Monday Mornings with Madison

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Brand Management

October 29, 2012

How A Company’s Reputation Impacts Its Ability to Attract and Retain Top Talent

Issue #255

Coca Cola. Google. IBM. Apple. Starbucks. Microsoft. Mercedes Benz. Zappos. Amazon. What do all of these companies have in common? Besides having a global market following and a very healthy balance sheet, these companies have at least one other thing in common: the ability to attract top talent just based on reputation. Companies that attract top talent are likely to stay at the top of the Fortune 500 list because human potential is the one thing that cannot be forged, copied, imitated, duplicated or easily replaced. So attracting top talent breeds success and success attracts top talent.

Indeed, human resources are probably the most important asset of any company. Employees are responsible for the quality, quantity and consistency of its products and service. Employees bring creativity to bear on behalf of employers. Employees do all the heavy lifting that keeps a business running. And ultimately it is the workers who interact with, win and retain customers. It is their ingenuity, skills, effort, passion, work ethic, and attitude which largely determine the success, mediocrity or failure of an organization.

That is why, every day, companies are not only competing to generate sales and win customers, they are also in a race to attract and retain the most talented workers. From entry level employees to C-suite executives, every company wants – or should we say needs – to employ the best and brightest. When the economy was in a tailspin, the most talented, skilled and experienced employees hunkered down and stayed put even in companies where they were no longer satisfied, appreciated and/or challenged. The best and brightest kept from changing jobs even when they were overworked, underpaid or both. But with the economy ‘turning a corner’ and the unemployment rate slowly dropping, companies will soon – if they aren’t already – need to compete to attract the best workers. The most qualified candidates are likely to look first to companies with a solid reputation. So just how much does a company’s reputation impact its ability to attract top talent? Continue reading →

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September 24, 2012

What is Brand Social Currency?

Issue #251

In recent weeks, we looked at reputation, brand and brand value as variables that impact a company’s worth in the global marketplace. We reviewed the various brand ranking reports that determine and monetize the value of the biggest brands in the world annually, including Interbrand’s 100 Best, Brandz’s Top 100 and Credit Suisse’s Great Brands. Those annual lists use a myriad of criteria to assess each brand’s value.

However, there is now a new report that examines ‘Brand Social Currency’, rather than brand value. Is there a difference between brand value and brand social currency? Apparently so. Brand value is about determining the worth of a brand based on internal factors such as clarity, commitment, protection and responsiveness, and external factors such as authenticity, relevance, differentiation, consistency, presence, and understanding. It looks at a company’s financials, sales, marketing, operations and reputation to monetize a brand’s worth.

Brand social currency, on the other hand, focuses on the point at which a brand intersects with, speaks to and integrates with customers within their daily life. Due to the increasing social nature of the Internet and mobile technologies, consumers and customers adopt these technologies and platforms and integrate them into daily life routines and contexts, such as using a phone to identify the closest store that carries a desired product at the best possible price. In order to survive and thrive, companies are finding new ways to allow their brands to interact with customers. Those efforts, in short, are what build brand social currency. Continue reading →

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August 27, 2012

What Drives A Brand’s Value?

Issue #247

Given the global marketplace and the pervasive impact of technology on reputation, a company’s brand is increasingly becoming a major factor in its success. While most business owners and managers understand the general importance of a company’s brand, they are a little less clear on what can increase or decrease a brand’s value. Most business owners don’t know how to go about increasing and leveraging the worth of its company’s brand.

To better understand brands, let’s consider what factors are used to evaluate the biggest mega-brands. There are now a number of brand consultants that conduct surveys to identify and rank how the top brands are doing and how those brands are impacting corporate bottom lines. For example, Interbrand conducts an annual survey entitled 100 Best Global Brands. Milward, Brown also puts out an annual ranking of brand value entitled BrandZ’s Top 100 most Valuable Global Brands. Credit Suisse also issues an annual report called Great Brands. There are many other such reports.

Each of the rankings looks to monetize the value of a company’s brand. The factors assessed vary from survey to survey. They are also weighted differently according to industry or category. That said, the major surveys are based on hundreds of thousands of interviews examining tens of thousands of brands globally. They parse billions of pieces of data that are then calculated to generate a brand value score for each company. They examine the point where a company’s sales, marketing, operations and financials collide with public perception. So what factors do these brand experts consider in calculating a brand’s value? Continue reading →

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August 20, 2012

Brand Reputation: Ruins, Revivals and Damage-Resistant Part 2: Brand Redemption vs. Teflon Brand

Issue #246

A company’s brand is the class of goods or services identified by name as belonging to that particular company. Like an invisible branding iron, a company’s brand is the personification of its reputation and public cache. A positive brand can be leveraged — much like cash reserves — to take a company to new heights. A negative brand is like a ball and chain around the company’s every move.

Sometimes, when a company’s reputation takes a beating – usually due to their own mistakes or wrongdoing – they opt to dump their brand and start fresh. As we saw last week, sometimes it works. But if the problems that caused the brand to tarnish continue, then rebranding is futile. That is why some companies choose to stick with their brand – troubles and all – and work to restore the brand’s reputation and image. It is usually not an easy task.

Interestingly, not all corporate wrongdoing causes brand damage. There are companies that do wrong or cause harm and yet their reputations and brands continue practically untouched. For marketers, it can be puzzling to grasp why some brands are more easily damaged than others. To get a better picture of how brands can rise from the ashes or manage to go through a firestorm unscathed requires analysis. Let’s take a look at two companies that were caught doing wrong. For one company, its reputation plummeted and it took a lot of time and effort for the reputation to be restored. For the other company, its reputation was hardly affected. Continue reading →

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August 13, 2012

Brand Reputation: Ruins, Revivals and Damage-Resistant Part 1: Rebranding Strategy

Issue #245

It used to be that a company’s reputation was based on the overall quality of the products or services it delivered, the value it provided, and the customer service it conveyed. Gaffs were generally forgotten over time. Sometimes, customers never even heard about minor issues in quality or service.

That is no longer the case. Television and radio made it easier for customers to become aware of any major company defects in quality, value or performance. Computers, the Internet and social media added to the public scrutiny of most any company’s brand and reputation. Today, companies must be exceedingly careful in protecting their reputation and brand.

Brand reputation is an integral part of a company’s strength or weakness. In some cases, a badly dinged reputation can add the final ‘f’ that turns an ailing brand into a failing brand. But a bad reputation does not always lead to brand death. Some companies have succeeded in redeeming badly damaged brands while other companies are able to sail through major corporate blunders with barely a scratch to its Teflon reputation. What makes a company’s brand either vulnerable or impermeable to reputation problems? Why do some corporate reputations end in ruin while others can be revived and still others are simply impervious? Continue reading →

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August 6, 2012

Sometimes All That Is Needed Is A Fresh Start

Issue #244

Recently, the IRS rolled out a new “Fresh Start’ program offering to wave failure-to-pay tax penalties for those who have been unemployed. The idea was to give people who have fallen behind on their taxes the chance to get their financial house in order and start fresh. To qualify, the person must have:
• been an employee who was unemployed for at least 30 consecutive days between January 1, 2011 and April 17, 2012,
• been self-employed with a 25% or higher reduction in business income in 2011
• had income that did not exceed $200,000 if filing jointly, or $100,000 for single or head of household, or
• had 2011 taxes due not exceeding $50,000.

With this program, the IRS understood that a ‘fresh start’ can be an empowering, uplifting and engaging force in life. The opportunity to wipe the slate clean and start again can give those who are tired and forlorn a renewed sense of hope and energy. Moving to a new town. Going to a new school. Beginning a new job. These events all inspire a feeling of ‘starting anew’ that can be invigorating. Underlying it all is the chance to do more… the possibility to be better… the prospect of improving in areas where one fell short in the past. But the concept of a ‘fresh start’ is not limited to people, programs and time. Companies also understand the power of a ‘fresh start.’ Embracing the concept, businesses have used the notion of a ‘fresh start’ to jumpstart areas of business that have lost focus, pep, or luster. Continue reading →

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July 9, 2012

What A Company’s Website Says About That Company

Issue #240

Ever visited a company’s website and thought ‘ugh?’ A website says a lot about a company, and it is often the first point of contact between the company and the customer. Business people know that image matters. Some would even go so far as to say that image is everything and that the public’s perception of that image is reality. The image that a company portrays becomes its reality. If a company’s image speaks of success, then that success becomes real. In fact, so many business people think this is true, that they take it a step further and advocate a “fake it ‘til you make it” image philosophy.

Even hardliners who insist that a company’s business model, products/services, management and operations are what primarily drive success will usually concede that a company’s image plays a pivotal role in a company’s ability to grow and thrive in today’s marketplace. And, today, a company’s website is a major part of its public image. A company’s website can either undermine or oversell a company’s success by telling the wrong story. And that can be damaging. What does your company’s website say about your company? Is your website telling the right story? Continue reading →

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July 2, 2012

What Do Search Engines Value In Websites?

Issue #239

What do search engines value in websites or web pages in order to rank them higher? This is the million-dollar question. No doubt that anyone who could definitively and conclusively give a complete and correct answer to this question could become an instant millionaire. But it basically is a trick question because anyone who can answer it, would only be able to answer with regard to how one particular search engine’s algorithms work, not all, and even that is an ever-moving target. The answer valid today would be obsolete tomorrow… or soon thereafter. It is a question over which SEO professionals obsess and marketers distress. And the question to which few will confess that what is believed is as much supposition and speculation as insight and intelligence.

The truth is that except for the computer engineers who work at the major search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc., most people don’t entirely know all the variables or and weighting given to the myriad of signals used to determine a website’s rank by any search engine. It’s like the secret recipe for a great stew. There is a clear sense of what the main ingredients are, but not necessarily all of minor ingredients or the exact measurements for each or how they come together. So what are the most important ingredients and why keep them such a secret?

Anyone who is not deeply entrenched in the world of search may wonder why search engines are so secretive about how they do what they do. Why not just tell everyone how pages are ranked? The reason is simple. Search Engines keep their ‘algorythyms’ under wraps to prevent (or at least limit) people cheating, manipulating or skewing search results for their own benefit. Nevertheless, most SEO gurus agree that there are certain basics every website should have in order to rank well. Does your company’s website have them all? Continue reading →

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June 25, 2012

Why SEO Should Matter To Every Business

Issue #238

Are you one of the many who don’t know what SEO stands for… and truth-be-told you don’t really care? Do you think that SEO is the marketing department’s concern? If you are the owner, Chairman, President, VP, CEO, COO, CFO, Controller, or the Director or Manager of a department in any company anywhere today, you should care about SEO. And if you are a salesperson, you should definitely care about SEO.

Let’s start with the basics. S-E-O stands for Search Engine Optimization. SEO is the process of improving the visibility of a website or web page in “natural” or un-paid (also called “organic” or “algorithmic”) search results. In a nutshell, SEO is the strategy of optimizing a myriad of components that search engines (such as Google, Yahoo or Bing) look at to determine a website’s (or page’s) ranking for a particular search term in order to improve the ranking. If you’re one of the many who think only the Marketing Department should be concerned with SEO, think again. SEO is something that should matter to every business leader, manager and salesperson. Continue reading →

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June 4, 2012

Excellence versus ‘Good Enough’

Issue #235

In the world of software development, there is a concept called the Principle of Good Enough. It favors quick-and-simple software designs over elaborate systems designed by committees. Once a quick-and-simple design is deployed, it then evolves as needed, driven by user requirements. Some good examples of this kind of design include the development of the Ethernet and the World Wide Web. That is why most software have newer iterations such as Internet Explorer 8 and Microsoft Office Word 2007.

But this philosophy of ‘good enough’ is not new… it goes back hundreds of years. Voltaire once said that “The perfect is the enemy of the good.” This idea of creating something from the start that is not ‘the best’ but simply ‘good enough’ has increasingly bled into other areas of development and manufacturing. In fact, ‘good enough’ has been adopted as a business model where the focus was to create a new product based on an existing product but with far fewer features… literally something that is ‘less good’ but just ‘good enough.’ And, this approach to business has been successful in some cases. There is, however, one problem with the Principle of Good Enough. This approach is not always effective. Sometimes ‘good enough’ is simply not good enough. When it comes to companies and their work product, how do managers know when to strive for excellence and when it’s okay to deliver goods or services that are just ‘good enough’? Continue reading →

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