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Repositioning a Brand - It's Going to Be a Long Road

A long road? It doesn't have to be. Today, branding is such a broad term used loosely to explain a concept that for some isn’t so easy to define. In our entrepreneurial training classes, we explain that the only way to describe branding is to say that ‘branding is everything’! From the way your employee answers the phone to how you dress and even how the company is structured internally. In fact, described by many professionals like LaCosta Lolly of LLS International Consulting, a international strategic firm, “developing a strong brand starts from the inside out”. I couldn’t agree more. I have taught in many courses that in order to brand or reposition an existing brand you must start from the inside out.

First, we analyze the brand through the process of what we call the branding wheel model which first starts with the company’s core philosophy. At that point we determine the organizations unique selling proposition moving into the entire brand architecture; ultimately, determining what that looks like and sounds like to the world through creative imagery and messages. To reposition a brand we have to take it a step further and redefine what the organization looks like to its stakeholders. This can be done through the perceptual mapping process. As you probably realize at this point, it isn’t going to be an easy task. It takes a highly skilled professional or consultant to help entrepreneurs step away from the business long enough to develop the foundation of a strong brand.The question is what can you do? The best thing you can do for your company is envision its future. Without your leadership and understanding of where you want to take the company – most likely you will not gain support from those who drive your vision. It doesn’t have to be a long road if you play the visionary role in your business. When repositioning your brand it’s best to understand how to shorten the path to successfully build positive brand equity in the minds of stakeholders.

Here are the top ten things you need to do in order to start:

1. Follow the branding wheel process
2. Develop scenario’s or what if situations
3. Take action (seems simple but many small businesses fail because they do not ‘TAKE ACTION’)
4. Hire someone to help you (a coordinator, an intern, a friend or relative or a consultant)
5. Review the trends 5-10 years out for your industry
6. Develop a spreadsheet that captures the benefits, features, advantages and disadvantages of your competition
7. KNOW the competition better than they know themselves
8. Network, network, network (both online and at events)
9. Remember the 5 P’s of marketing (Product, Placement, Price, People, Promotion)
10. Analyze your internal structure, your vision for the company and how you manage your people

If you want to learn more about branding or repositioning your brand, you can attend one of our free workshops (see events on our Face Book page) or you can visit our Web site. We offer a wealth of information to help small to mid-sized businesses augment their marketing and their brands. Learn from some of the brightest consultants in their fields of expertise like LaCosta Lolly, Harry Futch and others. These consultants have joined our team to deliver sound advice to our readers. Each of them have a passion for helping entrepreneurs realize their dreams.

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Augment Marketing continues to provide the most relevant data to our clients and readers. You can follow us on Twitter to get #365 tips on augmenting your business or you can stay in touch by visiting our Face Book page where we post upcoming events that you can attend for free in most cases. If you want to connect with us on LinkedIn just click the link below. You can follow us now on all the social networking locations (click links below):

The Tell-Tale Signs of Poor Brand Strength

by Trisha Ahlman

One of the most important steps of branding is the measurement of internal perception and organizational structure. Change is, no doubt, a very important concept when beginning to rebrand or reposition a company, product or service. The question becomes is your organization ready for change, are you poised for new ideas to flourish, are you aware of the tell-tale signs of poor brand strength? All of these questions could create a war – a tug of war – between what you are trying to accomplish and what might actually happen because of poor internal perception.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “don’t put the cart in front of the horse?” Unfortunately, I see this more times than not in some organizations. Before you can position or market a product or service effectively in the marketplace, you need to look within the organization first. Review the list of tell-tale signs and let’s discuss how to combat internal resistance to change.

1) Inadequate communication or education within the organization

2) Have direct opponents of change because of self-interest not necessarily in the best interest of the company

3) Low tolerance to change because of the fear of an unstable environment

4) Lack of morale and teamwork

5) Strict and rigid policies that prohibit creativity

6) Lack of vision

7) Lack of leadership that fosters poor professional judgment

8) Poor customer service reviews

9) Internal perception reveals poor assessment of leadership and management

10) Unnecessary bottlenecks that cause frustration throughout the corporation

The list goes on. But, these are some of the most common distractions that go against the grain of change. The most important thing for survival in the current state of the economy is to get a handle on internal processes. If you think that you can identify with anyone of these factors, it’s time to take an internal audit of your business. You cannot position your business or brand without understanding that marketing starts from the inside out.

Based on some of the most profound findings by business pioneers like Kotter and Covey, here’s what you can do:

· Set specific objectives from the start

· Have a sense of urgency (be proactive)

· Buy-in and direction from leadership and top management

· Develop and communicate a clear vision (begin with the end in mind)

· Build a coalition for change (internal buy-in is critical)

· Empower people to have an ownership environment (think win-win)

· Learn from mistakes and develop an environment of responsibility

· Encourage education and training within the organization

· Create personal development plans that allows individuals to be a part of the decision making process

· Don’t let problems foster for a long period of time

This all sounds great but how do you start, how do you manage this, and what result should you expect? First, start by taking an assessment. What is internal perception? There should be a person assigned to manage the assessment within the organization that is a supporter of change – perhaps the brand manager – who understands the long-term vision of the company and what the leadership is trying to achieve. Second, you need to develop a team (a coalition) that is scientifically formed. Scientifically means that teams are formed based on personality, results, and synergy among the group and not formed by mishap. The coalition will be responsible for managing change and implementing new standards to support the end goal. Lastly, you should expect a renewed sense of ownership, loyalty, teamwork, personal discipline, improved morale, and continuous quality throughout the company.

Right now, this methodology is even more important than ever. Everyone is fighting for job security so what we’ve been witnessing is internal chaos as our brands will ultimately deteriorate over time as a result. The leaders of businesses, large or small, must take corrective – proactive action.

If you want to reposition, rebrand, brand or simply be more efficient and effective throughout your company – you have to start here. Augment has worked with many organizations to help them align internal practices to match external goals when positioning the brand for long-term success.

*References: concepts derived from John Kotter concluded in his book "A force for Change: How Leadership Differs from Management" (1990), the Kaizen method of continuous incremental improvements is an originally Japanese management concept for incremental (gradual, continuous) change (improvement), and the Seven Habits model of management and leadership by author Stephen Covey.

Trisha Ahlman is a marketing strategist and small business owner. She has worked in just about every marketing function possible for nearly 20 years. Augment Marketing Group's specialty is helping small businesses build strong brands, increase visibility in the market, and generate sales - this is called the B.I.G. system. To contact, email trisha@augmentgroup.com.

Action Plans - Why do we procrastinate?

Everyone tells us that business plans are the best way to navigate and build our business - so why is it so difficult to accomplish? And, what about the plans we do find the time to write down but never come to fruition. Unfortunately, these obstacles are the realities of being an entrepreneur or new business owner. We wear many hats and we tend to let our businesses consume us. Action plans (or business plans) tend to be plans that are reactive rather than proactive for small businesses. Sound familiar?

Let's start with the types of plans first, how we can start the process, and how to eliminate waste and get the plans working for you rather than sitting on the shelf.

The following plans are considered to be relevant to small and growing businesses. Depending on the size of your company, these plans may only consist of a one page document or even just a statement. They are:

Business Plan
Marketing Plan
Strategic Plan
Productivity Plan
Tactical Plans
Budgets
Sales Forecasting

As explained by business strategist, LaCosta Lolly of LLS International Consulting, "a comprehensive plan should be developed even if you have to implement in stages". Whether you have the resources to implement the plan or not, planning is still essential. Ms. Lolly goes on to explain, "For the small or mid-sized business seeking to grow or expand, planning is essential. It is important not to focus solely on acquiring new customers without being prepared for those customers and the reverse is true in that preparation without new customers creates unnecessary expenses. Strategic planning will help your business plan for growth from the inside out and determine what is necessary to take your business to the next level." To read more about strategic planning visit LLS International Consulting's NEW informative Web site.

How Can Marketing Help My Competitive Advantage?

Entrepreneurs continue to search for ways to increase their competitive advantage. Winning business from competitors isn't easy. In fact, trying to gain new clients can sometimes take quite a long time - time that most companies do not have if they intend on staying in business. In the weeks to come we'll discuss more about competitive advantage and how to increase it through specific marketing initiatives that perhaps you know - but just haven't had time to touch on in a while.

Let's explore areas that will pollinate your competitive advantage by revisiting the following - Get a pen, write it down, or print it out for your own strategy sessions:

• Increase the time it takes deliver your product or service (increase efficiency)
• Survey your clients to find out their level of satisfaction (know your customer)
• Build strategic alliances so that you never lose a contact (make contacts work for you even if they are not your direct client)
• Lean your processes (better understand supply chain management)
• Touch base with your sales force more often (treat your sales force first class, they are in many cases the first contact with client and they know their pains and needs)
• Know your unique selling proposition (revisit your positioning statement to enhance differentiation)
• Have planning sessions for your business (make sure to spend a time each week that focuses on your businesses no matter how busy you get)
• Create a board of directors or group of people that you can learn from (in many cases, professionals will join forces to share best practices, insight, and planning opportunities)
  

You probably know exactly where I'm coming from, but in order to increase your competitive advantage through marketing here are a few specific items to consider.

1. Build a strong relationship with your customer by getting to know them thoroughly - do a little research, keep a database of pertinent information that will help targeted messages
   
2. Implement technology that will better serve your client - examples include: email marketing, dynamic Web sites, and customer relations management software
3. Create stickiness - develop memberships, incentive programs, reward programs, or added value for your clients
4. Make sure your brand is relevant - meaning, make sure that your brand means more than just the offering of your product or service - for instance, community initiatives
5. Enhance the customer experience - create a culture that is customer-focused, making sure that your clients have this experience every time is developed through your systems and execution

These are just a few things I recommend in creating competitive advantage. It has worked for hundreds of small to medium sized enterprise and can work for your business too.

Apply these concepts and you will Augment Your Marketing efforts ten fold.

Trisha Ahlman is a marketing strategist and small business owner. She has worked in just about every marketing function possible for nearly 20 years. Augment Marketing Group's specialty is helping small businesses build strong brands, increase visibility in the market, and generate sales - this is called the B.I.G. system. To contact, email trisha@augmentgroup.com.

What works best for small business - PR or Marketing?

I haven't written in a while - I've been just a little busy lately, but I wanted to address the question posed tonight at the Indio-American Chamber of Commerce. I was invited to speak regarding marketing and PR for small businesses. What works: Marketing or PR? Which one can set small businesses apart from their competitors? The answers that resonated are that marketing is everything you do for you business, but PR is one very important marketing initiative that can generate BIG results while gaining credibility as an expert in your field.

I've spoken before about B.I.G. results. In essence, it means to: Build awareness and trust, Increase interest, and Generate sales. PR is a way to build trust and funnel buyers through the decision making process non-offensively. Specifically, we spoke about education marketing and educating consumers about your products and services rather than selling them. With public relations, we tend to think what we hear or see is believable or acceptable rather than a sales pitch or marketing ploy.

I think that marketing and sales professionals get a bad wrap for the most part because of all the high pressured sales people of the world. Quite frankly, car salesman and insurance salesman have given us all a bad name. None the less, we still need to sell our products and services, right?

How do we do this? The answer is PR. Build credibility with your consumers. Here are a few tips from tonight's excellent panel discussion on PR and Marketing for Small Businesses:

1. Spend time blogging or writing articles that demonstrate your expertise in your field.
2. Make sure you have some kind of online presence.
3. Use an integrated approach to marketing - if you do use traditional media for advertising, make sure that you use other guerrilla marketing tactics and online media to help support initiatives for the best results.
   
4. Make a lasting impression with your clients - don't forget the old hand shake and customer relations.
5. Make sure you under promise and over deliver.
6. Be unique and make sure that your marketing mix has a specific message to a specific target - the more targeted the better.
   
7. Use a platform that allows you to tell your story - you finally have it all together, you know your marketing, you know your client, you know your brand ... talk radio is just one way to utilize a platform that gives you more than just a 60 second commercial.

These concepts and so much more were discussed this evening. Everyone participated and we all gained a great deal of insight from the conversation. If you would like to know more about tonight's meeting, please email trisha@augmentgroup.com.

Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has over 15 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing.