Certainly, you’ve heard the news. Something completely new has hit the marketing scene and it’s causing business leaders everywhere to shout: “We need to re-think everything!”
What is this new phenomena?
Here’s a hint: it was born from books with titles like, “Start with Why” and “Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World.” Of course, what these books and these business leaders are talking about is (drumroll) … BRANDING.
That thing that branding firms (at least, those worth their salt) have been doing for their clients for decades.
“Why” is not new. “Brand Platform” is not new. It’s branding re-packaged.
And, frankly, this has left brand consultants with two polar opposite feelings. On one hand, we’re thrilled. We’ve been championing this for years and companies finally see the value. On the other hand, we’re frustrated. We’ve been championing this for years and companies finally see the value.
But those feelings aside, what matters is that companies are now recognizing the need to articulate what their business stands for. They may be calling it “finding our why,” but what they are really doing is defining their brand.
What’s very different about today’s branding, though, is the DIY aspect. Numerous books, articles and blogs are offering volumes of information to business owners, CEOs and CMOs on all aspects of branding.
While this open access to information is fantastic (exactly what business leaders need to make informed decisions), the problem is that these abundant resources and “new marketing experts” only lay out the basic premise and, at the most, a handful of generalized steps. And we all know that superficial instruction usually leads to a superficial effort. After all, we are not building an IKEA coffee table here, and most businesses would benefit from more specific and detailed advice.
It can also be difficult to create a differentiating brand from the inside. Business leaders are typically too close to their business to explore ideas that are different enough to take their brand to a new place. Not to mention that they are usually short on time, which means they may be compelled to adopt the first idea that gets the team even a little excited.
Regardless of whether you will do it all in-house or enlist the help of a branding firm, you need to have the necessary foundation in place first. Introducing Brand Toolbox – a set of concrete tools to help you:
- Find your starting point by assessing the strength of your current brand and marketing communications.
- Learn the underlying principles and key steps to branding or rebranding your company.
- Understand the common pitfalls of the branding process and how you can avoid them.
While these resources are not going to guide you through creating your brand, they will help you establish a stronger foundation for your branding. They will get you asking the right questions and help you understand the full process.
In other words, it’s the prep work every company needs to complete before it invests time and money on branding.
So that should you find yourself shouting, “We need to re-think everything!” you’ll have a sound starting point.