More Than Employees: Brand
Evangelists
by William Arruda, Reach
Communications
Your advertising. Your packaging. Your
corporate business cards. Even your product itself. They all reflect
your brand, and your brand is your company's single most valuable
asset. An asset that must be protected and projected in every transaction with every customer or prospect.
Brand is a component of everything your company does. And although it
is
nurtured and managed by your marketing department, your brand is
represented by your entire organization. From the receptionist at the
front
desk to the customer service rep staffing the phones. That's why a
strong
brand requires that everyone in your organization has a complete
understanding of, and ability to express, your brand positioning and
attributes.
It's not a question of policing the
brand. It's about creating a culture
that lives and breathes the brand for the benefit of your entire
organization. When your employees are aligned behind your brand
identity,
you maximize the strength of your brand.
Developing and implementing an internal
brand communications plan will
ensure that your brand is supported and nurtured throughout the
company,
and beyond.
An effective brand communications
program consists of six steps:
Step 1: Awareness. Brand Front and
Center!
Sure, your marketing department has a thorough understanding of the
brand
(at least, they'd better!) but others in the organization, further
removed
from the behind-the-scenes marketing strategizing, need -- at the very
least -- a general awareness of the corporate brand and what it stands
for.
The good news is that your organization
is probably already prepared to
start building this awareness. You can use existing communications
vehicles
and tools like new-hire orientations, all-company meetings, corporate
e-mails, training videos, corporate newsletters, the company Intranet,
newsgroups and other internal communications vehicles to generate
greater
employee awareness. Just make sure those vehicles reflect the brand
accurately! If your Intranet or newsletter style and format do not
reflect
your brand, including an article about on-brand communications will
only
send mixed messages to your staff. Ask yourself: Are our internal
communications on-brand?
When your employees are in constant
contact with on-brand communications,
they become aware of, and begin to absorb, the true essence of your
brand
and how it is communicated.
Here, true success requires a
collaborative effort among the Marketing,
Human Resources and Operations teams within your organization. In
addition
to communicating the brand, establishing a corporate-level brand
objective
at the highest levels of the company will generate awareness among all
employees. This can be an objective like "Raise the brand
awareness this
year by 5% among a certain target group."
Step 2: Education. Show Them the Way!
Once everyone in your organization is aware of the brand, they need to
understand the values and visual components that comprise the brand,
how it
is communicated, and what constitutes on-brand and off-brand
qualities.
Make sure your employees can stay on-brand at all times by developing
printed or web-based tools like a corporate identity standards manual,
brand usage guidelines, and creative brand communications tools. Then
move
beyond! Schedule special Brand Day activities. Organize brand
presentations.
Communicate the current status of, and
statistics behind, the brand. In
short, do everything possible to deepen employees' understanding of
the
Brand.
Step 3: Buy-In. Make the Connection!
Do your employees understand their roles in nurturing the brand?
Establishing a brand-related goal in
each employee's personal goals and
objectives for the year will make sure they think about their roles in
building the corporate brand.
Ensure that managers understand how to
develop brand objectives for their
staff. It is essential that all managers have a complete understanding
of
the brand, and that they express the brand clearly, consistently, and
constantly. Involve employees from around the company to participate
in
Brand Day. Solicit their feedback on the brand. Have a brand event or
periodic brand contests that recognize and reward innovative ways to
spread
the good word. In short, never miss an opportunity to connect your
people
to your brand.
Step 4: Actions. Teach Them to Fish!
By participating in brand contests and other ways to express the
corporate
brand, your employees take more and more responsibility for the brand
--
they become invested in the brand. They're proactive in nurturing the
brand. They support the brand in all their day-to-day activities. They
remain on-brand in everything they do without even thinking of it
consciously. This is where the true spirit of brand evangelism becomes
evident. Your employees begin to find creative ways to promote the
brand.
One example of a company that has
successfully fostered the highest level
of internal brand building, bonding over the brand, if you will, is
Yahoo! Many Yahoo! employees are fanatical about their company and
their
brand. If you see a car wrapped in a Yahoo! advertisement, you can be
fairly certain it's not a paid advertisement, it's a Yahoo! employee
proudly showing his/her true colors!
Step 5: Results. Show Them the Money!
When they see the results of their actions, your employees will
further
rally to the cause. Communicate with them about the state of the
brand.
Share brand research results, showing how each organization within the
company is doing with overall brand objectives. Spread the word about
recognition and awards from outside organizations. And make sure that
employees understand very clearly that their bonuses and other
variable
compensation (like stock and stock options) are directly tied to brand
valuation.
Strong Brand = More Money. That's an
equation everybody can understand!
Step 6: Recognition. And the Winners
Are!
One of the best ways to reinforce positive brand actions is to reward
them.
Establish Brand Steward awards. Give special recognition to employees
who
live the brand. Reward innovative ways to communicate the brand. And
never
forget that the benefits of a strong brand include being able to
charge a
premium and survive downturns in the economy. So share the additional
profits with employees ? they'll understand that corporate success is
closely related to their efforts in supporting the brand.
Keep going back to step one to continue
to refine and improve internal
brand communications, to involve new employees, and to refresh and
inspire
long-standing team members.
Remember, powerful brands require
clear, consistent, and constant
communications. They also require vigilant security of internal
communications materials, to make sure they accurately reflect the key
differentiating attributes, and the latest and greatest advances,
behind
your brand. Once you've successfully turned your employees into brand
evangelists, you are ready to develop a Brand Communications Program
for
your entire brand community: your partners, your strategic alliances,
your
supply chain, your stockholders ? and even your loyal customers!
