Not long ago, many thought of a brand as something that only attached to (and benefited) consumer goods: toothpaste, cars, detergent or jeans. That began to change when savvy marketers realized that having a clear and differentiated value proposition, promise and position in the landscape could be a leg up for any kind of product, service or offering—and actually could provide a competitive advantage at the product and enterprise levels.
Organizations of all stripes got on the “brandwagon”—many of which, just a few years earlier, would have shied away from something so “vulgar.” Now symphony orchestras, museums, institutional asset managers, colleges and universities—and, as we all know, politicians—embrace and actively attend to their brands. All learned that when a brand’s promise and meaning combine rational and emotional reasons to care, products can be freed from the confines of being viewed as commodities; schools can better attract desired students; symphonies can raise more money; and all can extend and deepen constituents’ connections beyond the actual item or experience offered. Wrapping offering-focused messages within higher-level brand messages moves people from “I should do X” to “I really want to do X”—a good thing.
Brand went from being what differentiated various kinds of toothpaste to being the buzzword and must-have it is today. Organizations today understand that the meaning, values, and affect their brand transmits can influence the choice between two offerings that provide similar features and benefits.
Still, this exaltation of brand does not mean it’s a panacea, or that attending to one’s brand—or more significantly, rebranding—is a sure road to success. While there are good reasons to invest in rebranding [See the first article in this series, which appeared on February 15], there are an equal number of good reasons not to.
If any of the situations below sound like your organization, investing in rebranding may not be wise.
1. You have a new CEO or CMO and he or she wants to make sure the world knows it. Your brand meaning is in sync with your organization and its offerings, your constituents understand and remember it, you’re differentiated in the competitive landscape…but the new sheriff in town wants a new logo and look and feel. Just say no, and do your best to head off change for ego’s sake. Suggest a new marketing campaign—one that also reinforces your brand—is in order.
2. What’s holding you back is a product or service that’s not sufficiently compelling. If what you’re offering under-performs or doesn’t fill real needs, it’s unlikely that rebranding it, or your organization, will address those problems, and it could actually land you in more trouble. (Such rearrangement of the deck chairs also is likely to induce ridicule on social media.) Fix what’s really broken first.
3. You have operational issues in your marketing, sales, or communication areas. Your brand, and branded communications, may be just what they need to be. But if those charged with planning and delivering your message, making connections, and following up are underperforming––or there’s dysfunction within and across these areas––expending resources to evolve your verbal and visual brand framework is not going to fix these internal organizational issues. Brands are organic frameworks that people have to continually live and execute to make them resonate.
4. You want to present yourself as an organization that you can’t credibly be, or become. Your brand needs to be an honest, authentic representation of who you are, credibly informed by your aspirations. But your brand can only get so far ahead, or to one side, of reality: Disconnects take a lot of time to repair. Years ago, Häagen-Dazs tried to own the granola-fed, Birkenstock-shod Vermont brand attributes of Ben & Jerry’s. It didn’t work. To thine own self…
5. You’re looking for a successful “Hail Mary!” pass and the other things you’ve tried haven’t worked. Whether you’re an arts organization, financial services firm, institution of higher education or retailer of vacuum cleaners, it’s a competitive world. You have to get the word out, make connections, resonate with constituents, create positive buzz and deliver value. It’s hard. If you’ve tried this, that and the other and haven’t seen success, your brand might need tuning up. But beware of digging in to what could be a very substantial project just because you’ve checked off all the other boxes and they haven’t delivered the results you were seeking.
Brands are comprised of your offerings, communications, history, behavior and promises—and the meaning and value that these have in your constituents’ heads. Brand-building is a process, not an event, and brands—certainly the strong, recognizable ones—take time to build up and gain currency in their competitive environments. Brands that have their genesis in reaction, desperation, manipulation, or provocation rarely find a positive footing—and even worse, can create more of an uphill battle for organizations seeking to connect with their constituents, clients and customers.
So be extra cautious before taking your brand apart, or reinventing it, for the wrong reasons. It may take a lot of time and money (not to mention blood, sweat, and tears) to get back to where you started.
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