Know It All: What is Brand Strategy?

Welcome! This is a series of questions and answers which  I have been asked and have answered in multiple ways, multiple times.  Often, I find that the basics questions are the most valuable as it’s hard to be in the middle of your own daily drama, daily storyline and be able to see and feel clearly.  I’ve been there too.

What is brand strategy development?

Brand Strategy is a blueprint for how to position your company to attract customers, engage evangelists, build a following, and land clients.

A strong brand strategy will consist of understanding your target audience and what emotional and logical appeals will engage them to interact with your company through point of purchase, social media, and more traditional forms of marketing (blogging, newsletter, etc.). For example, I recently worked with the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) to attract a wider millennial audience. In order to do this, we created branded content for WSJ which consisted of ongoing interviews for a period of a year with the top 20 millennial influencers including business leaders, marketing strategists, writers and entrepreneurs. These millennial influencers then became evangelists for the WSJ by sharing their content with their respective followings.

Brand strategy encompasses the following areas:

1. Visual Branding: Images your brand conveys (i.e. logos, video content)
2. Copywriting: Written message (i.e. elevator pitch, website copy, blogging, tweeting)
3. Points of Engagement also known as Customer Interaction: the communication channels through which you reach your audience (i.e. social media, commercials, website, newsletter, etc)

If their were a formula for the brand strategy blueprint it would read as follows: Visual Branding + Copywriting + Points of Engagement = Your Ranking Compared to your Competitors in the Minds of Your Audience.

Ultimately brand strategy is about creating a compelling message around the work that your company does so you attract an audience who stays loyal to you as you grow.

How would you define Office Politics?

It’s the clear understanding of what’s expected of you within any organization or business. Each owner or boss has pre-set rules and perceptions of what and how an employee is going to perform under their rule. Simply stated: It is the use of power and social networking within an organization to achieve changes that benefit the organization or individuals within it. Thank you Wikipedia. Happy to answer any of your questions about how to navigate.

What are some good ways for programmers to find mentors?

I mentor with a program called Everwise. I have amazing senior people across multiple categories who are under my care. Check out the website.

Where can I find a mentor for intellectual growth and personal support?

Two ways:

• One is to find someone at your current job. This person has to be a senior executive who is NOT in your line of reporting. She or he needs to be well respected and … kind.
• The second is to join a professional mentoring association. I am a mentor to many people whom I have never met.

The goal of the company is to assist employees who don’t have the skill or want to approach someone at work. How do you approach someone at work you ask? Easy. Look out in their office that they clearly have an interest in. For example, there maybe pictures of their family on a boat or awards showcased on the wall or desk. Ask them about them. Find something to talk about and keep asking them questions. It’s all about establishing a relationship that has nothing to do with work. They will love you for inquiring about their life and will be happy to share their knowledge on the topic you choose. Build your relationship on that topic for several months. When your ready or when THEY are ready, they will ask you about your job, boss and colleagues. Go slowly to present your issues and don’t come off to heavy. It’s a drag to be with a Donnie Downer …. You want to instill that you want their advice. Most senior executives love giving advice and eventually, they will have your back and help you when they can.

What is a cyclic group?

In marketing, a cyclic group is one group that feeds the other group. I buy a BMW car and love the experience…and tell a friend or have my children buy that car … we keep it in our group. A college website that feeds the alumni of that college who in pushes for alumni to send their children to that college is a cyclical group.

 

Open to all questions and almost nothing is too silly to ask.

Asking questions is a good thing…as long as it’s relevant 🙂   On Twitter, the hashtag is #KNOWITALL to get them to me.  If you don’t know, you don’t know. Not knowing is unhelpful particularly when all you need to do….is Just Ask.