Case study of branding for a professional association

1. AAHA/Branding and
Communications Brand
Platform and Rollout
Chewing on the
AAHA Brand

2. PR planning process
1. Identify organizational objectives
2. Key stakeholders / publics / audiences
3. Stakeholder-specific goals
4. Research
5. Plan
6. Execute
7. Measure, evaluate, and revise

3. The American Animal
Hospital Association
 Quality
 Standards
 Education
 Practice management
 Marketing
 Meet public needs
 Accreditation

4. Situation analysis
 Accreditation levels
 Quality levels

5. Stakeholder-specific objectives
 Veterinarians
 Awareness
 Understanding
 Relevance
 Action
 Pet owners
 Awareness
 Understanding
 Preference

6. Research Approach
1. Message lab workshop with AAHA staff
2. Focus groups
 Accredited members: 2 groups at AAHA convention
 Non-accredited members: 3 telephone groups
 Veterinary students: 2 telephone groups
3. Veterinarian survey
4. Pet owner telephone survey
 503 dog and cat owners who use a veterinarian

7. RESEARCH INSIGHTS:
VETERINARIANS

8. What does AAHA stand for?
Core brand
1. At the cutting edge of
animal practice
2. Excellence in animal
care
3. Setting high standards
for animal hospital
practice
Other traits
 Integrity
 The elite
 Best quality animal
hospital practices
 Elitist
 Attitude of superiority

9. “[AAHA is] trying to keep up on
the cutting edge and doing
things to keep [veterinarians] in
the forefront of veterinary
medicine.”
(Non-acc 5/6)
“I [am accredited] for personal
pride, to know we are practicing
medicine and operating a clinic
at the highest standards.”
(Acc.3/28)
“The AAHA has higher
standards than what the AVMA
would be going for. It means
more to have an AAHA hospital.”
(Non-acc 5/7)
“The primary objective of AAHA
is to get every veterinarian to
practice the highest level of
medicine.” (Student 5/7)
AAHA Brand Position:
What does AAHA stand for?

10. Accreditation:
Benefits
1. Highest standards
2. Consistency and quality in animal care
3. Running a better practice
4. Better business operations
5. Teamwork
6. Shared staff goals
7. Pride

11. Accreditation Feedback:
Accredited veterinarians
“For the practice
owner, it was just to
make sure we’re at the
top — the best. If I
owned my own
practice, I would go
through the
accreditation process.”
(Acc 3/29)
“Consistency in care.
It helped us design
certain protocols for the
hospital to teach the
entire staff that this is
the way it’s done.”
(Acc 3/28)

12. Accreditation Feedback:
Accredited veterinarians
“The average AAHA hospital
does provide better care
than the average non-AAHA
hospital. They have
protocols, guidelines, require
ments … [Pet owners] don’t
care about the clinical things.
They care about getting
better care for their pets. We
need to tell [consumers].”
(Acc 3/28)
“We’re the only hospital in
our area that is AAHA
accredited. We are at a
higher level. We know
with the systems of
checks, we won’t fall
behind on anything. If
there’s something we
should be doing
better, they let us know
that.” (Acc 3/29)

13. Accreditation:
Negative perceptions
 Not a guarantee of superior
medical practice
 Some accredited clinics slack off
 Time and expense
 Some standards ―above and beyond‖
 Low pet owner awareness

14. Accreditation:
Vets and the pet owner
 Low awareness
 Not a competitive advantage
 Does not bring in clients
 Not in consumer consideration
and evaluation criteria
“An AAHA hospital
may or may not be
better, but at least
you have the
assurance that
they’ve met the
[highest]
standards. You
don’t have that
assurance at any
other hospital. No
guarantees.”
(Acc 3/28)“My motivation anyway for getting
accredited is that I could have that logo
on my door … If [people] see that they
have that added confidence.”
(Non-acc 5/7)

15. RESEARCH INSIGHTS:
PET OWNERS

16. Choosing a veterinarian
Pet owners primarily select
veterinarians based on:
Vet relationship with the pets
Vet concern about animal care
Vet communication with the
pet owner

17. Pet owners and accreditation
Before
hearing
benefits
After
hearing
benefits
Very
important
Extremely
important
 Low awareness (15%)
BUT
 High importance
53%
60%

18. Consumer Insights:
How many clinics are accredited?
 Consumers have an overly optimistic view

19. Consumer Insights:
Key benefits of accreditation
Based on survey test of messages:
1. The best in animal care
2. The latest in medicine, education, and training
3. Adherence to highest standards
4. AAHA sets and enforces standards

20. AAHA ACCREDITATION
BRAND ARCHITECTURE

21. Students
Accredited Clinics
Non-accredited
Clinics
Pet owners
Campaign Audiences
Breeders
Shelters
Realtors
Friends
and Neighbors

22. Target Audiences
Target What We Want
Them to Think
What We Want Them
to Do
Pet Owners
Accreditation =
Superior Quality
Choose Accredited Clinics
Accredited Clinics
Accreditation =
Advantages
Renew and Promote
Accreditation
Veterinary Students
Accreditation =
Preferred Employer
Seek Accredited Clinics
Non-Accredited Clinics/
Non-Members
Accreditation =
Advantages
Seek Accreditation
Shelters/Breeders/
Relo Influencers/KOLs
Accreditation =
Superior Quality
Promote Accredited Clinics

23. AAHA Accreditation:
Brand Architecture
 AAHA’s accreditation brand must be:
 Well-defined
 Credible
 Differentiated
 The best, the first, or the only
 Relevant
 How can we motivate required actions?

24. ATTRIBUTES
For
Vet Clinics
Excellence
Highest
Standards
Training
Teamwork
Cutting Edge
ATTRIBUTES
For
Pet Owners
Excellence
Comfort
Latest
Practices
Training
Trust
Benefit Statements
As the only organization that accredits veterinary clinics in the U.S., the
American Animal Hospital Association sets the standard for
quality animal care.
Since 1933, clinics that accept the challenge of accreditation are tested to
meet 900 quality standards that encompass all aspects of animal care —
ranging from patient care and pain management,
to training and medical record keeping.
AAHA standards are continuously updated to keep accredited clinics on the
forefront of veterinary medicine and to adopt the most advanced business
practices.
Through accreditation, veterinarians gain assurance and pride that their
clinics operate at the highest standards.
Pet owners gain piece of mind, because they know their AAHA-accredited
clinic is an elite facility — one that is committed to providing the very best in
animal care for their beloved pets.
Core Statement
Accreditation through the American Animal Hospital Association is the only way to ensure that a veterinary
clinic is operating at the highest standards of excellence in animal care. Veterinarians and pet owners know
that pets at AAHA-accredited clinics receive the most advanced and most professional care.
Accreditation:
Brand Architecture

25. Key Messages and
Proof Points
 AAHA sets the standard for animal care
 AAHA is the only organization that accredits veterinary
clinics in the U.S.
 With 900 quality standards that encompass all aspects
of animal care, AAHA Accreditation is the only way to
ensure that a veterinary clinic is operating at the
highest standards
 AAHA standards are continuously updated to keep
accredited clinics on the forefront of veterinary
medicine and to adopt the most advanced business
practices
 Accredited clinics receive ongoing support from AAHA
to remain at the forefront of their profession

26.  Veterinarians know that accredited clinics provide the
highest quality care and employ the most advanced
clinical and business practices
 INSERT CLINICAL PROOF POINT
 Better business practices mean AAHA accredited clinics are
typically the larger and more well-established clinics in their
communities
 2.9 FTE versus 1.9 – 4.6 support staff per FTE versus
4.0 – 28.2 years in business versus 20.9
 Pet owners know that when they take their pets to an
AAHA accredited clinic, they will receive the very best
in animal care
 8 out of 10 pet owners say AAHA accreditation is important and
will be a factor the next time they select a veterinarian
Key Messages and
Proof Points

27. Brand Personality Portrait
Brand Association Reinforce Reposition To
All Audiences
Highest standards in animal care x
Excellence x
Best training/all staff x
Veterinarian Only
Expensive Worth the cost; new clients as result
Time-consuming Worth the time; new clients as result
Elitist The best; but all are welcome
No higher quality than my standards
Highest quality in the industry
Peace of mind
Cutting edge x
Teamwork x
Pet Owner Only
Relates to all veterinary clinics Only the best are accredited
Ensures comfort and pain management x
Trust x

28. AAHA ACCREDITATION
CAMPAIGN

29. Program Timeline
2010
2009
2011
Introduce
Engage
Entrench

30. Veterinarians
Old logo New logo and tagline

31. Veterinarians
 Build awareness of campaign

32. Veterinarians
 Vet-to-vet
word of mouth
 Vet and
hospital
testimonials
 Accredited
hospital open
houses

33. Veterinarians
 Campaign
blog
 Marketing
webinars,
videos,
podcasts
 Branding
consultants

34. Veterinarians
 Clinic Marketing
 Accreditation logos, signage, advertising

35. Veterinarians
 Top 100 animal hospitals
 Partnership with veterinary trade
 Publish annual list
 Criteria based on AAHA standards
 Promotion through new media outreach

36. Pet owners
 Consumer Awareness
 Animal Planet partnership

37. Pet owners
 Redesigned consumer-facing web site
 Twitter

38. Pet owners

39. Pet owners
 Partnerships
 Real estate agents
 U.S. Postal Service

40. QUESTIONS?