Wednesday, March 4, 2009

What are the touch-points of corporate branding?

Today, many markets are overpopulated with both large and small companies and overexposed with marketing messages. This has made for a difficult landscape to get a marketing message noticed. And with the rising costs of getting a new product or service ready for the market, it has become even more important to cut through this clutter. The one sure-fire way of doing this is by having a holistic corporate branding strategy.

TOUCH-POINTS?

Powerful corporate branding can equip almost any new product or service with instant credibility and value that simply can’t be reproduced with any sort of product-focused marketing campaign. That is why it is vitally important for any serious corporation that wishes its product offerings to be successful to create and protect a strong corporate brand.

How do you do that? Well, first throw away the notion that branding only involves marketing, i.e. putting an image out there. Neither, it is limited to a specific mark or name. Yes, it involves that, but a huge part of touch points i.e. communication materials (company’s logo and design, corporate stationery, packaging, advertising), Internet, customer experience (quality of products and services), treatment and training of employee (people), relations with investors, public relations, competitors, government, communities and others.

Successful corporate branding is all about establishing a long-term vision for a company and crafting the company’s operations to meet that objective. Because a strong corporate brand adds depth and value to a company’s product or service offerings. It’s also a public statement of the company’s culture and values.


Monday, March 2, 2009

What is the 7 step vital branding journey?

Biz Art’s vital branding for vital value journey has 7 surefire steps to assist your branding efforts. There is no need to opt for all 7, instead just kick-start it at an appropriate stage and continue doing it religiously.

Remember – a strong corporate brand is more than half the battle won. And synthesizing your efforts will continue to your benefits.

What is the 7 step vital branding journey?

STEP 1: Analyzing your situation
- Analyzing the company’s requirement and formulate a study outline by examining your current issues gaps and deficiencies
- Establishing project scope, work plan, research tool, source of information, resource requirements, project timeline and budget
- Selecting the most appropriate branding plan after amendments and review

STEP 2: Positioning your company
- Developing/enhancing the company strategic focus – vision, mission, philosophy, objectives, goals and strategies
- Identifying clear market segments to compete i.e. industry, market, competitors and customer analysis
- Building distinctive competencies/internal enterprise strengths

STEP 3: Building and sustaining vital branding for vital value
- Developing an innovative corporate brand indentify i.e. brand logo creation, trademark registration and key expression strategies
- Defining the innovative brand value proposition and brand promise
- Building and sustaining a competitive positioning through innovative brand uniqueness and differentiation in the local and global market

STEP 4: Formulating and implementing a structured vital branding for vital value plan/roadmap
- Establishing clear and practical branding plan/roadmap
- Define key performance indicators, realistic time-line, operating budget and key persons to be responsible to implement the plan
- Incorporate a periodic review and assessment system to track the progress of the plan

STEP 5: Establishing key structures and systems to support vital branding for vital value journey
- Define the strategic focus, roles and responsibilities, key result areas and key performance indicators of the team
- Formulate living policy, specific guidelines and standard operating processes to support vital branding for vital value
- Design and develop the enterprise’s vital branding for vital value learning, coaching and branding evaluation system

STEP 6: Initiating the Practice of Knowledge Management to develop a culture of vital branding for vital value
- Develop your people to be brands-driven with the appropriate functional skills and related industry experience
- Develop a strong culture of professional competency and vital branding for vital value
- Achieving a higher level of operational excellence, customer responsiveness and innovation intensity to ensure the desired results are achieved
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STEP 7: Financing – Raising Funds with Business Plan
- Identifying sources of funding i.e. Venture Capitals (VCs), government grants, angel investors and etc
- Develop a solid components of vital branding for vital value plan
- Provides living data and references to support fund application procedures, approval procedures, security requirement and etc

Why the need for a corporate branding campaign?

Building a corporate brand is always a journey, not just a destination. Treat it like work in progress, you are either growing a brand or letting it shrink. There is no middle path. Corporate branding is a powerful tool that can make a vital contribution to organizational success.

Corporate branding comprises a set of practical skills and strategies designed to enhance the reputation of an organization, and help to reshape the company marketing efforts to engage key audiences.

Vital branding for vital value is about strategically positioning your company, developing professionally competent brand-driven human capital and cultivating a culture of breakthrough innovation. It is not just about advertisement and promotions.

Biz Art’s vital branding for vital value journey has 7 surefire steps to assist your branding efforts. There is no need to opt for all 7, instead just kick-start it at an appropriate stage and continue doing it religiously.

Remember – a strong corporate brand is more than half the battle won. And synthesizing your efforts will continue to your benefits.

How to ensure branding experts meeting your needs?

You have specific objectives for your company – and your own preferences for how much involvement you wish to have in managing your brands and your people. Many of today’s brands are too large and too complex to be managed by one person or one department. They require teams of specialists, sharing ideas and coordinating the efforts across a creative network – an entire branding community.

This call for a clear session to define and evaluate your needs and goals. Based on this information, and other cues or key facts of the company’s (or the brands) real objectives you provide, branding experts will suggest one of the following managing brand collaboration styles:

Meeting your needs?


i. Advisory services
For those who want to be closely involved in the branding process for spiral knowledge efforts
ii. Discretionary consultancy services
For those who wish to outsource part of its branding projects due to lack of expertise and resources
iii. Coaching (not just a typing training)
For those who wish to acquire the branding skills within the company capabilities… not just another 3 days hyped-up training program without follow through and action

Nevertheless, you should have at least an idea of the people you want to reach-out and why. Define what categories of people you're targeting and it will be easier for you to move your marketing strategies towards that direction. It is very difficult to map out a route if you’ve no idea of your destination.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Why would a company or individual need branding?

Branding is an art. It is a powerful strategy that can make a vital contribution to individuals or organizational success. It is about strategically positioning the individuals or companies, developing professionally competent brands-driven people and cultivating a culture of breakthrough innovation.

How can we do that? Well, first throw away the notion that branding only involves advertisements, promotions and marketing, i.e. putting an image out there. Neither, it is limited to a specific logo or name.

Yes, it involves that, but a huge part of art and touch points i.e. communication marketing efforts, product or service experience, delivery, people and team skills, consistent relationships with key audiences, communities, investors, public relations, competitors, government, and more.


Powerful branding can equip almost any new product or service with instant credibility and value that simply can’t be reproduced with any sort of product-focused marketing campaign. That is why it is vitally important to create a strong and consistent present felt.


I am creating my blog with my internet marketing coach, Fione of http://www.eonenet.com/

Are you working hard enough to build your brand value?

It’s difficult for marketing messages to get noticed. That’s a fact. And a great concern given the rising costs for production. The value of your company rests on your brand. Sound simple but it is not. Branding is an art. History shows that some companies took decades to build brand value. Don’t let history repeat itself at your company. Similar metaphor applies to individuals.

Why is it so? Your company is the result of every single thing that is done within your business. It is far more than just playing up on your unique selling proposition (USP). Instead, it is vital that you focus on the art of building your brands and people.

This is the responsibility of the CEO and every single person in the company. You have specific objectives for your company. However, it is crucial to get a team of specialists – an entire branding community to help you understand, define, create, express, track and leverage your corporate brand.

Once you understand why branding is a priority, it is easy to integrate it into your unfulfilled needs and your companies multi-business issues. Sustainable results are more than possible with the right tools and mindset.