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The need for Branding

What is Branding? Branding is a collective consumers perception of product or services. The total Approach Brand management starts with understanding what brand really means. This starts with the leaders of the company who define the brand and control its management. It also reaches all the way down the company and especially to the people who interface with customers or who create the products which customers use. Brand management performed to its full extent means starting and ending the management of the whole company through the brand. It is simply far too important to leave to the marketing department. The CEO should be (and, in fact, always is) the brand leader of the company. Creating the Promise Creating the promise means defining the brand. A good brand promise is memorable and desirable. It cannot be effective if nobody remembers it, and is no good either if nobody wants it! A good brand promise evokes feelings, because feelings drive actions. Volvo offers feelings of safety. Mustang offers feelings of excitement. The promise must be unique and identified with you alone. Within an industry, promises can be very close, but if you want any hope of success, you must stake out the very specific territory of your promise and know clearly how it is different from the promises of other firms. The right promise is not just something you make up on a Friday afternoon. It comes through a deep understanding of your marketplace and your customers. It also comes from a deep understanding of the capabilities and motivations of the people in your company. Creating a promise you cannot consistently keep, year after year, is plain suicide. Making the Promise Once you have created the promise, the next (and not so trivial) step is to somehow inject it into the minds of your customers, your staff and everyone who receives anything from you or has any impact on what you deliver. This is where marketing people come in to display their ability. Although it is still not their sole preserve, a large part of marketing, which includes advertising and PR, is about positioning the company and its products in the minds of customers and against your competitors. Keeping the Promise Ah, now. Creating and making the right promise is one thing, but then; you have to keep it. If you do not, your brand will still exist, but now the promise will be of slipshod products and inconsistent delivery. Keeping promises means managing capability. It means consistent processes that are capable of delivering what is required. It means technology and systems which are reliable and usable. It means motivated people who are willing and able to deliver the goods. Coca-cola is the most valuable brand in the world, with the name alone worth billions of dollars. But why? What is a brand? A Brand is a Promise First and foremost, a brand is a promise. It says 'you know the name, you can trust the promise'. As all promises, it is trusted only as far as those promises are met. Trust is a critical first step and brands aim to accelerate that step by leveraging the implied promise of the brand. Perception When the brand messages in all their glorious forms reach the people standing in their way, the brand itself is starting to form. This happens in the perception that is created in the heads of both intended customers and innocent bystanders. It is as perceived by everyone who touches the brand in any way, whether from a lifetime’s experience or a brief third-hand mention from a passing stranger. Perception does not come clean and pre-packaged. We take direct experience and infer meaning by passing it through a set of highly-biased perceptual filters. First we classify, using broad mental models and unique memories. Then we assess for immediate threats. Then we test against expectations and goals, re-predict the future and compare against our values. To complicate things further, all of this is biased by our current emotional state. The eventual perception we infer is thus far from the sensory inputs we receive. Even after the original perception, we continue to ponder, muse and reflect on our experiences, changing their meaning even further. Perception is the brand as experienced. Perception is not reputation, but reputation is perception. Transmission When I buy something from a company or otherwise experience the brand, I am getting a first-hand snapshot of what the brand really delivers. From this I directly develop my perception of the brand. On the other hand, if I listen to what others say then I am getting a second-hand version of events. I get their perception, which I then modify via my perceptual process. And if that transmission is third-hand, fourth-hand or more, then the effect is multiplied further. Communicated perception is reputation, but from a single person it is just a single data-point. If I am inclined to believe that person and act on their perception, then for me, that is all the reputation I need. But many people do not just go on the say-so of a single point of authority. They listen to others and think for themselves, too. Communication We not only listen to other people when they talk about brands—we also talk back, asking them questions and offering our own perceptions. Out of the conversation a shared meaning (or as much as this can happen) arises. Thus brand reputation may be viewed as being socially constructed. Thus reputation is not created in individual perception, nor even in a second-hand, unidirectional transmission, but in the dynamics of real communication between two or more individuals. True communication is communing, the joining of minds as is sought in open inquiry or dialogue. However this nirvana seldom happens. It is more like a battleground of ideas and wills, where evolution occurs in real-time. Discussions go around and about and eventually the loudest voice or the clearest idea takes root as an unspoken, tacit agreement. In many ways, the birth or change of a brand reputation is tied up with the brand reputation of the people doing the arguing. People with strong reputations, who command attention and trust, have the greatest potential to forge the actual reputation of the brand under discussion. Diffusion Beyond the local conversations whereby I get a personal sense of brand reputation, there are thousands of such conversations that travel across the unbroken network of human relationships. This is where the total reputation of the brand is built. There are many factors that affect diffusion, as identified by Everett Rogers and others. Some people know more people and talk more than others. Some people are listened to more carefully than others. The brand perception as received by these people will thus travel further than from others. But people belong to groups, and almost by definition converse more with in-group people and have different attitudes toward them than towards out-group others. Reputation is thus likely to grow differently within each group. Brand ideas will jump between groups like a forest blaze leaping a fire break only when there is sufficient heat and sufficient connection. And at any one time, reputation reaches as far across groups as the fire has spread. In some it may be fixed and established, whilst to other it may still be novel and a subject of heated debate. Decision

In the final analysis, the value of a brand comes in the simplification that it brings to decision-making. The inferred promise of a brand enables us to short-cut the evaluative part of the decision process. In our inner construction of the brand we have already done this, mapping out a simplified meaning. When we choose between brands, rather than guess or choose on tangible aspects such as price, we compare the brand values that we have inferred and hence rapidly make what we assume will be a wise and safe decision. The reputation of a brand includes an element of reliability. The psychology of judgment under uncertainty rears its head here, and our perceptions of 100% reliable are very different from even a 99% perception. This explains at least in part the fragility of reputation. The psychology of betrayal and retributive justice is another minefield for the unwary.

Six Effective Ways to Foster Innovation

Employee creativity and innovation are essential for the success of any business, particularly in times of economic turmoil. There is a clear connection between employee engagement and innovation according to a poll recently. Engaged employees are more creative and more willing to accept innovative ideas from others. Most CEOs value creativity and employees who are allowed to be creative are more engaged with their current positions. A company’s culture can either foster or stifle innovation. Fortunately, business leaders are able to shape a more creative work environment if they follow a few basic guidelines. Maintain an open dialogue between employees and upper management Dialogue will effectively motivate and engage employees. Always allow employees to present their ideas before important decisions are made. Provide feedback to employees, even when their ideas are not used, so that they know that they are not being dismissed. Encourage communication between departments: Collaboration between members of different departments often results in creative solutions for problems. Interdepartmental communication facilitates trust and prevents conflict. Departments that do not communicate are more likely to blame each other when problems arise. Organize brainstorming sessions If to mention names, I did indicate MTN, Globacom, Airtel and Etisalat to mention but a few has found the innovation in the telecom sector to be quite successful. Since 2001, telecom have allowed hundreds of thousands of MTN employees around the African populace to connect and come up with innovative solutions for company problems. You do not need to run a global enterprise to benefit from companywide collaboration. Give your employees regular opportunities to bounce ideas off each other. Engage employees by encouraging them to share creative ideas Do not limit creativity to special occasions. Employees should be encouraged to continually share their ideas with supervisors and each other. Find the most effective method of communication for your organization. You may want to create a type of suggestion box or schedule time at the end of meetings for people to share their ideas. Do not force people to be innovative Creativity can be encouraged but not compelled. Forcing people to present creative ideas at certain times will not bring true innovation. Rather, create a number of different incentives to draw out creativity. Innovative ideas could be rewarded financially, with opportunities for advancement or any other incentive you have found effective for your employee base. Remain flexible and forgiving Inflexible environments discourage innovation. Innovation often involves taking risks. Encourage employees to think outside the box and implement ideas without interference. Additionally, do not punish employees if ideas are unsuccessful. Employees who are punished for taking risks serve as a warning to others against being creative or innovative. Keep track of company innovations Many leaders in upper management lose interest in supporting creativity and innovation because they do not bother to keep track of past innovations. Knowing how many employee innovations have been implemented and how successful they are, presents a clear picture of the financial benefits of employee creativity. Keeping track of innovations will also indicate whether any alterations need to be made to recently implemented programs or the company culture.

Socialization

Process by which individuals acquire the knowledge, language, social skills, and value to conform to the norms and roles required for integration into a group or community. It is a combination of both self-imposed (because the individual wants to conform) and externally-imposed rules, and the expectations of the others. In an organizational setting, socialization refers to the process through which a new employee 'learns the ropes,' by becoming sensitive to the formal and informal power structure and the explicit and implicit rules of behavior. Socialization is in the HR, Recruiting, Teams, & Training subject. Socialization appears in the definitions of the following terms: knowledge creation, acculturation, orientation, and entertainment expenses.

Leadership and Personalities, what Alignment?

Leadership strategies are those actions that promote the creation of a unique and valuable market position through a system of activities that complement one another towards achieving the end goal. Often seen as a collection of informed choices, trade-offs and deliberate deviations from the norm, leadership strategies help determine where the opportunities lie and what you can do to best exploit them. In many cases, leadership strategies are the groundwork for a community, state company, or nation’s strategic plan and must therefore remain at the forefront when setting organizational goals to drive each segment concerned. But as addressed in Strategic Leadership for Executives, there are two primary branches of leadership – analytical and human – that serve as a framework for operational approach. And the choice of analytical over human is often the result of an individual’s personal strengths and weaknesses in the multi-layered aspects of office or business. Matching strategy with Personality Strategic leadership is often practiced by those who run large companies, managing thousands or hundreds of thousands of people throughout an extensive organization. To accomplish this task effectively, the leader must possess a refined set of skills geared toward achieving the end goal. And while it’s not necessary that he or she possess all traits, most will find a high degree of competence and comfort in the areas in which they naturally excel. Consider the following traits and their respective leadership strategies. Visioning and the Autocrat The term visioning refers to the initial spark of an idea, the moment that represents the start of any strategic plan. Once the leader has outlined strategic goals, all members of the organization or cabinet must work toward those goals, using all possible influence and resources to accomplish the changes necessary to support the larger plan. And though a leader’s strategic plan is often unique, it must also be relatable enough and have enough internal and external support to enable those who follow to think along the same lines. Without commitment, success is unlikely. Visioning is a common trait to most high-level executives or public offices holders, but some are not able to achieve as much success with it in comparison to others – in particular, the autocrat. The autocrat manages by telling people what to do and when to do it. Often referred to as a “micro-manager,” the autocrat possesses little confidence in subordinates and may even distrust them. In select instances, such as military or law enforcement applications, this approach may actually save lives and therefore serves as the best leadership strategy. However, in the corporate and public world, this managerial style is often viewed as stifling and almost always fails to entice the commitment required to achieve the optimal levels of creativity and innovation. Within this system, employees are unable to make decisions on their own, preventing not only their personal growth but also the sharing of valuable insight and creative ideas. As a result, an autocrat’s visioning typically produces little more than a high rate of employee turnover. The benevolent autocrat who employs ‘command and control’ Command and control sounds like a tactic the autocrat would employ… and even enjoy. But it actually has little to do with micro-management and more to do with fostering an environment that provides the necessities that allow the organization to achieve its goals. Focused heavily on creativity and innovation, command and control establishes a framework for achieving goals and then creates organizational networks that elicit the best from its people. Within this framework, the benevolent autocrat succeeds, primarily because they’re the driving force behind this particular employee-driven brand of corporate culture. The benevolent autocrat is typically someone who prefers to function as a coach or mentor to subordinates and frequently disseminates tasks to a wide range of people to maximize the organization’s talent. This individual makes important decisions then works toward convincing subordinates to go along, a process that has been shown to build an organic level of commitment at all levels of a company. Though the benevolent autocrat will often use rewards to motivate personnel, he or she may also use punishment, a practice that is viewed as counter-intuitive to modern strategic leadership.