Aligning your internal and external brands

1. EVERETTBRANDING
Living the Brand:
Aligning your internal and external brands
Chicago | Milwaukee
630.207.2334
www.everettbranding.com

2. Every year, the top 100 global brands are branding programs are being executed
ranked on their brand equity by correctly? In other words, how can a
Interbrand, a leader in the global company ensure that it is acting true to
branding field. In the latest ranking its brand?
(2007), Coca Cola tops the list with
Microsoft, IBM, GE, and Nokia, To answer this question we must first
respectively. These rankings should not understand how the state of branding has
be a surprise because these brands are on evolved. In 2000, branding took a unique
top of mind across the globe. What is turn, towards an internal perspective.
surprising, however, is that the Marketers started applying the tools
combined the brand equity of the top 5 previously used to promote the external
global brands (266.1 Billion dollars1) is brand to consumers, towards attracting
higher than the Gross Domestic Product and retaining talent for organizations.
of 84 respective countries.2 After This hybrid of external branding and
looking at the big picture, one can truly talent acquisition was coined “internal
appreciate the magnitude of value that branding,” and it combined equal parts
relies on branding. of marketing and advertising with
corporate recruiting. As author Dale
Since its inception in the 1990‟s, the idea Buss states in his article In Good
of branding has spread like wildfire. Company, “The aim is two-fold: to
Companies became increasingly attract the most promising new recruits
concerned with their externally focused and make sure that existing employees
on their reputation with customers, and understand the company‟s goals and
the need for brand centric strategies was commitment to them. The best efforts
born. This brand centered ideology soon also motivate employees in their
pressured advertising agencies and approach to their jobs.”3 What is
marketing firms to re-position interesting is that the branding evolution
themselves as “branding” firms to avoid created a unique dynamic between the
losing business. “Branding” firms two branding approaches; external
popped up overnight; each with their consumer branding focused on making
own claim to fame and “trademark” brand promises to consumers while
branding process. internal corporate branding focused on
attracting and retaining talent to fulfill
Now it is almost 20 years later and we those brand promises. As Jessica
still do not have the exact definition of Bobula, in her article on B2B branding
branding. We also have a number of puts it, [internal branding] has become
charlatan “branding” firms that “the delivery of mechanism for your
propagate nothing more than integrated external brand.”4 As that delivery
marketing communications as mechanism, it is imperative that your
“branding”. And with the fate companies internal branding messages are in sync
resting on the strength on its‟ brand, I with your external branding messages.
question how one can ensure that its‟
1 3
Interbrand. “Top 10 Global Brands.” Buss, Dale: “In Good Company.” Brandweek; May 2002.
http://www.interbrand.com/best_brands_2007.asp 43,20 Pg.28-34
2 4
World Economic Forum. “GDP per country: 2007” Bobula, Jessica. “Internal Branding becoming a Hot Topic
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2007/02/weodata/do for B-to-B.” B to B. Chicago. Sept. 12 2005. Vol. 90 Iss.11
wnload.aspx Pg 6.
“Living the Brand: Aligning your external and internal brands” 2

3. So how important is a corporation‟s branding to get employees in every
internal brand? In the article, Internal department to live the brand.
Branding: Branding from the Inside Out
Nader Tavassoli states, “In too many How do you motivate employees to “live
organizations, branding remains an the brand?” It starts with bringing in the
externally facing communications
exercise…sadly most employees do not “Aligning the brand
even know or understand their
company‟s strategy. It should thus be no on the inside is more
surprise that they fail to deliver the
brand promise to customers.”5 In important in many
today‟s fickle marketplace where brand
loyalty is key to future growth, ways than marketing
companies may only get one shot at a
potential lifelong customer. Companies
the brand on the
that fail to deliver brand promises can
lead to failed brands.
outside…”
If your brand promotes simplicity, but a right people. Apple computers, for
customer has to talk to five different example, has a brand that revolves
people to address their need, then your around innovation. Its products are
customers experience a discrepancy consistently evolving and pushing
between what you promise and what you technological boundaries. How does
actually deliver. This discrepancy Apple do it? They actively recruit
creates consumer disillusionment. As change agents; people who are anti-
Dale Buss, author of In Good Company status quo. Apple does not point a finger
states, “When a prospect calls in, if you at an employee and say “innovate”
are saying one thing and your employees because it does not have to, the
are doing something totally different, the employees are already looking around
whole brand is proven to be a lie. So for opportunities due to their pre-
they have to believe it and have to act on disposition to improvement. Apple does
it.”6 Furthermore, “Many surveys have not hire employees who just value
found that brand loyalty is directly technology or design, they hire people
linked to perceived treatment by who crave change and therefore have the
company representatives.”7 But paying characteristics to live their external
a little extra for a great customer service brand. As Rick Jacobs states in his
team does not secure brand equity. article Turn Employees into Brand
Customer service is but a sliver of your Ambassadors, “Aligning the brand on
work force. If you want to build brand the inside is more important in many
equity you must leverage internal ways than marketing the brand on the
outside…your core business is replicable
by competitors; the only thing not
reproducible is the people who make up
5
Tavassoli, Nader. “Internal Branding: Branding from the the organization‟s personality and,
Inside Out.” Brand Strategy. (Jul 2007): 40.
6
Buss, Dale: “In Good Company.” Brandweek; May 2002.
therefore create the competitive
43,20 Pg.28-34
7
Anonymous. “Getting it right on the inside.” Strategic
Direction. Oct 2003 19,10, pg 10.
“Living the Brand: Aligning your external and internal brands” 3

4. advantage.”8 With the technology of states, “…it is important that there is an
today that increases the turnaround time understanding of the brand and that
of copycat competitors, the idea of
viewing employees as human assets is “…up to 40 percent of
imperative to the future success of a
brand. the marketing
In my opinion, internal branding or
investment is said to be
“living the brand,” transcends talent lost when employees
acquisition; it must incorporate company
culture and strategic business processes. do not deliver on the
Wal-Mart‟s brand, for example,
positions itself as a low-cost leader.
organization‟s promises
Although Wal-Mart‟s cost leadership to clients…”
strategy is a result of its leverage against
suppliers, its success is more of a result every department has pride in it.
of the cost management culture Sam Otherwise there is a danger that
Walton instilled within the organization. companies cannot deliver on the
Employees are cross-trained, distribution promises they make in advertising.
is streamlined, management refuses to Insincere loyalty messages, irritating
fly first class, and their corporate hold messages, complicated pricing or
headquarters is a modest building in bad customer service can all result from
Bentonville Arkansas. The culture‟s applying the brand only at the surface
mantra of “Every Day Low Prices” was level.”10 So what is the impact of
embedded in all employees, ultimately aligning your internal and external brand
influencing processes that fulfill this on your bottom line? Rod Gapp and Bill
promise to consumers. In his business Merrilees of Brand Management state,
case, Wal-Mart Stores: Every Day Low “…up to 40 per cent of the marketing
Prices in China, Ali Farhoomand states, investment is said to be lost when
“It was Wal-Mart‟s credibility in employees do not deliver on the
keeping this promise that had drew organization‟s promises to clients. To
millions of customers to its door”9. this end, when employees understand
When businesses empower employees to and accept that the values are genuine,
deliver repeatable positive brand they align their attitudes and behavior to
experiences, businesses are delivered the brand values, which results in greater
repeat customers. satisfaction for both customer preference
and loyalty.”11 To put that into
So how does “Living the brand” perspective, in 2006 Wal-Mart spent
translate externally?, In his article $570 million dollars in advertising.12 If
Insider Branding author Sean Lewis
10
Lewis, Sean. “Insider Branding.” Marketing. London.
Nov 2005 Pg 32.
11
8 Gapp, Rod and Merrilees, Bill. “Important factors to
Jacobs, Rick. “Turn Employees into Brand Ambassadors.”
consider when using internal branding as a management
ABA Bank Marketing. Apr 2003. 35,3, Pg 23-26.
9 strategy: A healthcare case study.” Brand Management.
Farhoomand, Ali. “Wal-Mart Stores: „Every Day Low
Sep-Nov 2006. Vol 14 Nos. 1/2 Pg 162-176.
Prices‟ in China.” Asia Case Research Centre; The 12
Helm, Burt. “Wanna Be Wal-Mart‟s Ad Man?.”
University of Hong Kong. Poon Kam Kai Series: HKU590.
BusinessWeekonline:http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/
2006.
dnflash/content/sep2006/db20060918_842724.htm. Sept 19,
2006.
“Living the Brand: Aligning your external and internal brands” 4

5. Gapp and Merrilee‟s estimation holds recommendations of a brand. By
true, Wal-Mart would have wasted $228 aligning external and internal brands,
million dollars if their internal and companies can increase employee pride
external brands were not aligned. in the company. In essence, by creating
brand alignment you are achieving the
Another metric to look at is ROIPA, or ultimate goal in branding; an army of
“Return On Internal People employee brand ambassadors.
Alignment.”13 In an article on internal
branding, Nader Tavassoli states, So how does one align external and
“Marketers generally only look in one internal brands? If you ask 50 different
place to see evidence of returns on marketers, chances are you will get 50
investments for the brand- the top line in different responses. Acknowledging this
terms of sales volumes and price aspect, I set out in my research not to
premiums. ROIPA, however has some deliver a “cover-all” approach, but to
more direct returns for smart marketing read between the lines of various
directors…For starters, HR can track opinions. Doing so, I uncovered the
changes in current metrics such as the following 4 themes: Get Top
number of qualified applicants, job- Management to Walk the Talk, Start
offers accepted, absenteeism and with What You Know and Where You
retention of talent.”14 Although the Want to Go, Convert Brand Values into
talent acquisition and retention side of Behaviors to Empower Employees and
internal branding is more Human finally Field the Right Team.
Resources focused, the metrics that
define success can reflect the external 1.) Get Top Management to Walk the
status of the brand and the bottom line. Talk
The number one priority in any brand
In a survey of 2000 people in UK alignment is to get top management to
regarding job satisfaction, Centaur buy into the branding process. This is
Communications measured the amount not a surprise because research has
of pride respondents had in their shown that getting top management buy-
respective companies. They discovered in is the key to success of change within
that “Increasing pride by just one per an organization. As Alan Mitchell
cent would increase employee writes in Marketing Week, “Failure [of
recommendations of the organization by internal branding programs] has many
.83%, increase extra effort by .76%, causes. Often the organizations leaders
increase recommendations of products simply fail to walk the talk.”16 Kai F.
and services by .71%, and would reduce Mahnert and Ann M. Torres, authors of
people actively looking for a job The Brand Inside: The Factors of
elsewhere by .46%.”15 From a marketing Failure and Success in Internal
standpoint, this study provides a link Branding also agree, “In order to be
between employee pride and employee regarded as legitimate by the target
audience, management has to lend its
support to the program, as well as visibly
13
Tavassoli, Nader. “Internal Branding: Branding from the
Inside Out.” Brand Strategy. (Jul 2007): 40.
adhere to it…responsibility for the
14
Tavassoli, Nader. “Internal Branding: Branding from the
Inside Out.” Brand Strategy. (Jul 2007): 40.
15 16
Centaur Communications. “Internal Branding: Taking Mitchell, Alan. “Getting staff to live the brand: work in
Pride in your Work.” Brand Strategy. (Mar 2007): 44. process.” Marketing Week. London: Sep 2, 2004. Pg 30.
“Living the Brand: Aligning your external and internal brands” 5

6. internal branding effort should lie with execution of external and internal
the CEO.”17 If a company‟s CEO is not marketing materials.19
living the brand, employees will become
disengaged from the brand alignment 3.) Convert Brand Values into Behaviors
process. to Empower Employees
Branding programs often have the
2.) Start with What You Know and internal stigma within organizations of
Where you Want to Go being merely “touchy feely” initiatives
Ask the CEO what he/she currently that hold no more inspirational posters.
thinks about the brand. Then ask the To inspire employees to actually live the
employees what their opinion is of the brand, you must first empower them.
brand. Finally, survey the customers. Give them a checklist of behaviors that
Ask the customers about their are “on-brand” just as you would during
expectations of the brand. If all three a performance review. Alan Mitchell in
groups match in their opinions on the an article from Marketing Week states,
brand, your external and internal brands “…the real challenge is not so much to
are aligned and the brand should be change staff attitudes and behaviors, but
purely maintained. If there is a processes. But what have processes to
discrepancy between what customers do with brand values? Simple. To be
think and what management wants them meaningful, even the vaguest of brand
to think, or if management wants their values such as „helpful‟, „friendly‟ or
brand to evolve, then your task to align „fun‟ must be translated into real-life
your external and internal brand begins. experiences.”20
So how does one audit their brand?
According to Kim Lacina of Versant, a Translating these brand values is not as
Milwaukee based internal/external difficult as you might imagine. Nancy
branding firm, you start with asking top Woltzen, Vice President of Versant,
management about its “brand spoke directly on this subject. She stated
aspirations.” Versant calls this their that she would often use role-playing in
“Brand Discover” step and it involves an teaching executives how to correctly
unusual game of word associations. „Live the Brand‟. Reoccurring problems
Lacina explained that sometimes Versant within an organization would be
asks CEO‟s, “if your company/brand rehearsed in role-playing sessions.
were a car or animal, what kind of car or Nancy would ask each executive to solve
animal would it be.”18 These the problem in real-time as she or
associations are then compared to another Versant employee would act as
employee responses and the gaps, if any, customer. When the executives would
are explored and researched to create the demonstrate behaviors “off-brand” she
“Brand Voice”, a list of brand would have them re-visit the brand
descriptors that guide the creative values and guide them in changing their
behavior accordingly.21
19
Interview: Kim Lacina, Account Executive, Versant
17
Mahnert, Kai F. and Torres, Ann M. “The Brand Inside: Solutions. Mar 20th, 2008.
20
The Factors of Failure and Success in Internal Branding.” Mitchell, Alan. “Getting staff to live the brand: work in
Irish Marketing Review. (2007) 19,1/2 Pg.54-61 process.” Marketing Week. London: Sep 2, 2004. Pg 30.
18 21
Interview: Kim Lacina, Account Executive, Versant Interview: Nancy Woltzen, Vice President, Versantworks
Solutions. Mar 20th, 2008. inc.. Apr 18th, 2008.
“Living the Brand: Aligning your external and internal brands” 6

7. that on-brand behavior becomes
Another way of educating employees on instinctive.”23
how to live the brand is learned from the
case of Citizens Bank. Lawrence Fish, 4.) Field the Right Team
Chairman and CEO of Citizens Financial This is the most crucial aspect of any
Group, in an effort to position Citizens brand alignment; the human assets.
Bank for future expansion knew he Creating a laundry list of desired brand
needed to get all of his work force behaviors is one thing, but having a
behaving consistently; towards the workforce that had the abilities and
community, customers and each other. desire to emulate the brand is another.
This credo was not to be mistaken for Evaluating the fit between the brand and
one or two sentence mantra that many the current culture is imperative to any
organizations utilize. Instead, it brand alignment program. As Mahnert
consisted of specific key behaviors. For and Torres state, “The cultural fit
example, the „Customers‟ section held analysis is essential in the identification
the following: “Hug the customer. of discrepancies between the values of
Smile. Say thank you. Return phone the program and the values expressed
calls and e-mails in a timely manner. Do through the organizational culture.”24
whatever you can every day, in every Simply put, if an organization‟s culture
way, to provide world-class is not fully supporting its external brand,
service…Give customers a reason to say, it will have to evolve. Since most
„Wow, I love these people.”22 To corporations hire employees based on
support and promote these behaviors, their “fit” within the organizational
Citizens sent out monthly newsletters of culture, companies will experience some
real-life stories of employees that attrition as employees who cannot adapt
embodied the credo in specific events to the new culture or new internal brand
called “Credo Moments.” Many will leave. When asked about how
branding programs fail because companies identify those employees who
companies tend to allow the initial aren‟t “on-brand”, Nancy Woltzen of
momentum of change to dissipate by not Versant stated that companies don‟t have
constantly monitoring progress. to, those employees do it for them by
leaving.25 For those employees that
As Colin Mitchell states in his Harvard remain but are unsure about the new
Business Review article Selling the strategic direction, authors Mahnert and
Brand Inside, “The messages should be Torres state that even, “„loose canons‟
directed at employee “touch points”, the who are committed to goals but lack
day to day interactions that influence the understanding can be converted into
way people experience the brand champions.” As for future talent
workplace…By incorporating the brand acquisition,“…build the brand promise
vision into these employee touch points, into the recruitment and selection
companies over time inculcate the vision process so that only the most suitable
into employee experience to the extent
23
Mitchell, Colin. “Selling the Brand Inside.” Harvard
Business Review R0201J (Jan 2002):5-11
24
Mahnert, Kai F. and Torres, Ann M. “The Brand Inside:
The Factors of Failure and Success in Internal Branding.”
Irish Marketing Review. (2007) 19,1/2 Pg.54-61
22 25
Lal, Rajiv and Arar Han. Citizens Bank. Harvard Interview: Nancy Woltzen, Vice President, Versant. Apr
Business Review. Jan. 2005. Pg 2-3. 18th, 2008.
“Living the Brand: Aligning your external and internal brands” 7

8. candidates are selected and high
performance can be encouraged.”26
Hiring individuals who are pre-disposed
to the brand values of a company will
deliver consistent “on brand” behavior.
Debriefing
This idea of external and internal brand
alignment may not work for every
corporation. I don‟t think Marlboro
employees have to ride horses to work
for the Marlboro brand to survive. Nor
do I expect Red Bull employees to drink
enough caffeine in a day to power a
small city. But for corporations like
Wal-Mart and Starbucks, who are in
industries with heavy customer
interaction, their employees become part
of their brand by creating the customer
experience. Hence, brand equity, the
global measure of brand strength, rests
squarely on the shoulders of employees.
Acknowledging that employees can add
value to a brand creates my opinion that
brand alignment is more necessity than
wishful thinking in certain industries.
So, to answer the question on how
companies can act true to their brands, I
believe John R. Childress author of A
Time for Leadership: Global
Perspectives from an Accelerated
Market Place, sums it up best with,
“When brand expectations and culture
clash, the effects can devastate a
business. When brand and culture match,
the effects can devastate the
27
competition.”
26
Anonymous. “Getting it right on the inside.” Strategic
Direction. Oct 2003 19,10, pg 10.
27
Childress, John R. A Time for Leadership: Global
Perspectives from an Accelerated Market Place. Los
Angeles, New York: Leadership Press. Jun 200. Pg 103-124
“Living the Brand: Aligning your external and internal brands” 8