The BrandPlan System
Building strong brands is a complex activity requiring discipline and commitment to a managed process. The most effective brand strategies are holistic in nature and provide guidance for every customer touchpoint. As such, success is largely determined by being able to execute consistently against a concise plan over time. Strategies need to be validated through appropriate market research, and a smooth transition is required from strategy to implementation.
Through the BrandPlan System, we have developed and refined a pragmatic process for developing, managing and tracking brands. Our approach is practical and focused on successful implementation, making efficient use of client time and resources. We combine your knowledge with our expertise and best practices to develop relevant brand plans that are realistic and will enhance your competitive position.
Preliminary Preparation
We begin the process by collecting input from internal stakeholders through surveys and interviews. Provides background and defines brand landscape. Serves to accelerate process, ensuring relevance and focus for proceeding steps. Uncovers issues and key drivers.
Brand Workshop
Facilitated full-day workshop intended to capitalize on collective client knowledge. Review situation analysis and discuss key drivers. Map brand and its component parts: brand essence, attributes, benefits, competitive advantage and brand personality. Outcomes provide basis for brand identity and positioning strategy articulation.
Foundation Research
Provides customer insight into brand landscape, identifies opportunities and issues that will impact on brand development. Qualitative customer research to uncover rational and emotional drivers and attitudes, measure existing brand perceptions, beliefs and biases. Focus groups or depth interviews with key customers.
Draft Brand Strategy
Draft initial brand platform based on pre-work, foundation research and workshop outcomes. Comprehensive draft details brand identity articulation & positioning strategy. All participants of the workshop receive a copy for review as preparation for the next phase.
Feedback Session
Reconvene workshop group to discuss initial brand strategy and foundation research outcomes. This step provides forum for dialogue and debate of brand tenets. Provides opportunity to enhance the brand strategy through facilitated discussion. Issues, concerns and observations are identified and addressed.
Validation & Testing
Gauge customer reaction to proposed brand identity, key assumptions and positioning strategy. Provides risk management and the opportunity to fine tune brand strategy prior to launch. Identifies watch-outs, opportunities and barriers. Qualitative research consisting of focus groups from key customer segments.
Finalize Brand Strategy
Draft final brand platform based on client feedback and research outcomes. Includes all components of the brand identity and positioning strategy. Final document submitted for client approval.
Benchmarking
Quantitative research establishes reference point relative to competitor brands to track progress over time. Testing conducted prior to brand launch measures brand components including awareness, perceptions, attributes and brand levers.
Implementation Planning
Comprehensive planning process takes holistic approach ensuring organization wide consideration for brand launch. Establish overall objectives, priorities and identify brand components to leverage. Identify target groups and goals for each group along with associated tactics. Prepare timelines and budgets. Establish go forward approach to brand management.
Ongoing Measurement
An integral component of brand management, ongoing measurement tracks the brand’s progress in the marketplace and internally. Establishes consistent measures to track implementation success. Database analysis measures brand related goals e.g. retention, wallet share, gross margin, acquisition. Internal brand monitoring measures employee uptake and internalization of the brand.
