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Brand Basics: Building Your Business on a
                                Powerful Promise and Engaging Experience




                            Part 1:
                            Understanding
                            Brand



A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
“ Building a brand is…
  more intuitive than
  analytical, and most
  of the time it can’t be
  seen. But it can always
  be felt.”
 					      	     – Scott Bedbury, from
 					          	 "A New Brand World"1
3




This part of the Brand Basics course will prepare you to
develop and strengthen your company’s brand. We will answer
the question “What is a brand?” and discuss the value it can
deliver to a business like yours, illustrated through examples,
including those involving B2B and technology companies. To
get you on your way, we’ve also included tips to rally your
organization around the need for a well-defined brand.




                                          Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / a Cisco Partner Plus Resource
What is
a Brand?
What is a Brand?                                                                                                                         5



                                        “Brand” means different things to                  an emotional level. Customers preferred
                                        different people. Traditionally, brand has         to buy products of companies whose
        In this section you will
                                        been used as shorthand to describe a               reputations they were familiar with—
        learn:
                                        company, product or service. Once, a               companies that they trusted, knew
         •	 How to define and better    brand consisted of nothing more than a             and above all, liked.
            understand brand            logo or even just a name, but with the
                                        dramatic increase in companies and                 Today, brand is what a business stands
         •	 What the components                                                            for. It is the intangible collection of
                                        customer choice that we have seen,
            of a brand are                                                                 impressions, emotions, values, aspirations
                                        brands have evolved to become more
         •	 Why undertake a             complex—and central—parts of every                 and ideas associated with a company. It
            brand-building initiative   business, whether that business is                 is supported by very tangible things like
                                        targeted to consumers (B2C) or other               people, products and price points. It is
                                        businesses (B2B).                                  not just a logo, tagline, type or advertising
                                                                                           campaign; it is all these things and many
                                        As competition increased, companies                more. When all these different factors
                                        began to realize that not only could they          come together, they form a brand. It is
                                        connect with customers on a rational               that holistic experience that customers,
                                        level—by having cheaper prices for                 employees and stakeholders have when
                                        quality goods, for example—but also on             engaging with a company in any way.




                                                                      Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
6



Brand as a Promise
At its simplest, a brand is a promise.
It is a promise made by the firm to its
customers, employees, partners and
everyone else it comes into contact
with that they will have a consistent and
desirable experience, both functionally
and emotionally. If that promise is fulfilled
time and time again, customers will come
to view the brand favorably; if that promise
is broken, they will lose faith in it and be
less likely to buy that company’s products
or services.
                                                                Brand is more than
                                                                just a name or logo
                                                                – the best brands
                                                                are indistinguishable
                                                                from the customer
                                                                experience.

                                                Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
7
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Website
                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Advertising
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Tagline



                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Mission


Components of a Brand Experience                       Partner
                                                    Relationships                                                                                                                                                  Events
A company’s brand is articulated at                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Brand
every touchpoint—that is, every moment                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Identity
at which the brand engages people.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             graphic
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              elements
Touchpoints range from the comparatively
minor (business cards and brochures)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           type


to the major (advertising campaigns and                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    imagery

corporate social responsibility programs).                                                                                                                                                                                                                             logo
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                color
They can be experiential—think of hold                                                                                                                                                                                              Brand
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Promise
music or scents in a hotel lobby. And,
today, they include hard-to-define             Social                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Internal
components such as social media.             Networking
                                                                                                                                                                                   Customer Case Study




                                                             Telecom Carrier Offers First-of-its-Kind
                                                             Cloud Security Solution                                                                                                                                                                                               Communications
Of course, they vary by industry, but a        Pages
medium-sized information technology                            Executive Summary

                                                                 Customer Name: BT
                                                                 Industry: Telecommunications
                                                                 Location: London, United Kingdom
                                                                                                                  BT partners with Cisco and SecureLogix
                                                                                                                  to help customers identify voice and data
                                                                                                                  threats through single integrated solution.




solutions company might have a set that
                                                                 Number of Employees: 92,600
                                                                                                                  Challenge




                                                                                 Printed
                                                               Challenge                                          A leading global communications company with customers in more than 170 countries, BT
                                                                 Improve security of enterprise                   offers fixed-line services, broadband, mobile and TV products and services to consumers,
                                                                 voice networks                                   enterprise companies, and the public sector. BT Global Services is one of the company’s
                                                                 No holistic view of network                      four customer-facing lines of business, providing managed networked IT services for large
                                                                 environment                                      corporate and public sector customers.
                                                                 Bolster data security by securing
                                                                 the voice network                                With the rise of “hacktivism,” that is, the act of hacking for politically motivated purposes,
                                                                                                                  cyber security has become a top priority for many of BT’s customers. According to Jeff




includes the following touchpoints.                                              Materials
                                                               Solution                                           Schmidt, global head of business continuity, security, and governance for BT Global
                                                                 BT Assure Analytics cloud service,               Services, “98 percent of businesses that were hit by hackers also suffered from dial
                                                                 a visual tool that helps identify and            through fraud. And many hackers use this fraud to fund their activities.” In fact, global
                                                                 mitigate voice and data threats                  telecom fraud losses are estimated to be US$40 billion annually.1
                                                                 Cisco Integrated Services Routers
                                                                 Generation 2 provides voice and                  To address this problem, BT began developing an intelligent visual data analysis engine
                                                                 data services on a single platform               that would improve situational awareness and identify voice and data threats in real
                                                                 and Cisco UC Gateway Services                    time. The solution pulls all the information from the network, sets a baseline, and then
                                                                 API allows partners to build security            determines where the anomalies are within the network infrastructure. By visually mapping
                                                                 applications for voice traffic, whether          these anomalies, BT is able to more quickly and easily identify and mitigate threats versus
                                                                 via TDM or SIP trunking                          reviewing reams of data.
                                                                 SecureLogix voice policy and




                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Workplace
                                                                 security application




                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Environment
                                                             1 © 2012 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.   1
                                                                                                                              Communications Fraud Control Association (CFCA) Telecom 2011 survey




Brand can also be thought of as the                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Taken together, touchpoints
perception that stakeholders have of a                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  help shape your brand,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Customer                                                        or the perception of your
company. This perception is developed                                                                                                                                                                                    Service                                                        company.
through the stakeholder experience at                       Presentation
every touchpoint. Effectively fulfilling                       Style                                                                                                                                                                               Engagement
the brand promise at every point of                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Style
contact will result in a positive and                                                                                                                                                                                               Branded
consistent perception of your company.                                                                                                                                                                                             Giveaways



                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
8



                       Shared Characteristics of                         Coca-Cola is the most valuable brand
                       a Strong Brand                                    in the world according to the 2012
                       Brands, like the businesses they                  report on the 100 Best Global Brands
                       represent, can be strong or weak.                 from Interbrand, the world’s largest
                       Understanding the evolving definition             brand consultancy. The Coca-Cola
                       of brand is the first step in building            brand is worth more than $77 billion.
                       a robust brand. But what are the                  Instantly recognizable and consumed
                       characteristics of a strong brand?                across the globe, Coke die-hards are
                       Although specific circumstances affect            not difficult to come by. Blind taste tests
                       a large part of that answer, successful           that pit Coke against Pepsi, however,
                       brands share certain similarities:                often reveal that even ardent fans base
                                                                         their opinions less on the physical
                       •	 A clearly formulated brand promise             product than they think. Coca-Cola is
                          that is directly connected to business         so successful because it has created
                          strategy                                       more than a drink—it has created an
                       •	 Employees who understand the                   experience based on the promise of
                          brand and are held to its standards            timeless refreshment and enjoyment
                          in their work                                  that is reaffirmed at every touchpoint.
                                                                         The famous contour bottle, for example,
                       •	 Attention to every touchpoint to               was designed to be recognizable even
Coca-Cola extends         ensure that each is on-brand and can           when shattered.
its brand to every        holistically deliver on the brand promise
touchpoint: the Coke
bottle was designed
to be so distinct
that it should be
recognizable even
when broken.



                                                    Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
9



Reasons for Building a Brand                    or acquisition, may require the alignment
Brands come about organically. Whether          of visions and aesthetics. Or quite simply,
you like it or not, your company will           the leadership might realize that the
necessarily develop a reputation in the         company could gain from a higher profile
marketplace. So why build a brand?              and stronger reputation.
Undertaking a conscious brand-building          Your brand will develop with or without
initiative allows you to take control of that   your conscious involvement. Shaping
process, and guide it along a set path.         that process will allow you to access
The question is not whether or not to           the tremendous power of brand.
have a brand; it is whether your brand
will align with your strategic vision.

Still most companies wait for an event
to awaken them to the need for a brand.           “Authentic brands do not emerge from marketing
There are several triggers that might
spur a company to undertake a branding
                                                   cubicles or advertising agencies. They emanate
initiative. Changes in the category, such
as a new entrant with similar offerings,
                                                   from everything the company does, from store
may create a need for differentiation. An          design and site selection to training, production,
internal restructuring, such as a merger
                                                   packaging and merchandise buying.”
                                                              		               – Howard Schultz, from "Pour Your Heart into It: How 		
                                                    			                         Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time"2



                                                                                              Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
The
Power
of Brand
The Power of Brand                                                                                                                   11



                                       Brands are usually thought of as being             the industry and became the preferred
       In this section you will        integral parts of the B2C marketplace—             partner of almost every business. GE
       learn:                          Starbucks, Gillette or Apple may spring            spends heavily on advertising to share
                                       to mind—but they are just as important             its achievements and forward-looking
        •	 The value of brand in B2B   in the B2B space. The B2B marketplace              practices. Clearly these highly successful
        •	 How brand serves as a       is full of clutter and noise. Customers            companies understand the inherent value
           guiding principle for an    are overwhelmed by undifferentiated                of building a strong brand.
           organization                lists of features and tit-for-tat pricing. A
                                       strong brand identity, then, is all the more       Brand has three particularly useful
        •	 How a strong brand                                                             functions for a professional services
           improves customer           important to help your B2B firm stand out
                                       from the crowd. In fact, three primarily           company: (1) It can be used as an
           relevance and competitive                                                      organizing principle, (2) it can make the
           differentiation             B2B companies made the top 10 in the
                                       Interbrand report on Best Global Brands            company more relevant to its customers
                                       of 2012 mentioned on page 8: IBM (#3),             and (3) it can help differentiate otherwise
                                       GE (#6) and Intel (#8). IBM established            common products from those of its
                                       itself early on as a thought leader in             competitors.




                                                                     Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
12




                                                                                                      In this classic
                                                                                                      advertisement,
                                                                                                      McGraw-Hill made
                                                                                                      a compelling case
                                                                                                      for the value of B2B
                                                                                                      brand building.
Copyright ©The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Reproduced with permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies,
Inc. No redistribution or reproduction without the permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.       Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
13



Brand as an Organizing Principle                                      UPS recently
Companies are collections of individuals,                             rebranded itself
each with their own ideas and opinions.                               with a strong
Aligning all the stakeholders under a                                 emphasis on
set of common values can be a boon                                    logistics. No
for productivity and collaboration. A                                 longer is UPS
company that develops a value-based           simply a package delivery service;
identity can also increase employee           rather, it aims to serve the business
satisfaction, thereby fostering a positive    community as its premier logistics
work environment and reducing turnover.       partner, promising seamless supply-
Brand is the ideal concept around which       chain services. The brand connects
to rally your organization, because it        this value proposition to an emotional
combines your business goals with an          idea: UPS “hearts” logistics. In this case,
emotional promise. It’s this emotional        the brand refresh served as the principle
component that will make your brand           around which to organize the business,
stand out in the minds of your customers—     changing the perception and positioning
there is no reason it shouldn’t be relevant   of UPS in the B2B community. And the
to and motivating for your employees          emotional component made the brand
as well. Companies should endeavor to         relatable both to customers and to
create one common understanding of the        employees who suddenly had a perfect
brand that is effectively communicated        answer to the question, “Why do I show
to all internal audiences, providing an       up for work every day?”
organizing principle for the firm.




                                                                                       Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
14



The Power of Internal Brand                    Training employees in your brand will                                    Ritz-Carlton
Resonance                                      help them create the right experiences                                   demonstrates the
Many companies still use the traditional       for customers and make the right                                         power of internal
top-down management approach, a                decisions on the company’s behalf.                                       brand resonance.
remnant of the Industrial Age. However,        This is of particular importance in a                                    The brand is based on
this model has less resonance in               B2B environment, where face-to-face                                      the idea of “ladies and
today’s knowledge-based economy                time involving sales representatives and          gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen,”
and more firms are learning the benefits       corporate teams makes up a large part             so it is important that employees understand
of employee engagement. Particularly in        of business activity. If your employees           the brand inside out in order to reach the
the technology industry, it has become         understand the brand well, they will be           required level of service. Ritz-Carlton’s
common to hear CEOs or other business          able to communicate it effectively in             internal engagement has been so thorough
leaders talk about how robust talent pools     their work without the need for direct            that it provides all employees with a
are their greatest asset. Although talent is   supervision or constant instruction               stipend they are to use to personally
of the utmost importance in today’s world,     from the dreaded “brand police”.                  make a stay more enjoyable for the
it is most effective when all employees                                                          guests of their choice. Not only does this
fundamentally understand what their                                                              practice represent an excellent example of
business stands for.                                                                             empowering employees to bring the brand
                                                                                                 to life for customers, it also demonstrates
                                                                                                 the level of training and trust the company
                                                                                                 has invested in its employees.




                                                                                          Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
15



The Power of Customer Brand
Relevance
Brand building, when done correctly,                                               For years, Xerox was synonymous with
can also help a company become more                                                the banal act of copying documents.
relevant to its target market. The process                                         But with the expansion of electronic
entails gaining a deeper understanding                                             forms of communication, it saw its B2C
of the people you are selling to, including                                        market shrinking while noticing a growing
their needs and values. Learning what         opportunity in the B2B space. With its “Ready for real business” campaign,
customers really care about—both on           Xerox repositioned itself as a strategic partner in business services. Its
an emotional and functional level—is key to   advertising campaign focused on how Xerox helped well-known firms deal
crafting a brand, because it helps to focus   with their specific business problems. By anticipating customer needs, Xerox
your promise and link the business to the     was able to make itself relevant to a new market and landed itself a spot on
brand through a shared understanding of       the 100 Best Global Brands list.
unmet customer needs. If your customers
feel like their major issues are addressed
and fears alleviated before they have
even articulated them, they will be more
likely to do business with you. Such
an issue is relevant in the technology
services industry where technical faults
are often the primary worry. A company
that addresses particularly important
customer concerns in its brand building
will stand above the rest.




                                                                                  Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
16



The Power of Competitive Brand
Differentiation
                                                                   Intel illustrates the power of brand differentiation.
Brands also serve to differentiate                                 The company makes products that few customers in
products in a cluttered space. People                              the wider public understand; microchips are difficult to
face a barrage of nearly identical products                        differentiate in the eyes of an unspecialized audience.
in every industry. Consider the toothpaste                         In fact, few people would be able to say what exactly
aisle of a drugstore; there are rows and       makes a computer with “Intel inside” better than its competition. Yet, Intel
rows of brands with virtually the same         continues to be upheld as a mark of quality and reliability. Intel managed
range of products. These products, at          to transform an unexciting business into a powerful brand by slapping
the very least, have similar rational          its logo on millions of computers and making sure it got a place in every
benefits. What causes a customer to            advertisement for a product that used its technology. In the “sea of
gravitate towards one brand over the           sameness” that is the microchip industry, Intel’s brand catapulted it far
others time and time again? It is the          beyond its peers. It has been so successful that most people would be
emotional connection that he or she            hard-pressed to even name an Intel competitor.
feels for that brand. In an industry like IT
services, it can be difficult for customers
to differentiate one company from its
competitors on purely rational grounds.
In many cases, in fact, competitors are
selling exactly the same products from
exactly the same partners! Although high
quality, desirable products and services
always serve as the foundation, a strong
brand can be that crucial deciding factor
that encourages customers to choose—or
recommend—you over your competition.


                                                                                      Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
The
Business
Value of
Brand
The Business Value of Brand                                                                                                          18



                                      A strong brand is more than just a nice-            Consider one of the great examples of
        In this section you will      to-have; strong brands drive tangible               strong branding, Apple. The electronics
        learn:                        business results. Brand influences                  producer boasted long lines at stores
                                      customers’ willingness to purchase your             around the world and months-long
         •	 How brand can move        product, the price they are willing to pay          waiting lists at the launch of its first
            customers through the     for it and their likelihood of returning for        iPad—a product no one had ever seen
            marketing funnel          more. The value of brand can also be                or used before. Why the hype? Why were
         •	 Why brand loyalty means   measured: many consultancies have                   people willing to spend such a substantial
            more revenue              evolved practices around deriving the               amount of money and effort on obtaining
                                      value of brands through comprehensive,              a product they knew so little about?
         •	 That brand can have
                                      fact-based methodologies.                           Because they believed in the promise of
            measurable monetary
                                                                                          Apple’s extraordinarily powerful brand.
            value




                                                                     Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
19



The Marketing Funnel &                     The process begins with Awareness,
Brand                                      when potential buyers first encounter
The marketing funnel describes the         the company. The next stage is Familiarity.
process a customer goes through            At this point, customers have decided they
when purchasing a product. It helps        need the product the company offers.
us understand how brand affects            They begin shopping various sellers with             IBM’s Smarter Planet initiative shows
purchase decisions.                        no firm intention to buy. The next step,             how a strong brand can propel a
                                           Consideration, is when customers decide              customer through the marketing funnel.
                                           to buy a product and begin comparing                 Smarter Planet categorizes IBM’s products
                                           competitors. At this stage, a strong brand           and services according to the business
                                           can tilt the scale in one company’s favor.           problem or need—not according to what
            AWARENESS
                                           In the next step, Purchase, customers                they actually do. The same offering might
                                           choose to buy one company’s product                  even fall under two categories. In many
            FAMILIARITY                    instead of its substitutes, a decision that          ways, what IBM offers is not unique;
                                           can be heavily influenced by the brand.              myriad companies, for example, offer
                                           After Purchase and if the customer feels             supply chain management. But when
          CONSIDERATION         ADVOCACY                                                        that common service is slotted under
                                           that the brand promise has been fulfilled,
                                           the final stage is Loyalty. Not only is the          a heading like “Smarter Commerce,”
                                           customer likely to come back for more,               it instantly appears more innovative
             PURCHASE                                                                           and novel. A customer is more likely to
                                           but is also more likely to recommend
                                           that company to others. The opposite                 purchase IBM’s products over those of
                                           also holds true: if customers have a bad             its competitors because of how they are
              LOYALTY
                                           experience, they can turn from advocates             framed. Why would you purchase a supply
                                           to antagonists.                                      chain management product when you
                                                                                                could buy a Smarter Commerce solution?




                                                                                         Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
20




Driving Preference                              cases, the product is hardly different—it
Preference can be one of the strongest          is the perception of quality or credibility
drivers of sales. Coke outsells Pepsi in        that it carries that ultimately brings in
all but a few markets globally despite a        the sale. For B2B businesses, this often
general liking for sweeter beverages;           means displaying thought leadership.
Gillette is all but synonymous with razors.     Many brand experts credit the success
If your brand is strong enough, customers       of Accenture’s brand to its extensive
will buy your products even if they are         collection of white papers and reports.
economically or technically inferior to their   Although your company may not have
competitors. Consider the old adage from        Accenture’s vast resources, positioning
decades past, “Nobody ever got fired for        yourself as a credible and knowledgeable
                                                                                              A perfectly functional black cap like the one on the
buying IBM”: regardless of the quality of       partner could allow a price premium in
                                                                                              right can be had for less than $5. Why will people
the product, IBM was considered a safe          the future, at no added cost.                 pay $20 or more for the one on the left? The answer
company to buy from because of the                                                            is simple: brand.
strength of its brand and the credibility
that it afforded.

Allowing a Price Premium
A strong brand also offers a windfall in the
                                                “ A brand is the face of a business strategy.”
premium it allows a company to charge                		                – Scott Galloway, as quoted in "Brand Leadership:
its customers for products. Consider the
                                                      		                 Building Assets in an Informational Economy" 3
difference in price between generic and
branded products at a pharmacy. In most




                                                                                              Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
21



Fostering Loyalty                             services, and more likely to recommend            for the results page of a branding
Above all, there is a tremendous amount       you to other potential clients. All of these      agency case study. That’s a figure
of value in loyalty. Customers who are        effects are multiplied by the prevalence          that market analysts and investors
loyal to a particular brand tend to act in    of social media, an environment in which          pay serious attention to.
ways that are not strictly economically       companies and customers can seemingly
                                              make or break a brand’s future in minutes.        Professional brand valuation initiatives
rational. Consider walking that extra block                                                     can be prohibitively costly or offer a
to your preferred coffee shop despite                                                           low ROI for small- and medium-sized
a cheaper substitute available at hand,       Brand Valuation
                                                                                                companies. However, there are some
or booking a flight at an inconvenient        Beyond the many secondary ways that               standardized options that may be
time just to travel on your favorite          powerful brands contribute to business            available at a lower cost. “DIY”
airline. Loyalty can turn customers into      value, today brands can actually contribute       methodologies that, while not meeting
advocates, promoting a brand to friends,      directly to a company’s balance sheet.            the strictest accounting standards, can
family and colleagues without any             Brand valuation methodologies are                 be used to build a case for brand with
monetary compensation.                        becoming more and more accepted as                private investors. We’ll talk more about
                                              a component of business accounting,               these in Part 3 of the Brand Basics
Brand loyalty also has value in a B2B         and brand equity is increasingly being
setting: once clients become familiar                                                           course. What’s important to remember
                                              treated as a business asset. You may              is that the savviest businesspeople in
with and begin to appreciate what your        have noticed in an earlier example that
company stands for, they are more likely                                                        the world view brand not just as a
                                              the Coca-Cola brand is valued today at            marketing “nice to have,” but as a
to expand their relationships with you        over $77 billion. That’s not just a number
by purchasing additional products or                                                            critical company asset.




                                                                           Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
Considerations
for Developing
a Brand
Considerations for Developing a Brand                                                                                                23



                                        Leadership Alignment                              evaluation based on clear objectives and
        In this section you will        All company leaders must be aligned               tangible metrics. Establishing these early
        learn:                          on the need for a brand. They need to             on will help turn what may seem like an
                                        agree on what they mean when they                 opaque and purely qualitative process into
         •	 The importance of                                                             one with defined goals against which your
                                        say “brand,” and that brand is valuable
            companywide buy-in                                                            leadership can measure progress and
                                        and why, both in a general and context-
            when undertaking a                                                            assign accountability.
                                        specific sense. Educating stakeholders
            brand-building initiative
                                        and securing their commitment upfront             Guidelines for establishing objectives
         •	 The importance of           is critical—if the process is not followed        and examples of specific metrics will be
            setting measurable          through to completion, your brand will            explored in the next section. However,
            goals                       develop inconsistently at best, confusing         as you consider entering into a branding
         •	 How to get support for      all those who interact with the company.          initiative, it is a good idea to ask yourself
            building a brand in your                                                      questions like:
                                        As mentioned earlier, a business is
            organization
                                        a collection of individuals; if these             •	 What are the top three business goals
                                        individuals cannot agree on the need                 we hope to achieve?
                                        for a brand, how will you get them
                                        to agree on what your brand is? A                 •	 What metrics might we attach to each
                                        consensus much be reached before                     of these goals?
                                        the brand building even begins, to set            •	 Do we have the mechanisms in place
                                        the stage for future success.                        to track our goals? If not, how can we
                                                                                             install them?
                                        Objectives and Measurement                        •	 Always remember the old adage, “That
                                        Like any aspect of a business, brand                 which gets measured, gets done.”
                                        building can and should be subject to




                                                                     Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
24



Championing Brand in Your                      •	 Be passionate. There is no stronger       •	 Start general and grow specific.
Organization                                      motivation for brand adoption than           It is easier for many to understand
Now that you have learned the basics              seeing personal belief in a CEO,             how brand has proved its worth in
of what a brand is and how it can drive           CMO or equivalent.                           B2C businesses like Coca-Cola or
business results, it may be useful to          If you are on your organization’s               Nike. Then extrapolate from these
communicate the need for brand building        marketing team, here are some tips on           examples and bring it closer to home:
to others in your organization. Specific       how to explain the value of branding to         explain how the same principles would
organizational dynamics play a big role,       your leadership:                                apply in the B2B market and to your
but some general guidelines may be                                                             company specifically.
applicable to your situation.                  •	 Begin the brand discussion in
                                                  the territory of marketing. As an
If you are an organizational leader, here         established business practice,
are some tips on how to explain the value
of branding to the rest of the company:
                                                  using this tactic will make brand
                                                  seem more familiar to leaders. But       “ Goods and services are no
•	 Make the case for differentiation.
                                                  remember to take every opportunity
                                                  to explain how the benefits of brand
                                                                                             longer enough.”
   It is no secret that the IT services
   category is cluttered, with little
                                                  extend far beyond the borders of          	       – Joe Pine and Jim Gilmore, from
                                                  traditional marketing.
   difference between competitors.                                                                  "The Experience Economy: Work
   Many in the organization will intuitively   •	 Explain how brand drives business.
                                                  Using tools like the marketing funnel,              is Theatre & Every Business is a
   recognize the value of standing out.
                                                  show leaders how brand building                     Stage"4
•	 Position brand as a beacon around              can drive measurable and quantifiable
   which employees can rally. Frame the           revenue to your company. Convince
   discussion as helping develop your             them that an investment in brand is
   company’s reason to exist, vision for          an investment in their business.
   success and values.



                                                                                                Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
In
Conclusion
Conculsion                                                                                                                                                 26



A strong brand has the ability to catapult   Brand is important even in the case
a company from commodity to cultural         of B2B and professional services                In this section, you learned
icon. Too often, companies consider          companies—some might say brand is               what a brand is and what
brand to be purely the domain of the         especially important for IT services            it isn’t, and how strong
marketing department, or are content         companies due to the “sea of sameness”          brands can drive tangible
to allow their brand to be defined by an     that often engulfs the offering. Your brand     business results. You also
advertising tagline. The best brands are     is a promise you make to your customers         picked up a few tips on
developed with the whole organization        that differentiates you from the rest.          how to kick start your
in mind, and align the company’s rational    When you fulfill that promise, you gain         branding initiative. In Part
benefits and business model to an            a reputation—a reputation as a brand            2: Defining Your Brand,
emotional promise expressed across           and as a business that people prefer            you will begin thinking
the customer experience.                     to engage with. Building that reputation        about what you want your
                                             consistently and effectively will, over         brand to stand for from a
                                             time, translate to business results.            strategic standpoint.




                                                                                           Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
Additional Resources                                                                                                27



                       Brand on Wikipedia                                A New Brand World
                       A basic catalog of information on                 An insightful and enjoyable book on
                       brand, its components and prevalent               what makes brands great from the
                       branding strategies.                              inventor of Nike's "Just Do It" campaign,
                                                                         Scott Bedbury.
                       Brandeo
                       A blog with articles on the business              Tomorrow Starts Here
                       implications of branding and an                   A site that brings Cisco’s Brand Vision
                       encyclopedia of branding terms.                   and Brand Promise to life.

                       Tom Fishburne Marketoonist                        Cisco Partner Plus
                       A visual, entertaining blog with easy-to-         Collected information and resources
                       read entries on fundamental concepts              for Cisco Partner Plus partners.
                       from the world of branding.

                       Brand Simple
                       A highly readable, informative book by
                       Allen Adamson on how creating a strong
                       brand requires focusing on the basics.




                                                    Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
Bibliography                                                                                                                                         28



       1
         Bedbury, Scott, and Stephen Fenichell. A New Brand World: 8 Principles for Achieving Brand Leadership
       in the 21st Century. New York: Viking, 2002. xvi.


       2
        Schultz, Howard, and Dori Jones. Yang. Pour Your Heart into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup
       at a Time. New York, NY: Hyperion, 1997. 254.


       3
        Aacker, David A., and Erich Joachimsthaler. Brand Leadership: Building Assets in an Information Economy.
       New York: Free, 2000. 33.


       4
        Pine, II B. Joseph, and James H. Gilmore. The Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a
       Stage. N.p.: Harvard Business Review, 1999. iv.




                                                                                     Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
Presented by




                                                            Publicis Brand Optimization Systems (BOS) Group develops
                                                            brand strategies for clients and brings them to life through
                                                            brand identity, employee education and experience design.
                                                            BOS Group is part of Publicis Worldwide.




Third party company names, trademarks and logos mentioned in this material are the property of their respective owners and their use does not constitute or imply an endorsement, sponsorship,
affiliation, association or approval by the third parties of the material or with Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates (“Cisco”). The information contained in this material are the opinions of Publicis
BOS Group. Cisco disclaims all warranties as to the accuracies, completeness or adequacy of such information and shall have no liability for omission or inadequacies in such information.

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Partner Plus Brand Basics Session 1 Workbook

  • 1. Brand Basics: Building Your Business on a Powerful Promise and Engaging Experience Part 1: Understanding Brand A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 2. “ Building a brand is… more intuitive than analytical, and most of the time it can’t be seen. But it can always be felt.” – Scott Bedbury, from "A New Brand World"1
  • 3. 3 This part of the Brand Basics course will prepare you to develop and strengthen your company’s brand. We will answer the question “What is a brand?” and discuss the value it can deliver to a business like yours, illustrated through examples, including those involving B2B and technology companies. To get you on your way, we’ve also included tips to rally your organization around the need for a well-defined brand. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / a Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 5. What is a Brand? 5 “Brand” means different things to an emotional level. Customers preferred different people. Traditionally, brand has to buy products of companies whose In this section you will been used as shorthand to describe a reputations they were familiar with— learn: company, product or service. Once, a companies that they trusted, knew • How to define and better brand consisted of nothing more than a and above all, liked. understand brand logo or even just a name, but with the dramatic increase in companies and Today, brand is what a business stands • What the components for. It is the intangible collection of customer choice that we have seen, of a brand are impressions, emotions, values, aspirations brands have evolved to become more • Why undertake a complex—and central—parts of every and ideas associated with a company. It brand-building initiative business, whether that business is is supported by very tangible things like targeted to consumers (B2C) or other people, products and price points. It is businesses (B2B). not just a logo, tagline, type or advertising campaign; it is all these things and many As competition increased, companies more. When all these different factors began to realize that not only could they come together, they form a brand. It is connect with customers on a rational that holistic experience that customers, level—by having cheaper prices for employees and stakeholders have when quality goods, for example—but also on engaging with a company in any way. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 6. 6 Brand as a Promise At its simplest, a brand is a promise. It is a promise made by the firm to its customers, employees, partners and everyone else it comes into contact with that they will have a consistent and desirable experience, both functionally and emotionally. If that promise is fulfilled time and time again, customers will come to view the brand favorably; if that promise is broken, they will lose faith in it and be less likely to buy that company’s products or services. Brand is more than just a name or logo – the best brands are indistinguishable from the customer experience. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 7. 7 Website Advertising Tagline Mission Components of a Brand Experience Partner Relationships Events A company’s brand is articulated at Brand every touchpoint—that is, every moment Identity at which the brand engages people. graphic elements Touchpoints range from the comparatively minor (business cards and brochures) type to the major (advertising campaigns and imagery corporate social responsibility programs). logo color They can be experiential—think of hold Brand Promise music or scents in a hotel lobby. And, today, they include hard-to-define Social Internal components such as social media. Networking Customer Case Study Telecom Carrier Offers First-of-its-Kind Cloud Security Solution Communications Of course, they vary by industry, but a Pages medium-sized information technology Executive Summary Customer Name: BT Industry: Telecommunications Location: London, United Kingdom BT partners with Cisco and SecureLogix to help customers identify voice and data threats through single integrated solution. solutions company might have a set that Number of Employees: 92,600 Challenge Printed Challenge A leading global communications company with customers in more than 170 countries, BT Improve security of enterprise offers fixed-line services, broadband, mobile and TV products and services to consumers, voice networks enterprise companies, and the public sector. BT Global Services is one of the company’s No holistic view of network four customer-facing lines of business, providing managed networked IT services for large environment corporate and public sector customers. Bolster data security by securing the voice network With the rise of “hacktivism,” that is, the act of hacking for politically motivated purposes, cyber security has become a top priority for many of BT’s customers. According to Jeff includes the following touchpoints. Materials Solution Schmidt, global head of business continuity, security, and governance for BT Global BT Assure Analytics cloud service, Services, “98 percent of businesses that were hit by hackers also suffered from dial a visual tool that helps identify and through fraud. And many hackers use this fraud to fund their activities.” In fact, global mitigate voice and data threats telecom fraud losses are estimated to be US$40 billion annually.1 Cisco Integrated Services Routers Generation 2 provides voice and To address this problem, BT began developing an intelligent visual data analysis engine data services on a single platform that would improve situational awareness and identify voice and data threats in real and Cisco UC Gateway Services time. The solution pulls all the information from the network, sets a baseline, and then API allows partners to build security determines where the anomalies are within the network infrastructure. By visually mapping applications for voice traffic, whether these anomalies, BT is able to more quickly and easily identify and mitigate threats versus via TDM or SIP trunking reviewing reams of data. SecureLogix voice policy and Workplace security application Environment 1 © 2012 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. 1 Communications Fraud Control Association (CFCA) Telecom 2011 survey Brand can also be thought of as the Taken together, touchpoints perception that stakeholders have of a help shape your brand, Customer or the perception of your company. This perception is developed Service company. through the stakeholder experience at Presentation every touchpoint. Effectively fulfilling Style Engagement the brand promise at every point of Style contact will result in a positive and Branded consistent perception of your company. Giveaways Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 8. 8 Shared Characteristics of Coca-Cola is the most valuable brand a Strong Brand in the world according to the 2012 Brands, like the businesses they report on the 100 Best Global Brands represent, can be strong or weak. from Interbrand, the world’s largest Understanding the evolving definition brand consultancy. The Coca-Cola of brand is the first step in building brand is worth more than $77 billion. a robust brand. But what are the Instantly recognizable and consumed characteristics of a strong brand? across the globe, Coke die-hards are Although specific circumstances affect not difficult to come by. Blind taste tests a large part of that answer, successful that pit Coke against Pepsi, however, brands share certain similarities: often reveal that even ardent fans base their opinions less on the physical • A clearly formulated brand promise product than they think. Coca-Cola is that is directly connected to business so successful because it has created strategy more than a drink—it has created an • Employees who understand the experience based on the promise of brand and are held to its standards timeless refreshment and enjoyment in their work that is reaffirmed at every touchpoint. The famous contour bottle, for example, • Attention to every touchpoint to was designed to be recognizable even Coca-Cola extends ensure that each is on-brand and can when shattered. its brand to every holistically deliver on the brand promise touchpoint: the Coke bottle was designed to be so distinct that it should be recognizable even when broken. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 9. 9 Reasons for Building a Brand or acquisition, may require the alignment Brands come about organically. Whether of visions and aesthetics. Or quite simply, you like it or not, your company will the leadership might realize that the necessarily develop a reputation in the company could gain from a higher profile marketplace. So why build a brand? and stronger reputation. Undertaking a conscious brand-building Your brand will develop with or without initiative allows you to take control of that your conscious involvement. Shaping process, and guide it along a set path. that process will allow you to access The question is not whether or not to the tremendous power of brand. have a brand; it is whether your brand will align with your strategic vision. Still most companies wait for an event to awaken them to the need for a brand. “Authentic brands do not emerge from marketing There are several triggers that might spur a company to undertake a branding cubicles or advertising agencies. They emanate initiative. Changes in the category, such as a new entrant with similar offerings, from everything the company does, from store may create a need for differentiation. An design and site selection to training, production, internal restructuring, such as a merger packaging and merchandise buying.” – Howard Schultz, from "Pour Your Heart into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time"2 Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 11. The Power of Brand 11 Brands are usually thought of as being the industry and became the preferred In this section you will integral parts of the B2C marketplace— partner of almost every business. GE learn: Starbucks, Gillette or Apple may spring spends heavily on advertising to share to mind—but they are just as important its achievements and forward-looking • The value of brand in B2B in the B2B space. The B2B marketplace practices. Clearly these highly successful • How brand serves as a is full of clutter and noise. Customers companies understand the inherent value guiding principle for an are overwhelmed by undifferentiated of building a strong brand. organization lists of features and tit-for-tat pricing. A strong brand identity, then, is all the more Brand has three particularly useful • How a strong brand functions for a professional services improves customer important to help your B2B firm stand out from the crowd. In fact, three primarily company: (1) It can be used as an relevance and competitive organizing principle, (2) it can make the differentiation B2B companies made the top 10 in the Interbrand report on Best Global Brands company more relevant to its customers of 2012 mentioned on page 8: IBM (#3), and (3) it can help differentiate otherwise GE (#6) and Intel (#8). IBM established common products from those of its itself early on as a thought leader in competitors. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 12. 12 In this classic advertisement, McGraw-Hill made a compelling case for the value of B2B brand building. Copyright ©The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Reproduced with permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. No redistribution or reproduction without the permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 13. 13 Brand as an Organizing Principle UPS recently Companies are collections of individuals, rebranded itself each with their own ideas and opinions. with a strong Aligning all the stakeholders under a emphasis on set of common values can be a boon logistics. No for productivity and collaboration. A longer is UPS company that develops a value-based simply a package delivery service; identity can also increase employee rather, it aims to serve the business satisfaction, thereby fostering a positive community as its premier logistics work environment and reducing turnover. partner, promising seamless supply- Brand is the ideal concept around which chain services. The brand connects to rally your organization, because it this value proposition to an emotional combines your business goals with an idea: UPS “hearts” logistics. In this case, emotional promise. It’s this emotional the brand refresh served as the principle component that will make your brand around which to organize the business, stand out in the minds of your customers— changing the perception and positioning there is no reason it shouldn’t be relevant of UPS in the B2B community. And the to and motivating for your employees emotional component made the brand as well. Companies should endeavor to relatable both to customers and to create one common understanding of the employees who suddenly had a perfect brand that is effectively communicated answer to the question, “Why do I show to all internal audiences, providing an up for work every day?” organizing principle for the firm. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 14. 14 The Power of Internal Brand Training employees in your brand will Ritz-Carlton Resonance help them create the right experiences demonstrates the Many companies still use the traditional for customers and make the right power of internal top-down management approach, a decisions on the company’s behalf. brand resonance. remnant of the Industrial Age. However, This is of particular importance in a The brand is based on this model has less resonance in B2B environment, where face-to-face the idea of “ladies and today’s knowledge-based economy time involving sales representatives and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen,” and more firms are learning the benefits corporate teams makes up a large part so it is important that employees understand of employee engagement. Particularly in of business activity. If your employees the brand inside out in order to reach the the technology industry, it has become understand the brand well, they will be required level of service. Ritz-Carlton’s common to hear CEOs or other business able to communicate it effectively in internal engagement has been so thorough leaders talk about how robust talent pools their work without the need for direct that it provides all employees with a are their greatest asset. Although talent is supervision or constant instruction stipend they are to use to personally of the utmost importance in today’s world, from the dreaded “brand police”. make a stay more enjoyable for the it is most effective when all employees guests of their choice. Not only does this fundamentally understand what their practice represent an excellent example of business stands for. empowering employees to bring the brand to life for customers, it also demonstrates the level of training and trust the company has invested in its employees. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 15. 15 The Power of Customer Brand Relevance Brand building, when done correctly, For years, Xerox was synonymous with can also help a company become more the banal act of copying documents. relevant to its target market. The process But with the expansion of electronic entails gaining a deeper understanding forms of communication, it saw its B2C of the people you are selling to, including market shrinking while noticing a growing their needs and values. Learning what opportunity in the B2B space. With its “Ready for real business” campaign, customers really care about—both on Xerox repositioned itself as a strategic partner in business services. Its an emotional and functional level—is key to advertising campaign focused on how Xerox helped well-known firms deal crafting a brand, because it helps to focus with their specific business problems. By anticipating customer needs, Xerox your promise and link the business to the was able to make itself relevant to a new market and landed itself a spot on brand through a shared understanding of the 100 Best Global Brands list. unmet customer needs. If your customers feel like their major issues are addressed and fears alleviated before they have even articulated them, they will be more likely to do business with you. Such an issue is relevant in the technology services industry where technical faults are often the primary worry. A company that addresses particularly important customer concerns in its brand building will stand above the rest. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 16. 16 The Power of Competitive Brand Differentiation Intel illustrates the power of brand differentiation. Brands also serve to differentiate The company makes products that few customers in products in a cluttered space. People the wider public understand; microchips are difficult to face a barrage of nearly identical products differentiate in the eyes of an unspecialized audience. in every industry. Consider the toothpaste In fact, few people would be able to say what exactly aisle of a drugstore; there are rows and makes a computer with “Intel inside” better than its competition. Yet, Intel rows of brands with virtually the same continues to be upheld as a mark of quality and reliability. Intel managed range of products. These products, at to transform an unexciting business into a powerful brand by slapping the very least, have similar rational its logo on millions of computers and making sure it got a place in every benefits. What causes a customer to advertisement for a product that used its technology. In the “sea of gravitate towards one brand over the sameness” that is the microchip industry, Intel’s brand catapulted it far others time and time again? It is the beyond its peers. It has been so successful that most people would be emotional connection that he or she hard-pressed to even name an Intel competitor. feels for that brand. In an industry like IT services, it can be difficult for customers to differentiate one company from its competitors on purely rational grounds. In many cases, in fact, competitors are selling exactly the same products from exactly the same partners! Although high quality, desirable products and services always serve as the foundation, a strong brand can be that crucial deciding factor that encourages customers to choose—or recommend—you over your competition. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 18. The Business Value of Brand 18 A strong brand is more than just a nice- Consider one of the great examples of In this section you will to-have; strong brands drive tangible strong branding, Apple. The electronics learn: business results. Brand influences producer boasted long lines at stores customers’ willingness to purchase your around the world and months-long • How brand can move product, the price they are willing to pay waiting lists at the launch of its first customers through the for it and their likelihood of returning for iPad—a product no one had ever seen marketing funnel more. The value of brand can also be or used before. Why the hype? Why were • Why brand loyalty means measured: many consultancies have people willing to spend such a substantial more revenue evolved practices around deriving the amount of money and effort on obtaining value of brands through comprehensive, a product they knew so little about? • That brand can have fact-based methodologies. Because they believed in the promise of measurable monetary Apple’s extraordinarily powerful brand. value Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 19. 19 The Marketing Funnel & The process begins with Awareness, Brand when potential buyers first encounter The marketing funnel describes the the company. The next stage is Familiarity. process a customer goes through At this point, customers have decided they when purchasing a product. It helps need the product the company offers. us understand how brand affects They begin shopping various sellers with IBM’s Smarter Planet initiative shows purchase decisions. no firm intention to buy. The next step, how a strong brand can propel a Consideration, is when customers decide customer through the marketing funnel. to buy a product and begin comparing Smarter Planet categorizes IBM’s products competitors. At this stage, a strong brand and services according to the business can tilt the scale in one company’s favor. problem or need—not according to what AWARENESS In the next step, Purchase, customers they actually do. The same offering might choose to buy one company’s product even fall under two categories. In many FAMILIARITY instead of its substitutes, a decision that ways, what IBM offers is not unique; can be heavily influenced by the brand. myriad companies, for example, offer After Purchase and if the customer feels supply chain management. But when CONSIDERATION ADVOCACY that common service is slotted under that the brand promise has been fulfilled, the final stage is Loyalty. Not only is the a heading like “Smarter Commerce,” customer likely to come back for more, it instantly appears more innovative PURCHASE and novel. A customer is more likely to but is also more likely to recommend that company to others. The opposite purchase IBM’s products over those of also holds true: if customers have a bad its competitors because of how they are LOYALTY experience, they can turn from advocates framed. Why would you purchase a supply to antagonists. chain management product when you could buy a Smarter Commerce solution? Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 20. 20 Driving Preference cases, the product is hardly different—it Preference can be one of the strongest is the perception of quality or credibility drivers of sales. Coke outsells Pepsi in that it carries that ultimately brings in all but a few markets globally despite a the sale. For B2B businesses, this often general liking for sweeter beverages; means displaying thought leadership. Gillette is all but synonymous with razors. Many brand experts credit the success If your brand is strong enough, customers of Accenture’s brand to its extensive will buy your products even if they are collection of white papers and reports. economically or technically inferior to their Although your company may not have competitors. Consider the old adage from Accenture’s vast resources, positioning decades past, “Nobody ever got fired for yourself as a credible and knowledgeable A perfectly functional black cap like the one on the buying IBM”: regardless of the quality of partner could allow a price premium in right can be had for less than $5. Why will people the product, IBM was considered a safe the future, at no added cost. pay $20 or more for the one on the left? The answer company to buy from because of the is simple: brand. strength of its brand and the credibility that it afforded. Allowing a Price Premium A strong brand also offers a windfall in the “ A brand is the face of a business strategy.” premium it allows a company to charge – Scott Galloway, as quoted in "Brand Leadership: its customers for products. Consider the Building Assets in an Informational Economy" 3 difference in price between generic and branded products at a pharmacy. In most Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 21. 21 Fostering Loyalty services, and more likely to recommend for the results page of a branding Above all, there is a tremendous amount you to other potential clients. All of these agency case study. That’s a figure of value in loyalty. Customers who are effects are multiplied by the prevalence that market analysts and investors loyal to a particular brand tend to act in of social media, an environment in which pay serious attention to. ways that are not strictly economically companies and customers can seemingly make or break a brand’s future in minutes. Professional brand valuation initiatives rational. Consider walking that extra block can be prohibitively costly or offer a to your preferred coffee shop despite low ROI for small- and medium-sized a cheaper substitute available at hand, Brand Valuation companies. However, there are some or booking a flight at an inconvenient Beyond the many secondary ways that standardized options that may be time just to travel on your favorite powerful brands contribute to business available at a lower cost. “DIY” airline. Loyalty can turn customers into value, today brands can actually contribute methodologies that, while not meeting advocates, promoting a brand to friends, directly to a company’s balance sheet. the strictest accounting standards, can family and colleagues without any Brand valuation methodologies are be used to build a case for brand with monetary compensation. becoming more and more accepted as private investors. We’ll talk more about a component of business accounting, these in Part 3 of the Brand Basics Brand loyalty also has value in a B2B and brand equity is increasingly being setting: once clients become familiar course. What’s important to remember treated as a business asset. You may is that the savviest businesspeople in with and begin to appreciate what your have noticed in an earlier example that company stands for, they are more likely the world view brand not just as a the Coca-Cola brand is valued today at marketing “nice to have,” but as a to expand their relationships with you over $77 billion. That’s not just a number by purchasing additional products or critical company asset. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 23. Considerations for Developing a Brand 23 Leadership Alignment evaluation based on clear objectives and In this section you will All company leaders must be aligned tangible metrics. Establishing these early learn: on the need for a brand. They need to on will help turn what may seem like an agree on what they mean when they opaque and purely qualitative process into • The importance of one with defined goals against which your say “brand,” and that brand is valuable companywide buy-in leadership can measure progress and and why, both in a general and context- when undertaking a assign accountability. specific sense. Educating stakeholders brand-building initiative and securing their commitment upfront Guidelines for establishing objectives • The importance of is critical—if the process is not followed and examples of specific metrics will be setting measurable through to completion, your brand will explored in the next section. However, goals develop inconsistently at best, confusing as you consider entering into a branding • How to get support for all those who interact with the company. initiative, it is a good idea to ask yourself building a brand in your questions like: As mentioned earlier, a business is organization a collection of individuals; if these • What are the top three business goals individuals cannot agree on the need we hope to achieve? for a brand, how will you get them to agree on what your brand is? A • What metrics might we attach to each consensus much be reached before of these goals? the brand building even begins, to set • Do we have the mechanisms in place the stage for future success. to track our goals? If not, how can we install them? Objectives and Measurement • Always remember the old adage, “That Like any aspect of a business, brand which gets measured, gets done.” building can and should be subject to Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 24. 24 Championing Brand in Your • Be passionate. There is no stronger • Start general and grow specific. Organization motivation for brand adoption than It is easier for many to understand Now that you have learned the basics seeing personal belief in a CEO, how brand has proved its worth in of what a brand is and how it can drive CMO or equivalent. B2C businesses like Coca-Cola or business results, it may be useful to If you are on your organization’s Nike. Then extrapolate from these communicate the need for brand building marketing team, here are some tips on examples and bring it closer to home: to others in your organization. Specific how to explain the value of branding to explain how the same principles would organizational dynamics play a big role, your leadership: apply in the B2B market and to your but some general guidelines may be company specifically. applicable to your situation. • Begin the brand discussion in the territory of marketing. As an If you are an organizational leader, here established business practice, are some tips on how to explain the value of branding to the rest of the company: using this tactic will make brand seem more familiar to leaders. But “ Goods and services are no • Make the case for differentiation. remember to take every opportunity to explain how the benefits of brand longer enough.” It is no secret that the IT services category is cluttered, with little extend far beyond the borders of – Joe Pine and Jim Gilmore, from traditional marketing. difference between competitors. "The Experience Economy: Work Many in the organization will intuitively • Explain how brand drives business. Using tools like the marketing funnel, is Theatre & Every Business is a recognize the value of standing out. show leaders how brand building Stage"4 • Position brand as a beacon around can drive measurable and quantifiable which employees can rally. Frame the revenue to your company. Convince discussion as helping develop your them that an investment in brand is company’s reason to exist, vision for an investment in their business. success and values. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 26. Conculsion 26 A strong brand has the ability to catapult Brand is important even in the case a company from commodity to cultural of B2B and professional services In this section, you learned icon. Too often, companies consider companies—some might say brand is what a brand is and what brand to be purely the domain of the especially important for IT services it isn’t, and how strong marketing department, or are content companies due to the “sea of sameness” brands can drive tangible to allow their brand to be defined by an that often engulfs the offering. Your brand business results. You also advertising tagline. The best brands are is a promise you make to your customers picked up a few tips on developed with the whole organization that differentiates you from the rest. how to kick start your in mind, and align the company’s rational When you fulfill that promise, you gain branding initiative. In Part benefits and business model to an a reputation—a reputation as a brand 2: Defining Your Brand, emotional promise expressed across and as a business that people prefer you will begin thinking the customer experience. to engage with. Building that reputation about what you want your consistently and effectively will, over brand to stand for from a time, translate to business results. strategic standpoint. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 27. Additional Resources 27 Brand on Wikipedia A New Brand World A basic catalog of information on An insightful and enjoyable book on brand, its components and prevalent what makes brands great from the branding strategies. inventor of Nike's "Just Do It" campaign, Scott Bedbury. Brandeo A blog with articles on the business Tomorrow Starts Here implications of branding and an A site that brings Cisco’s Brand Vision encyclopedia of branding terms. and Brand Promise to life. Tom Fishburne Marketoonist Cisco Partner Plus A visual, entertaining blog with easy-to- Collected information and resources read entries on fundamental concepts for Cisco Partner Plus partners. from the world of branding. Brand Simple A highly readable, informative book by Allen Adamson on how creating a strong brand requires focusing on the basics. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 28. Bibliography 28 1 Bedbury, Scott, and Stephen Fenichell. A New Brand World: 8 Principles for Achieving Brand Leadership in the 21st Century. New York: Viking, 2002. xvi. 2 Schultz, Howard, and Dori Jones. Yang. Pour Your Heart into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time. New York, NY: Hyperion, 1997. 254. 3 Aacker, David A., and Erich Joachimsthaler. Brand Leadership: Building Assets in an Information Economy. New York: Free, 2000. 33. 4 Pine, II B. Joseph, and James H. Gilmore. The Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a Stage. N.p.: Harvard Business Review, 1999. iv. Brand Basics Part 1: Understanding Brand / A Cisco Partner Plus Resource
  • 29. Presented by Publicis Brand Optimization Systems (BOS) Group develops brand strategies for clients and brings them to life through brand identity, employee education and experience design. BOS Group is part of Publicis Worldwide. Third party company names, trademarks and logos mentioned in this material are the property of their respective owners and their use does not constitute or imply an endorsement, sponsorship, affiliation, association or approval by the third parties of the material or with Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates (“Cisco”). The information contained in this material are the opinions of Publicis BOS Group. Cisco disclaims all warranties as to the accuracies, completeness or adequacy of such information and shall have no liability for omission or inadequacies in such information.