The Source of Your Mojo, Step Two

Published: January 03, 2012, By Stephanie Millman

In my last post, I described how your brand is the center of your Marketing Mojo--what people think and feel about your brand every time they encounter it. I challenged you to take the first step and hone in on four words that designate what your brand represents. This first step in defining your core market messages is critical to developing a brand strategy. Now let’s look into the second step.

Step two: Look through every customer touch-point and confirm that your market messages are consistent. What are your policies and procedures in each area that could reinforce or contradict what your brand personality represents?

 Let’s say your core market messages are the following:

1. Service

2. Quality

3. On-time delivery

4. Market innovators

Do you have salespeople that demonstrate innovation and quality in what they wear, drive, and how they present? Do they show up to meetings on time, and are they responsive to their customers by returning their calls?What about the customer service department? How are the designs, messages, and style of your marketing campaigns and materials supporting the brand? How are you packaging the products? Are you using cheap popcorn or quality, innovative packaging? Look at each touch point, and take a hard look at how you are representing your brand in the marketplace.

 This second step is very difficult to take and to stay objective. Try involving customers, distributors, and non-management employees. Use a whiteboard to capture the messages in each area of your company with which outsiders interact, and let me know what you discover. I’ve posted an image of a whiteboard exercise I did for Budget Rental Car Company to show you an example of this exercise. 

This Step Two of your Brand Strategy helps your organization focus on what matters and have a strong Marketing Mojo. Hopefully it will steer you away from trying to be all things to all people.