Trust & Brand Governance
by Carol Samms,
Through the Loop
Trust
is a curious thing – a firm belief in the reliability, truth or
strength of a person or thing. Once this is broken or breached, it is
difficult and slow to rebuild – sometimes it may prove even
impossible to restore. The construct of trust is one of the key
consumer and brand values watched by Through the Loop in its Knowledge
Development Programme.
Currently, the deconstruction of trust
is pervasive at many different levels of society and across many types
of organisations. The very discontinuity of the world today is
destroying trust as we once knew it. This applies from nature itself,
to governments, the economy, companies and brands. We now need to
search for a new construct of trust because the old model is outdated.
Just to put this in context, in 2001,
we have seen the effects of nature being turned into an industrial
process, the complete lack of engagement of society in the political
infrastructure, consumer uncertainty fuelled by a bear market and an
uneven economy and, specifically a feeling of the individual being out
of control. The world is no longer ‘trust me’ but ‘show me’
because of the forces of globalisation, technological convergence and
changes in consumer values.
Trust is important in the online world
too. In the online consumer relationship, trust creates a point of
entry and allows engagement. In fact, the slow take-up of e-commerce
may be a reflection of a lack of trust in the process both in terms of
divulging personal information and perceived security.
Restoring the value of trust to the
individual will be a significant challenge for the next decade for all
types of organisation. This applies both internally to employees and
externally to customers and other stakeholders.
Trust, Transparency and Openness
In "order to put trust back
together again" we need to put in place a more contemporary
model. New forms of governance are just the tip of the iceberg for all
organisations. Mandatory values of behaviour are trust, transparency
and openness. The perception of these three elements should be a point
of focus.
Trust – a firm belief in the
reliability/ strength of a company and brand is the foundation-stone
on which a relationship is built. A failure to meet expectations, or a
failure to perform undermines trust. Some companies have the benefit
of trust as a part of their brand identity. To name but a few
examples, Boots the Chemist, Johnson & Johnson, Volvo, Virgin (in
some areas) and Nordstrom. However, we live in more difficult times
and it is apparent that there is an abdication of trust by
organisations and this abdication can have significant effects both
internally and externally.
Transparency at all levels of the value
chain will be important. There is no point in being "whiter than
white" at one point of the value chain and dirty at the other.
Dissonance at different levels of the value chain is a recipe for
disaster, upstream must match downstream and vice-versa. Ethical and
environmental principles are involved here now. For this reason,
delegation to third parties must be carefully handled. Through the
Loop expects that transparency will become more and more critical
especially for food and beverage brands and products with sourcing
arrangements from the third world.
Openness towards employees and other
stakeholders is also becoming a greater requirement. Voluntary
disclosure of a wide range of corporate activities is considered to be
necessary. Unclear messages result in the consumer being confused and
looking for an appropriate source of authority. This is often
dangerous and opens the door to pressure groups – and yet another
interpretation.
Putting Trust Back Together Again
Now that we live in a new era,
described by Hamish Pringle in Brand Manners, as intimacy of
information, trust is set to become a defining characteristic.
Corporate conduct is now but "a click away" from exposure.
Understanding this and getting to the core issues for your
organisation in the context of your own brand will enable a way
forward.
While corporate governance is a well
accepted principle, it is apparent that brands will also need to be
profiled and audited in the light of the values of trust, transparency
and openness. Brand governance will need to come into play.
Brand Governance
Brand governance is an emerging field
and companies are looking for new processes to quantify and qualify
the pillars for various stakeholders. Brand governance is about
driving greater accountability at all levels within an organisation.
From an internal perspective, a brand
governance audit should look at how employees are involved, committed
and trust the company. New employment rules of short term rather than
long term contracts, more temporary and interim staff and more
difficult employment conditions undermine trust and therefore loyalty.
Openness and transparency should allow greater employee empowerment.
The flows of information around the organisation are also a critical
dimension. Qualifying and quantifying will allow companies a much
fuller understanding of their own internal marketing processes.
Getting to the dynamics of internal marketing will prove to be an
important part of brand governance.
The other role of brand governance is
to look at all the facets facing external stakeholders and the roles
of trust, transparency and openness. Again there needs to be a process
of qualification and quantification. Perhaps the core attributes are
missing, or in the worse case scenario, have been undermined by
corporate action. Brand governance needs to measure the gap to be
closed.
Implications
Through the Loop expects to be involved
with the processes of brand governance in the future. Brand governance
lays the foundation for corporate citizenship (internally and
externally). Finally, closing the gap between the desired values of
trust, integrity and openness and actual should be a part of corporate
objectives.
Through the Loop is now looking for
best practices in this area. Our own research for clients has shown
that consumers are learning more about companies and are clearly
interested in how they behave. This is starting to affect how they
make brand choices. The need to develop brand governance will be an
issue that has the ability to make or break companies and brands.
Action Points
- Introduce brand governance process
to align internal and external behaviour.
- Establish qualification and
quantification.
- Communicate the results of brand
governance to internal and external stakeholders. It should be
noted that "telling" people that they should change
their behaviour does not change their attitudes. Effecting
attitudinal change is critical.
- Establish a plan to move forward
towards the mandatory values of trust, transparency and openness.
Note where interim steps may need to be made.
