Brand-led vs Brand-lagging
Over the years I’ve consulted with many organizations working to get past an inflection point. Things were going great, almost on autopilot, when something in their world – their products, their competition, their customers – changed rapidly and, whether they were trying to catch up or make the most of a new opportunity, something had to change. When facing an inflection point in their business, one of two things happens: either their brand charges ahead and helps shape what’s to come or it doesn’t.
EITHER BRAND CHARGES AHEAD AND HELPS SHAPE WHAT'S TO COME OR IT DOESN'T.
Only one of those is the right choice.
Far too often, a meeting with a client wrestling with an inflection point challenge goes like this. “The shifts in <our company/our customers/our competitors/all three> have created a real need for us to evolve <our company/our products/our culture>. The good news is our brand is solid, loved by everyone and all of the investment we’ve made hasn’t been wasted. All we need is a little update to our <logo/tagline/messaging/website/ads>.” Can you see what’s wrong here? Everything must change EXCEPT the brand? This is why we see so many brands making superficial changes in times of organizational change, where a logo tweak or a slight name change is put forward instead of something more substantial. The brand goes from being a driver of the business to being the very thing that holds it back. Because, in reality, if everything is changing, if even one thing is changing, then the brand needs to be reconsidered if not recrafted.
IF EVERYTHING IS CHANGING, IF EVEN ONE THING IS CHANGING, THEN THE BRAND NEEDS TO BE RECONSIDERED IF NOT RECRAFTED.
It doesn’t matter how you describe what a brand is, the framework you use, or the consultancy you bring in. At the end of the day, there’s one thing you need to keep in mind: that brand works not just in the present, but in the future, too. When a brand is allowed to lag behind a business, to define where it has been but not where it is going, it does more harm than good. These kinds of lagging brands aren’t worth the pixels they take up. Think about how the Gap, JCPenny, and Tropicana all lost the plot when they tweaked some aspect of their branding without fully responding to a changing landscape. Those are brand-lagging organizations.
Brand laggards confuse movement with purposeful transformation
BRAND-LED ORGANIZATIONS RECOGNIZE THAT BRAND CAN DO FAR MORE FOR AN ORGANIZATION IF IT SETS EXPECTATIONS ON WHAT’S TO COME.
Brand-led organizations recognize that brand can do far more for an organization if it sets expectations on what’s to come. For some, change is in their DNA. Think of brands like Apple and Google, Tesla and McLaren, Zara and Nike. Change is part of who they are, equipping them to ride from one inflection point to another, with their brand leading the charge and clearing a path for new products, new approaches to commerce and new versions of themselves.
But for most, they have to work hard to reposition themselves, actively resetting expectations by demonstrating to the world where they are headed. GE is a great example, where the company has actively sought to redefine what its promise to the world is, and backs it up through action. From the days of “We bring good things to life”, to "Imagination at Work", to introducing the Digital Industrial organization, over the years GE has reinterpreted its brand to evolve with not where it is, but where it is taking its customers. Intel did this a few years ago when it declared itself the Sponsors of Tomorrow, freeing the company to explore computing beyond the PC. Hyundai, Adobe, Amazon…these are all brands that have worked hard to redefine their brands, open new doors and align customers and employees alike.
So, how do you make sure your brand isn’t lagging behind your business? Here’s what I tell clients.
Treat brand planning like annual planning. Much as organizations go through annual budgeting exercises, make sure to do the same with your brand. Define how your brand needs to work for you and make sure that it’s actually set up to do that. If your business is pushing into category Y, but your brand is still rooted in X, you might have a problem. And don’t just think in terms of 4 quarters. Knowing where you want to be 5 years down the road is important to keep from whipsawing your strategy.
Make sure you know what’s really going on. It’s amazing how many executives don’t really know how their brand is performing. Success on a league table, mentions in the business press and conversations with airline seatmates are great and all, but a robust measurement system that periodically tests the basic assumptions of your brand is key. It’s not about proving that your work is important, it’s about finding ways to make it better.
Work outside your organization. While marketing may be the shepherds of the brand, the entire organization is responsible for its delivery. Whether assessing or redefining, it’s key to get perspective and participation from as broad a mix of teams, disciplines, levels and desires in order get your focus right. When marketing debuts a rebrand or minor tweak without this, the likelihood of a successful outcome is low.
Learn from others. It’s easy to look at your peers and competitors for inspiration. But, when you look even further afield, into unrelated categories you can find ideas and learn lessons that are surprisingly effective. Diversity of thought is your friend.
Push brand into non-marketing activities. Just as all marketing needs to align with your brand, the more you can get brand thinking embedded into how the organization makes decisions – product and service innovation, talent management, M&A, corporate strategy – the better you’ll be able to deliver on your promise and the faster you’ll be able to pivot. When brand becomes the domain of everyone, it works harder for everyone.