Branding
Many people thing of branding as a process of getting your corporate logo in front of as many people as possible. While brand recognition is a good thing, informing the thoughts and feelings they have when they see that logo is just as important - if not more so.
As individuals we all have a brand - the way we look, the way we act, our character, our profession - it is the cumulative experience that others have of us.
Companies and organizations also have a brand, which is experienced by those inside, as well as outside the 'walls' of the building. Influencing or changing that experience requires a clear vision, integrity and persistence. Corporations need to articulate and 'live' that vision at all levels of the organization.
Defining your brand
At The Dunham Group we distinguish between the stable, long-term values and mission that constitute the 'core brand identity', and the way those values are articulated and experienced at any given point in time - the 'brand body'.
Core brand identity is defined by those on the inside of the organization - the CEO, the Board of Directors, Senior Management and staff. To determine or define your core brand involves corporate soul searching on the part of all internal stakeholders. Research, interviews, anonymous surveys and focus groups are some of the tools that we use to identify spoken and unspoken values and mission.
The brand body is everything about how your organization engages the world, including logos, policies and even products. The brand body is experienced by those both inside and outside the organization: employees, customers, and the public. Our branding exercise therefore canvases all of these groups to gather their experience of your organization.
Elements of the brand body can and should change, adapting to to changing needs of customers and changes in the marketplace. In a brand audit The Dunham Group helps you identify these changes and develop new strategies to communicate the core brand in a new way.
We also look into core brand integrity, to help you compare mandated values and mission with operating values and experiences.
As a whole, or in its parts, branding is a very powerful concept. A branding exercise can unlock huge potential within an organization., energizing it on the road to success.
