from South Korea.

The second family I work for this summer is Drew and Jen Lundquist. They not only have entrusted me with their three children, but have also graciously taken me in as a squatter in their household for the summer. Overall, it’s a lovely situation which couldn’t be much improved upon. I am indeed blessed!

Many companies have considered updating their brand. Each case is a little different and sometimes it makes sense, other times it doesn’t. I found two major brands that are pretty familiar in most households. One has gone through quite a few changes, the other has kept a fairly consistent look. However, since the late 1800s, both brands have had a strong presence, being recognized and consumed both nationally and overseas. Who are they? None other than Coca-Cola and Pepsi. With sales always neck and neck between these soft drink giants, we encounter two methods of brand strategy that have been equally enduring. Still, the question remains, which approach is the best? I am not sure if that is for us to say. For Coca-Cola, brand consistency has endeared them for generations, while for Pepsi, brand modifications have kept its consumers on their toes with its air of mystery. With no wrong answer, it’s up to you to decide whether your brand consistency is that of a classic standard or if it has grown stagnant and needs to be updated in order to recapture your audience. If you’re at the crossroads and uncertain, we can help!

Considering a change?

Sometimes change is good. If you are considering a brand update, Give us a call, we would be happy to discuss options with you. In the end, we may think that keeping your current brand is the way to go. Either way, there are many ways we can help you!
Check out this fun video about the evolution of the Pepsi logo. Which one do you like the best?

De-clutter your day to ease your mind.

I usually start my day with 462 things on my mind. As the day continues, that number increases and by the end of the day, I’m not only exhausted but I have a lot on my mind! As my days start to get more and more busy and my head starts to spin a little bit faster, I’ve decided to try out new ways of staying organized. I thought I would share some of those with you. Maybe something will work for you and make your day just a little bit easier.

• Sick of little notes everywhere? Try Evernote. You can add notes, clips from websites, take photos and store files. The best part, it’s online! It’s available wherever you are. You can access it from your phone or computer. Try it out, I think you will find it quite handy.

• Getting lost of stacks of paper? Try a Fujitsu ScanSnap scanner. You can scan up to 10 pages at a time. It takes paper that is 8.5″ wide or smaller by any height. It scans both sides and makes it a snap to clean up the pile of paper on your desk.

• E-mail in-box getting full? Try Skype to send quick questions and comments to people rather than sending an email. It’s free to set up an account and you can start instant messaging with your friends, family and co-workers right away. You can also call people for free, even long distance and have video chats. I’ve found it most helpful for quick conversations with co-workers but try it out, maybe you will find something else you really like about it.

• Forgot what’s going on after work tonight? Add a personal calendar to your work calendar and keep it updated. That way, you know whats going on all day, everyday and it’s easy to make plans wherever you are. I use iCal but there are tons of free calendars out there. Try Google Calendar, I’ve heard great things.

• Sick of the mess? Keep your work space clean. Recycle paperwork as soon as you can. If it’s something that needs to be saved, file it. Clean out files on a regular basis. Scan and save items on your computer when possible. Only keep necessary supplies at your desk. If you never use a stapler, put it somewhere else so it’s out of your way. If you always use the same couple of pens, get rid of the others.

• Files from 2002 on your desktop? Keep the desktop on your computer clear of files if possible. Trash old files. Keep things neat and tidy in folders with a hierarchy that makes sense to you. Make sure you name folders so that it will make it easy to find things in the future. Label files with dates so you know which is the most recent version.

• Need some new ways to sort or store things? Check out the Container Store.

These are just a few of the items I use or things I do each day to keep it moving as smoothly as possible. I hope you find something that works well for you too. Any organization tips you would like to share?

- Laura Swing, Envision’s project manager