Got It Right?

Written by Phillip A. Ross


Continued from page 1

Buzz, Gossip, and Reputation Public opinion, also known as buzz, gossip, or reputation, isrepparttar most effective and efficient means of business promotion. Word spreads on its own power. When people talk, people listen.

The key to long range business success is, then, to do everything possible to insure thatrepparttar 100908 reputation ofrepparttar 100909 business is, first, stellar, and then, familiar. By stellar we mean thatrepparttar 100910 values of honesty, integrity and compassion function at every level of business operation. And by familiar we mean a matter of common or public knowledge. Don't be overwhelmed. The aim is not perfection, but maturity, inrepparttar 100911 same sense that maturity is valuable to personal development.

Any attempt to conveyrepparttar 100912 impression of such values apart from actually incorporating them intorepparttar 100913 life and operation of a business will, in time, come to be understood byrepparttar 100914 public as deceitful, superficial and immature. All such efforts are harmful to a business because they contribute to negative buzz (a negative reputation), which is more harmful than no buzz at all. An unknown company has a better reputation than a company known for greedy and deceitful practices. And a company known for honesty, integrity and compassion will engender customer (or public) trust and loyalty overrepparttar 100915 long run.

Businesses not guided by long-range perspectives, values and goals actually harm themselves by delaying operational adjustments that will be increasingly difficult and costly to make. The least expensive way to do something is to do it right, because doing it over always increases expenses.

The Virtuous Cycle Advertising, marketing and public relations work best on this kind of foundation. Whenrepparttar 100916 substance ofrepparttar 100917 campaign is actually inrepparttar 100918 best interests ofrepparttar 100919 customer(s), people take notice. Whenrepparttar 100920 motives of a business transaction serverepparttar 100921 success ofrepparttar 100922 company andrepparttar 100923 well-being of its customer(s), a kind of business momentum known as a virtuous cycle is born.

A virtuous cycle is a kind of positive symbiosis, or mutually beneficial relationship between two entities. Here those entities are a business and its customers, orrepparttar 100924 public. James Surowiecki has written an interesting article onrepparttar 100925 virtuous cycle (http://www.forbes.com/work/free_forbes/2002/1223/248.html). While this article is about an historical virtuous cycle among Quaker businessmen, Quakerism is not necessary to such a cycle. However, a moral consensus among those involved inrepparttar 100926 cycle is necessary. Call it what you want, but it appears to be a kind of common faith, whererepparttar 100927 content ofrepparttar 100928 faith is honesty, integrity and maturity.

It’s more thanrepparttar 100929 stupid economy. Character not only counts, but adds up to sustainable profitability over time.

The ideal advertising or promotional campaign will employrepparttar 100930 instruments of branding (logos, mottos andrepparttar 100931 like), not merely to create an impression or image inrepparttar 100932 minds of customers, but to allowrepparttar 100933 public to associate a particular business entity with high moral ground. The purpose is to remindrepparttar 100934 target audience ofrepparttar 100935 character and principles ofrepparttar 100936 business. Again, those characteristics and principles must first be in place.

Advertising Success Two things affectrepparttar 100937 success of such advertising campaigns inrepparttar 100938 marketplace. First,repparttar 100939 public must sharerepparttar 100940 values ofrepparttar 100941 character and principles ofrepparttar 100942 business to some degree. That consensus must be in place betweenrepparttar 100943 business and its customers. A side benefit pertains torepparttar 100944 quality or character ofrepparttar 100945 customers such a business will attract. Don't we want honest, mature customers?

The associations being suggested by a campaign must resonate as valuable and important torepparttar 100946 target audience. And, second,repparttar 100947 associations should involve more substance than image, more reality than perception. The idea is not to create an image, but to reveal a reality. Advertising and promotional campaigns should takerepparttar 100948 high road. They should endeavor to help businesses to actually occupyrepparttar 100949 high ground of honesty, integrity, character, industry and excellence, not to merely suggest them.

There is little value in simply knowing or communicatingrepparttar 100950 name of a business. Rather,repparttar 100951 purpose of a campaign should be to associate a business brand with its actual character and principles. This approach can be successful inrepparttar 100952 marketplace because character and principles are important values of human experience. And because they are already important torepparttar 100953 majority of people, and important torepparttar 100954 development of personal maturity, they will be recognized and remembered. Even when people don't practice such virtues themselves, they are valued for their inherent worthiness. People feel good about associating with worthy values.

Empty Advertising Of course, it is possible to generaterepparttar 100955 impression of business virtue apart from its reality. But over time, such an approach will produce a negative effect because people will discoverrepparttar 100956 ruse. Lies universally generate hostility, even among thieves. No one appreciates a liar. People don't like being fooled. Consequently, businesses should concern themselves with getting their own houses in order, and on quality branding, prior to embarking on an advertising or promotional campaign.

It should also be noted that advertising and promotional campaigns can and should be used internally to encourage and reinforcerepparttar 100957 development of particular principles or values within a company. Such efforts often involve programs of workplace value enhancement. Certain behaviors can be encouraged throughrepparttar 100958 use of incentive programs. Honesty and integrity can be rewarded withinrepparttar 100959 company to encourage their adoption as company policy. Programs can be developed that will remind and encouragerepparttar 100960 kind of character and principles that a company would be proud to show torepparttar 100961 public. Andrepparttar 100962 public will be delighted to see them, and will reward such companies with business and loyalty.

Done right, advertising and promotional campaigns can build a profitable virtuous cycle between companies and customers. And they don't have to be loud and obnoxious.

©2003 Phillip A. Ross

Phillip A. Ross, entrepreneur, freelance writer and owner of Business Specialties (www.business-specialties.com), lives in Marietta, Ohio, and provides identity products and promotional services to position companies and organization for substantial success.


Branding

Written by Phillip A. Ross


Continued from page 1

Of course, companies wantrepparttar emotional association to their brand to be positive—even to generate an urge to splurge, or trust sufficient to sustain a transaction. But regardless of one’s personal reaction to a symbol,repparttar 100907 fundamental mechanics of branding involve soliciting an emotional response to a symbol.

There are two fundamental elements inrepparttar 100908 branding process. The first pertains torepparttar 100909 symbol,repparttar 100910 second torepparttar 100911 association.

The Symbol The symbol itself must be familiar. The morerepparttar 100912 symbol or logo is seen,repparttar 100913 more familiar it becomes. The most successful branding campaigns will have a lot of sustained media coverage and use a variety of advertising mediums. This does not mean that smaller campaigns cannot be successful, only that their success will be smaller. Familiarity is primarily a function of exposure.

The Association Secondly,repparttar 100914 emotional content ofrepparttar 100915 association also needs to be familiar. Of course it is true that new desires and/or emotional content can be created. Butrepparttar 100916 effort is both time consuming and risky. The result might be other thanrepparttar 100917 desired effect.

The more successful method for creating a symbolic association employs well-established and widely valued characteristics, like love, honor, truth, freedom, etc. Successful branding campaigns establish symbolic associations between their products and/or company and such noble characteristics. What is noble inspires people, and what inspires is remembered and discussed. It creates buzz. And buzz is branding’s engine.

To discussrepparttar 100918 art of branding apart from these foundational elements is to missrepparttar 100919 forest forrepparttar 100920 trees. However, branding is more than a mere advertising campaign can accomplish becauserepparttar 100921 symbolic association that needs to be made forrepparttar 100922 branding to be successful involvesrepparttar 100923 core values and character traits ofrepparttar 100924 company— its leaders and its business practices.

Prior to branding, core values, character issues and company policies need to be determined, developed and deployed withinrepparttar 100925 company. Becauserepparttar 100926 process of branding revealsrepparttar 100927 values, character and policies ofrepparttar 100928 company, those things need to be right, and be in place before they can be successfully revealed.

Premature Branding A premature revelation of these things can be disastrous torepparttar 100929 intention ofrepparttar 100930 branding campaign. To be branded as hypocritical and shallow is worse than no branding at all. Again, branding occurs when an emotional response—any emotional response— is associated with a company symbol. The art of branding is to solicitrepparttar 100931 right emotional response.

So, what can be done to promote a brand? Begin by working to establish core values and character within and throughoutrepparttar 100932 company. To be successfully branded is to be known widely for who you are. You want a great branding campaign? Be a great company. Aspire torepparttar 100933 values and character traits of greatness and nobility. Herein liesrepparttar 100934 key to branding success.

©2003 Phillip A. Ross

Phillip A. Ross, entrepreneur, freelance writer and owner of Business Specialties (www.business-specialties.com), lives in Marietta, Ohio, and provides identity products and promotional services to position companies and organization for substantial success.


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