Brands age and mature, and if they’re not maintained they fall apart.

You can see the aging process every time you redo your website. Typically a corporate website needs to be overhauled every 4 years. It starts looking tired in the third year, and dilapidated in the fourth. But the challenge with a new website project is it’s just the tip of the brand.

Your website is a very visual component of your brand. It’s easy to see when it’s out of date. But as soon as you start updating the website plenty of other branding projects start to popup. It’s a little like home renovation. You start with your kitchen, and soon your renovating the whole house.

Website overhauls follow a predictable trajectory. As you work on the site design you make some adjustments to your logo and identity – that triggers redoing all your letterhead and business cards. Then you rewrite all the copy on your site with a refined value proposition and better stories – that triggers redoing all your brochures and marketing collateral. Then you look at the executive biographies and they need work too – that triggers a photo shoot and new copy. What started as a $15,000 to $20,000 project can quickly balloon into a $100,000 plus rebranding project.

Plan for your brand’s shelf life

An outdated website is a symptom of an outdated brand. Your value proposition, identity, marketing collateral, points of view and go-to-market strategies all need regular updates.

Brands typically need a tune up every 3 to 7 years depending on the industry. For example, the software and IT sector changes a lot faster and more frequently than the construction industry. But regardless of the pace of an industry’s change, all brands need regular maintenance to remain relevant.

What’s the shelf life of brands in your industry? Gauge how quickly your marketing strategies age, and identify the optimal cycle to re-energize and tune-up your brand.

Values are static, brands are not

Even though your brand ages, your values don’t. They’re static. John Smale, former CEO of Procter & Gamble said,

“There are some important things that haven’t changed during the course of this company’s life and that is the basic character of this institution. Our values. The things that reflect our basic principles … These are the things that make P&G a great company. And these are the principles that will last, in my judgment, as long as this company lasts through the ages.”

Be careful to protect your company’s core values and beliefs as you polish and reinvent your brand. It’s easy to question what you stand for when you’re constantly examining your branding and marketing strategies.

Products change, competitors change, brands change, but values don’t. They’re the foundation of your brand, and they give it strength as you renovate your brand every few years.

(Image Credit: jptoto)

In 60 seconds, what would you say about your brand?

If you do an interview on TV or radio, you have at most 60 seconds to explain who you are and what your company does. And that goes for any business, from GE to the corner store. The broadcast anchor doesn’t want an exhaustive explanation, and they don’t care why your business is so innovative or different from the rest. They just want you to explain yourself clearly and succinctly so they can move onto other questions.

Give it a shot. Imagine you’re about to speak with Ali Velshi, Peter Mansbridge or Kent Brockman. They welcome you to their show and ask, “Tell me about your company.” What do you say?

Do you have a tight explanation that the audience will quickly grasp, and will establish your credibility? Remember the anchor is only a conduit. They’re asking the question to help the audience understand you, and they are setting the stage for the rest of their questions. If you bungle the first question, it’s going to be a rough interview.

Prepare your talking points

For 5 years I appeared on TV every month to discuss the job market. I had 90 seconds to talk about the labor statistics, what happened last month and give some direction on where the job market was heading. I had a lot of information to convey in a short period of time, but I also had to carry on a conversation with the anchor. I couldn’t simply regurgitate the labor report and my findings.

To get through these interviews, I used talking points. Instead of memorizing lines, stats and dialogue, I identified 2 to 3 key points I wanted to make during the interview. Before the interview I would ask myself, “What is the one thing the audience needs to know from me?” Once I found the most important message, I developed the supporting points. Together this formed my talking points for the interview.

Talking points are extremely helpful, because they are the essence of your message. In the heat of the moment, it’s hard to recite a canned line authentically. But with talking points you can adapt to the situation, and explain the idea in your own words.

Create talking points for your brand

If you could only convey one idea about your business, what would it be?

Isolate and distill the core message of your brand. Break it down in a way so that any person on your team can share it. They’re not going to use your words, but the meaning won’t be lost. That is a talking point.

Once you have the core message, identify a handful of supporting points that build out the story. Again, share the points with your team. If they can convey it in their own words and the meaning still stands, you’ve got a good message.

Nailing down your brand talking points provides you freedom. It makes it far easier for other people to remember your business and talk about it. It also keeps your brand’s story consistent. No matter who is talking about your brand, they will deliver the right message.

The pain of changing systems hit home for me yesterday, because we just moved our email and calendar to Google Apps for Business. The implementation went off without a hitch, but my personal productivity was significantly derailed.

Activities I usually did without thinking were taking onerous amounts of cognitive horsepower. And it wasn’t the tools that were holding me back. Gmail and Google Calendar are surprisingly easy to use. Rather it was the communication workflow between our CRM, accounting and project management systems that were being brought into question.

Throughout the day I kept asking, “Why do we do that?” By learning to integrate a new application into our business I was forced to analyze and question the way we do things. And I can already see there are opportunities to improve our business processes.

50% of what a business does is waste

I know my company does things that are unproductive. We’ve been around since 1989, and systems build up over time. And for us, a lot of our foundational systems were created before the days of email, on demand applications and social media.

According to Ron Wince of Guidon, “Half of a company’s processes are waste.” These are systems that don’t drive revenue, improve productivity or bring value to customers. These are just things companies do, because they’ve always done them that way.

When I heard that stat I was immediately reminded of the movie Office Space, and Lumbergh pestering Peter for his TPS Reports,

Hello, Peter. What’s happening? Uh, we have sort of a problem here. Yeah. You apparently didn’t put one of the new cover sheets on your TPS reports … Yeah. If you could just go ahead and make sure you do that from now on, that will be great. And Uh, I’ll go ahead and make sure you get another copy of that memo. Mmmm, Ok?

The scene resonates, because we’ve all been there. We’ve done processes that aren’t driving value, but for some reason the business can’t run without them.

Break the systems to grow

You can’t achieve your full potential if you’re carrying the weight of legacy systems. They’re holding you back.

To break free of our old processes we tackle a major business initiative every year. We don’t want to get too comfortable or complacent, and implementing a new system or piece of software is often just what the doctor calls for. The idea has two benefits. First, we’re investing in our business and ourselves by upgrading our systems annually. And second, we’re challenging the status quo. Implementing structural changes force us to re-evaluate and tweak our processes, and that helps us stay nimble and efficient.

How do you break the status quo to move your business ahead?

What is motivating you?

It’s an interesting question, but it’s rarely considered. Rather it’s assumed. We assume each other’s motivations based on our careers. For example we assume sales people should be money motivated while artists should be motivated by the work itself, and politicians should be motivated by their status and position.

Pick any career and consider what motivates a person to do the job: social worker, teacher, executive, manager, construction worker, speaker, scientist or doctor. I bet you can make a motivation statement for each career. Something like, “doctors do the job to save lives” or “executives are motivated by their big bonuses and stock options.”

Even though we assume career motivations, individuals are more complex. Sure money may motivate some sales people, but not all. And money may not even motivate a sales person all the time. Motivation is constantly shifting and changing, even for you.

3 types of motivation

There are three types of motivation: pay, prestige and process. Or you can describe them as money, recognition and the work itself.

At some points in your life you will be motivated by income. For example you may want to buy a new car or get out of debt, and your reason for working hard is to get paid. At other times you may want the accolades of an accomplishment or the recognition a position brings. And sometimes the work is really what’s driving you, because you feel in the zone and are really excited by what you’re doing. Your motivations shift depending on your situation, your life and your goals.

What’s driving you right now: pay, prestige or process?

There’s no wrong answer

We have a weird relationship with motivation. For some people working for money seems base and lowly. They feel their motivation should be the work, the process of completing the job, and money is simply a reward for their craftsmanship.

It doesn’t matter what is motivating you, but recognize it. It’s exhausting to deny your true motivations. If you’re motivated by money, that’s great. Accept it. Run with it. Maximize those desires. Work hard, get paid, do it again. When you harness your motivations you can achieve a lot. It’s a source of energy, and gives your work purpose.

But ask the question frequently, “What’s motivating me right now?” Your motivations change on a regular basis. At some points you will be motivated by the work, and at others you’ll want the kudos and applause. Whatever it is – pay, prestige or process – embrace the motivation at that moment. Let it fuel you.

(Image credits: Steven Depolo, Ken Conley, Manoel Petry)

You were probably taught not to judge a book by its cover. But let’s be frank, you do. We all do. We can’t help ourselves. We judge with our eyes.

Not only do we judge books by their covers, we judge businesses by their brands. What we see and experience influences are perspective on a company. A company could deliver amazing products or services, but if their brand doesn’t reflect what’s inside the business then we doubt them.

What does an outdated website say about a company’s expertise?
What does a dirty, dingy office say about a company’s culture?
What does a grouchy employee say about a company’s service?
What does cheap packaging or marketing collateral say about a company’s quality?

These items may be overlooked internally, but your customers do not overlook them.

Does your business “impute?”

I had not come across the word “impute” before reading Walter Isaacson’s book, Steve Jobs. Isaacson wrote,

“Early on, Mike Markkula had taught Jobs to ‘impute’ – to understand that people do judge a book by its cover – and therefore to make sure all the trappings and packaging of Apple signaled that there was a beautiful gem inside. Whether it’s an iPod Mini or a Macbook Pro, Apple Customers know the feeling of opening up the well-crafted box and finding the product nestled in an inviting fashion.”

I love it. The box is as important as the product. It sets the expectation, and initiates the relationship.

Does your business impute? Does the packaging and expression of your brand reflect the quality of your products and services?

Create a cohesive experience

When your brand doesn’t reflect your business it creates dissonance.

Your customer sees one thing, but experiences another. This disconnect creates uncertainty, and causes them to second guess their purchase decisions. If they’re making a major purchase they may do more due diligence and talk to other vendors. If it’s a minor purchase they may just pass over it, and not give it a second thought.

You’ve got to avoid dissonance at all costs. Fear, uncertainty and doubt slow down sales, increases competition and increases price pressure. Price pressure is probably the worst symptom of dissonance. When you’re customers can’t see the value in your products, they fall back to evaluating them on price. And it’s hard to deliver a remarkable brand when your customers can’t see the value in your services.

(Image by Mette Ohlendorff)

Last night we flipped the switch, and launched our new website. Welcome to version 2.0 of www.StickyBranding.com. (Let us know what you think. We’d love your feedback.)

We’ve been working hard on the new site since October, and it feels great to finally have it out in the world. We’ve gone through multiple iterations, re-written all of our copy and sweated the little stuff. It’s been a labor of love, but it isn’t even done yet.

That’s the problem with branding, it never stops.

Websites are static, but business isn’t

Branding doesn’t stop. It can’t, because your business is alive. You’re always adjusting your products, services and approach to meet the needs of your marketplace. But is your brand keeping up with your business?

A new website reflects the business and the brand the day it’s launched, but it ages quickly. The older a website gets the more disconnected it can get from your business and customer experience. An old website reflects the brand you were versus the brand you are.

Create a Brand Roadmap

Version 2.0 of www.StickyBranding.com reflects our business and our services right now, and it’s a huge improvement over the first version. But it’s not done yet. We are already discussing version 3.0 of the site, as well as key changes we will make to our brand identity and go-to-market strategy.

The Brand Roadmap is a liberating tool, because it helps you evolve and implement your brand strategically. It’s not about delivering the best website or the best video or the best ad, it’s a process of constantly evolving your marketing to connect with your customers on an emotional level.

Our Brand Roadmap is linked to our strategic plan. As we hit milestones and launch new products and services our brand will evolve. Each iteration of our brand is designed to reinforce and scale our relationships by better explaining who we are and what we do while delivering content and experiences that engage our community in meaningful ways.

What do you think?

I’d love to hear what you think of the new website. We’re always listening and learning from what you have to say.

Your customers don’t make rational buying decisions. Actually, nobody does. We do the best we can with the information we have.

Even with critical purchase decisions we still make compromises. It’s because we’re human. Our brains just don’t have the memory capacity or computational ability to evaluate all the relevant information in an industry to make highly logical decisions. Instead we look for cues and signals to identify the product and services that will best fit our needs.

Understanding the limitations of our decision-making leads to a hard truth: We don’t evaluate brands fairly.

Actually, we rarely even consider all the options available to us. We pick a short list of 2 to 6 brands to consider, and then enter into the buying process.

This poses a question for your business: Is your brand even being considered?

If you’re brand isn’t top of mind, chances are it isn’t a serious contender. The challenge is to rise above all the options in your industry, and stand out as a credible brand that your customers want to evaluate.

Features and benefits come second

The challenge for many B2B companies is they differentiate their brands on 3 primary dimensions:

1. Service
2. Price
3. Features

These dimensions may be highly relevant in the final decision making process, but they’re useless if you don’t make your customers’ short list.

In this era of Google and social media, we are inundated with information. We use the tools available to us to get informed, and discover our options. The challenge for your customers is to isolate which brands they should evaluate more carefully.

Capture your customers’ attention quickly

The elevator pitch has long been used as a tool to capture a prospect’s attention. In 20 seconds or less, the time it takes to ride an elevator, make a compelling pitch. The pitch must create a positive first impression, explain who you are and articulate your value proposition.

You can’t say much in 20 seconds. Basically you’ll be able to explain to the prospect who you are, what you do and why they should care. A couple of paragraphs at the most. But your words are only a fraction of the message you deliver. Your body language, your clothing, your personality and your charisma all influence your prospect – probably more so than your words. Your prospect takes in the whole experience, and makes a gut reaction whether to grant you another minute or not.

The elevator pitch is a good measuring stick to evaluate your branding and marketing efforts. The difference is your company has a lot more touch points: search position, website, social media, referrals, centers of influence, the media and your employees. Regardless of where your customers engage your brand, they will make split-second judgments. They’ll judge with their eyes, their minds and their hearts.

Your customers quickly take in all the information available to them, and make an assessment: is this a company we should consider? If you don’t pass this test then you don’t even make the short list. And if you don’t make the short list … well you get the idea.

What’s your take?

(Image by epSos.de)

If you can’t give a succinct, authentic and sharable message, stop. Don’t pass go. Don’t collect $200. You’ve got to get your story right before you do anything else.

It’s easy to get caught up in the creative work and implementation work of a rebranding project. It’s fun creating a new identity. It’s fun coming up with ways to announce and share the new brand. It’s fun thinking about what the new brand could be. But all that is secondary.

Why did you start the rebranding project in the first place?

Any major change to the façade of a business creates uncertainty. People generally don’t like change. It’s unsettling. And rebranding is a very visible change to the business. The most effective way to dispel the uncertainty and rumors is to be frank and blunt about why you’re changing the brand.

As you build the story of why you are rebranding, consider:

1. Why the brand change, and what is it all about?
2. Why is the change important for the firm?
3. Why is the new brand better than the old one?
4. Why do your staff, management and executives want to support the brand change?
5. Why is it important for your customers?
6. Why is it important for your suppliers, vendors and partners?

These are the questions you’ll be answering both internally and externally when you roll out the new brand. And if you don’t overtly answer these questions, people will make their own assumptions.

Once you’ve polished your story, launch the new brand inside your organization. Get your team’s feedback. Get their buy in. If they have doubts or questions, it’s better to hear it from them than your customers. Use your team to perfect the story, perfect the reasons behind the rebranding, and get them on board and excited about the change.

It’s essential to get your organization behind the rebranding, because your team will be your frontline storytellers. If they don’t get it, no one will. If they’re not excited about it, your customers won’t be either. If they have doubts, your competitors will hear about them and spread those doubts for all to hear.

Once it’s time to launch the new brand and announce it to the world, you’ll be ready to run. Not only will you be able to answer clearly and authentically why your company changed its brand, but you’ll also have the support and encouragement of your entire organization. Everyone will sing from the same song sheet, and you’ll be able to get your customers, suppliers and even competitors interested in your new brand.

(Image by Horia Varlan)

“Did you know the Mayans predicted the world would end in 2012?”

Since the start of the year the doomsday chatter has been in full force. The sentiment has gone beyond the crazies to the mainstream.

The end of the Maya calendar is triggering the discussion. The Maya calendar ends on the Winter Solstice, December 21, 2012. And the doomsdayers have long viewed the Maya calendar as a prophecy for the end of the world. Even Hollywood told us so in the movie 2012.

I’m going to say this now, bollocks!

I know, I know. Any rational person knows the world isn’t going to end, because of a Mayan prophecy. It’s just a fun piece of trivia to discuss and bandy about. But the discussion is too negative. Rather than talking about the end of the world, let’s change the conversation.

Every year we celebrate the New Year on December 31st. We don’t cry, “The year is ending!” We celebrate. We celebrate the end of a period, and the start of a new one. The Mayans weren’t any different. This is the end of an old calendar, and the start of a new one.

New Years, birthdays and anniversaries are all moments of change. They’re opportunities to reflect on where we’ve come from, and where we’re heading. And they are moments we can share with friends, family and colleagues.

2012 can be a pivotal year.

January 25 is the anniversary of the start of the uprising in Egypt. The Egyptian people were spurred to action based on what they witnessed in Tunisia. The Tunisians ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali on January 14, 2011 after 23 years of power. The Egyptians wanted similar change, and they too stood up and forced Hosni Mubarak from power on February 11, 2011.

The Arab Spring was but one story line of 2011. There was the Occupy Movement, the financial crises in Europe, natural disasters and more. And most of these stories are still playing out.

We don’t have time or energy to be talking about the end of the world. There’s too much at stake. There’s too much we need to see through to the finish.

Don’t let history pass you by. As you move through 2012 take opportunities to slow down and observe the world we’re living in. We’re living in a period of massive change – maybe even a renaissance. It’s time to celebrate where we’ve come from, and where we’re heading.

The next time you hear someone mention the Mayan calendar, correct them. The world isn’t ending, it’s only just beginning.

(Image by Dan Piraro)

Even common consumer products like Coca-Cola, Tide and Heinz Ketchup have like and trust. Consumers identify with theses brands. They like what the products deliver, and they trust they’ll get a consistent experience. Even though these products are very accessible and easy to buy, the brands are the differentiating factor. Brands form a relationship that drives consumers to choose them over generic, low-cost options.

Like and trust are the building blocks of the buying process. The more complex a product or service, the more important like and trust becomes. But this is where a marketing disconnect arises. Most B2B marketing initiatives focus on creating awareness versus making the brand more likable and trustable.

Awareness doesn’t drive sales

It’s a myth that increasing brand awareness will increase sales. For example, 1,000 cold calls won’t generate 1,000 new customers. Customers don’t buy simply because they know your name.

During the Dotcom craze companies spent small fortunes on advertising with the hope that awareness would drive revenue. It didn’t. According to Kirk Cheyfitz in his book Thinking Inside the Box, Pets.com generated $619,000 in revenue in 2009, but spent $11.8 million on advertising. $1.2 million of that ad budget went to a Super Bowl commercial. All the awareness they created wasn’t enough to drive sales or save the business.

Awareness is still the number one go-to activity for marketing. Companies are investing to increase their search rank, or working to get thousands of followers in social media. They’re running radio and TV advertising spots, attending tradeshows, and trying to get media coverage through a publicist or PR firm. These activities are all very useful, but only after a strong brand foundation is laid.

Focus on the relationship

Brand awareness is important, but it’s irrelevant if your customers don’t like you and trust you.

You can manage and grow your client relationships in 3 ways:

1. Simple Clarity. Clear, concise communication builds credibility. When your customers clearly understand who you are and what you do, it helps them categorize you and know when to call on your expertise.

2. Be Generous. Take a genuine interest in your customers, as well as the broader community. How can you help them even when they’re not buying? We live in the digital age. It’s very easy to create and share valuable content. That’s a great starting point. Invest in giving back online, and then scale it to the real world.

3. Innovate and invest in your expertise. We live in a crowded world with a lot of choice. How is your brand different? How is it better? Your innovations and expertise are core assets of your business. Invest in them to not only better serve your customers, but to push your industry forward.

Awareness comes second

The biggest problem with driving awareness is your customers are skeptical. For the past 50 years companies have been bombarding the public with advertisements and promotions vying for their attention and money. People are reasonably skeptical.

Before investing in promoting your brand to the masses, make sure you have a strong brand foundation. If you aren’t promoting something of substance, it’s a waste. Focus your attention on making your brand more likable and trustable first, and then share those stories with the world.

What’s your take?