Living the brand is an ongoing aspect of full brand management. To live the brand is to strengthen it and to make brand management a part of your culture. How do we at Go East recommend you manage and live your brand?

Assess and align areas that are inconsistent with the brand. Look at all the places where your brand touches people externally: memos, email sign-offs, outgoing voice mail messages and information communicated through your social media strategy. Examine processes and procedures and change those that are inconsistent with your brand position. Identify areas where decisions impacting the brand can be improved.

To intensify brand management throughout the organization, establish principles and guidelines for when, where and how to apply the brand. Create accountability for decisions that affect consumers’ perceptions of the brand. Remind your staff about brand principles and ways to reinforce and build the brand so everyone feels responsible and engaged in brand-building activities. For example, everyone at Go East recently created their own statements about how they live the brand. We all wore the statements, like nametags, throughout the day and talked with others about our part in living the brand.

To monitor the results of your efforts, conduct audits of consumer perceptions. It’s the only way to truly know if you are having the impact you are trying to achieve. Are the attributes that your customers identify the ones you want? Share the findings with staff members so they can celebrate the success of their efforts or hone in on areas that need improvement. Constantly refine your indicators of success and measure again.

To make living the brand fun and rewarding, we at Go East recognize employees who are doing an outstanding job of living the brand. We share examples and celebrate successes. We acknowledge “brand moments” formally by thanking individuals for contributions to building the brand.

It is through all of these efforts that, eventually, managing your brand becomes less work and more a way of life.

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When you hear the term “brand building,” what audience comes to mind first? More than likely, you thought of your core audience – your customers. They are, after all, on the receiving end of your company’s brand story. We go to great lengths to build trust and loyalty with this audience. But don’t forget about what’s on the inside — your company’s employees. This internal audience should not be overlooked when it comes to building your brand because they are the ones doing the “building.”

Building your brand from the inside out is only possible if your internal team is given the tools it needs to live the brand. Your team needs to have a complete understanding of your brand’s mission and vision, its promise to your customers and its personality and values. When your internal team fully understands your brand’s essence, it will be empowered to exemplify your brand with your external audiences, whether it be answering the phone, creating a product, selling a service or solving a problem. If your employees have a clear understanding of what it means to live the brand, every activity they engage in concerning your brand will more likely align with your overall brand strategy.

One of our clients, Thinsulate™ Insulation from 3M, recently repositioned its brand with an updated brand platform and fresh identity system. The changes were significant, but the decision makers understood the importance of addressing their internal audience first — a global network of employees. Go East helped them engage their internal audience by creating a variety of materials to communicate the changes. We created a small business card-sized “brand card” to communicate the Thinsulate Insulation story, as well as the essence of the brand platform. The card’s convenient size means that team members can easily carry it with them for quick reference. In addition, we created posters that were placed around the offices to reinforce the new identity and brand messages. We also produced a brand brochure and brand video. While these items initially launched internally, the brochure and video were designed to be shared with external audiences after the launch. Finally, when the reinvigorated brand was presented internally, energy drinks with a custom Thinsulate Insulation branded label were distributed to energize employees as they set about spreading the new brand message and identity.

The materials that were launched to Thinsulate Insulation employees were specifically designed to equip the team with the information and inspiration they needed to successfully build the brand and, more importantly, to live the brand. Today, they’re building their brand from the inside out. Are you?

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You can’t make someone live your brand.

In fact, you can rarely make anyone do anything that will grow your brand. Because brand is so intangible, it’s not something that can be legislated or mandated. Embodying the brand — living it — has got to spontaneously arise out of each member of an organization.

This is a lot to ask.

At Go East, we have a clear brand platform. It has evolved over the years, but the foundation has remained the same. Everyone knows it. It’s written on the walls in brushed metal letters. We have brand cards for reference. It’s part of our review process. Yet, how can we know how people interpret the brand platform? Words are one thing; expression is another.

One of my favorite ways to get a sense of brand is to spontaneously, organically create a brand snapshot by asking people to do something unexpected and new that demonstrates what they really think. Recently, I riffed off of Swiss Miss‘ Conversation Starter Tags for Creative Mornings by asking everyone at Go East to wear a tag about our brand. Once the initial hesitancy passed, something interesting happened. The name tags became honest, instant messaging about our brand and how each of us lives it, because a name tag is an introduction to an individual and an individual makes a brand. Inside jokes abounded, for sure, but even more so, I could see the pride and ownership of the brand and each person’s contribution to it. Simple by design and much cheaper than a brand audit or employee survey, this snapshot gave us a clear picture of the life of the brand today.

Hello, my name is Go East and I’m on brand.

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In a recent survey, 75 percent of U.S. employees indicated that they do not think their company’s mission statement reflects the way the company does business.

What’s the disconnect? Why do companies “talk the talk” but not “walk the walk”? Perhaps they don’t understand the value of internal brand building. Maybe they’ve never even heard of internal brand building. Consider this a mini primer:

What is internal brand building? It’s actually quite simple. Brand building is the same whether it’s external or internal: It’s generating awareness, excitement and goodwill about your brand. Internally, though, it should be taken a step further: Employees should not only know the brand and be excited about it — they should also live the brand. Consider this: How can you say your company’s brand personality is “friendly” when your employees are afraid of their boss? That scary boss isn’t “living the brand.”

Why is internal brand building important? Given the above example, what do you think your employees are saying about your company when they’re out in the real world? How do you think your customers perceive you if your employees show fear — whether consciously or unconsciously? If you and your employees are not living the brand — you are actively eroding all external brand-building efforts.

Whose role is it to build the brand internally? In a word: everyone’s. But someone has to lead. That leadership should come from the top down. And it shouldn’t be a one-time campaign. This means nurturing an everyday, ongoing culture that needs to be developed, refined, flexible and true to your brand.

Living the brand is not hard. Consider these three tips when you’re outlining your marketing efforts:

• Budgets should be allocated to internal brand building
• There should be buy-in at the top
• At Go East, we make internal brand building recommendations to our clients when appropriate — and all agencies should

My final thought: Internal brand building is valuable because the payoff is happy employees who are more dedicated to the company and passionate advocates for the brand. That’s something every company needs!

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Mr. Fun as Nacho Libre on Halloween

At Go East we like to have fun at work.

Making work fun takes a little planning, imagination and effort. That’s why we have the Fun Committee. As Chairman of the Fun Committee (or as I’m also known: “Mr. Fun”), the task falls to me and my team of loyal Fun Committee members. We regularly schedule events called “Stress Busters” that are designed to get everyone out of their chairs and participating in activities aimed at providing laughter and an outlet for stress. These 15–20 minute events take place about every two weeks and not only provide relief from the daily grind, but also give us a chance to come together as a team and build camaraderie. Laughing together helps keep things in perspective and personalities in check, and allows us to bond.

These team-building activities not only build our brand from within, they’re also important for our clients. As our team grows stronger, we work better together, our work improves and our clients ultimately benefit. As cliché as it sounds, we work hard and we play hard. The end result is a group of people who care about Go East, our clients and the best interests of all parties.

To see more Halloween photos and how we keep things fun, check out our Facebook page and become a fan.

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If that’s the question, then it seems the response in this economy should be, “I’d do almost anything. … Tell me more!”

I’d be happy to. (more…)

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Ever wonder how companies that sell most of their products during a specific season survive the remainder of the year? Selling Christmas ornaments in July, sunblock in February or cold medicine in August is likely a challenge. It requires season-specific companies to be innovative and to think continually about how to generate off-season revenue.

Consider H&R Block. I suspect that it generates much of its revenue during tax season. I see a ton of TV spots pushing its services in the early part of the year, but as soon as the public pays Uncle Sam, the TV spots wrap and you know longer have “people.” The company’s Web site, however, does very much the opposite, pushing other financial services such as tax and financial planning and banking. Perhaps some off-season PR and nontraditional advertising could help to generate additional buzz during non-tax time.

Another company to look at is Linder’s Garden Center, based in the Twin Cities. It has roughly 50 Flower Marts — all selling annual flowers, hanging baskets, plants and shrubs — located in the parking lots of retail stores. These marts are only open June and July. In addition, there is one garden center that is open year-round. Linder’s sponsors some local events throughout the year, which helps to get its name out there, but is it enough? Would offering FREE pre-spring gardening classes — with tips and techniques — help to build awareness? Could selling Christmas trees in the same retail locations as its Flower Marts impact revenue? How about a Twitter page tweeting daily gardening tips to all Linder’s followers?

Peeps — yes, those sugary-filled, yummy marshmallow treats — knows how to get people to interact with their brand. When they first introduced their product it was only available around the Easter holiday. Now they sell the treat during Christmas, Halloween, Valentine’s Day and, of course, Easter. In March of 2007 and 2008, The Washington Post hosted a Peeps Diorama contest encouraging entrants to get creative with their favorite Marshmallow brand. The first year brought in a handful of entrants, but in 2008 there were more than 800. It doesn’t sound like a ton, but when you add in all of the PR that was gained through The Washington Post, the impressions really added up. What a great way to get people to make incremental purchases and get playful with a fun brand!

Businesses that sell most of their products and services during specific seasons should make an effort to keep their brands top of mind throughout the year. Not only will this save money on future advertising, it will make the marketing executed during the seasonal times of the year even more impactful.

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With summer winding down, merchandisers are beginning to focus their efforts on the two top retail seasons that lie ahead — Halloween and “the holidays.” Because consumers are inundated with many retail options during this time period, it is essential that you optimize your in-store brand presence. But this can be tricky: a retailer may require you to adhere to its seasonal brand guidelines during these times periods. So how can you make that work to your advantage?

A few things can work in your brand’s favor during this busy time of year. Retailers’ seasonal events are starting earlier than ever, allowing more time for seasonal promotions. An early start also provides consumers with gift and decorating ideas weeks or months in advance, thus planting seeds for when they are ready to make their purchases. Both of these can work to your benefit: your brand will be in stores longer, gaining more visibility and awareness. This can be key to success during this season, especially when the channel’s seasonal and/or permanent graphics take precedence over your brand.

As we have learned at Go East, as you work with a channel over time, you will be able to gauge how strictly you need to follow the channel’s guidelines. However, clear, concise merchandising efforts year-round will help to ensure that consumers recognize your brand whatever the season, but especially during the busiest times. And if you develop your seasonal merchandising campaigns early in the season, you will be able to hit the shelves as strongly as possible. As a result, you’ll likely be top of mind over other brands that didn’t join the effort as quickly.

What are some key factors you deem important when creating artwork for seasonal periods of the year?

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