In collaboration with a client, we have produced a mini thought piece under the title of “Does this soft stuff matter?”
As you might imagine, the target audience is the group of brand skeptical business leaders to whom we will be presenting later today. We have three objectives:
- To allow them to review the “business case for brands” at their preferred speed (the document is laid out so that it can be skimmed – or read in detail)
- To provide a reference source should there be questions during our presentation
- To demonstrate that we are serious about using branding to drive the success of the overall business
To my mind, this last point is key. Marketers consistently underestimate the degree of mistrust of their motives and priorities. I believe this mistrust needs to be acknowledged and dealt with. Doing so involves three things:
- Relevance: our document explains the “brand value chain” of how marketing aims to increase the value of the business
- Alignment: our document summarizes the evidence for the impact of marketing – measured in terms of financial value
- Rigor: our document lays out the brand framework we are using, and explains the role of, and specific audience for, the various components (such as vision, purpose, promise, values etc.)
I will report back tomorrow on the degree of success of this approach!
