#communications planning

Tech may change, but good #communications remains the same for #transportation agencies

The iPhone turned 10 last month. As Steve Jobs began to introduce the iPhone at the MacWorld conference in 2007, he said, “We’re going to make history together today.” 

That certainly was true. The iPhone wasn’t the first smartphone, but it revolutionized how people communicated and how they sought out information – two things that have largely reshaped the ways in which communications teams…

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING

Whilst much emphasis is placed upon the importance of Project Management, not all of us understand the importance of good Project Planning. Indeed many Project Managers will be required to perform the task of Planning as well. But this task often gets overlooked as a skill because it makes us spend more time on the computer and we fail to see a tangible benefit. On…

News 12 Long Island at the Brookhaven Fair in 2015.

During my career I have worked with the many local New York area media outlets. I have been involved with over 250 live morning TV news remotes. Each of these mornings included at least several segments featuring clients and causes which I support. Segments have taken place at locations across the entire New York region including Long Island,…

THE 3 ROLES OF BRAND PLANNING.

 There is so much confusion about brand and the practice of brand planning, and all to often, a bit of secrecy.

Because of this, many businesses are not leveraging their brands strategically. The knock-on effect of this is a shift in focus from strategic implementation of brand strategy to isolated communications strategy and tactical battling.

 The root of this problem is in a lack of understanding of the three fundamental roles that brand plays:

Brand to Business

The first role of brand is to connect the abstract world in which business strategy lives, to real-world strategy, in which people live.

Brand exists as a set of associations in the mind of consumers. That is the real world. At the highest level, there needs to be an understanding of how a company’s purpose and its products (two sets of connected associations) need to be positioned in the mind of the consumer and how that positioning needs to be established, communicated, maintained, measured and kept relevant. All of these are strategic imperatives in the delivery of any business vision. 

If used well, brand can become a powerful strategic tool to leverage business success. Key to this success is ensuring that strategic and commercial imperatives are not confused or conflicted. A symptom of this in action is when brand and marketing are lumped together in one function, or under a single commercial reporting line. In this world tactical need trumps strategic intent.

Brand to Organisation

The second role of brand is to connect and align the real-world strategy to the organisation. This requires an understanding of the role for brand in the organisation, as a compass for strategic decision-making, as a culture catalyst, as an agent of change, as a connector between employees and the consumer, as a mechanism for retention and employee engagement.

Key to success is in understanding that Brand to Organisation is not a communications exercise, but an exercise in building a culture to support the brand in every facet of the organisation. This requires co-operation, not compliance if the brand is to live sustainably in the organisation.

Brand to Consumer.

The third role for brand is to connect with the consumer.

This requires an understanding of the role for brand in the consumer’s mind, as consumer truths and insights, which influence customer communications strategy and customer behaviour. 

Communications planning is a very specialised and strategic discipline with has a very specific trajectory and evaluation metrics. This needs to be balanced against the overall brand planning agenda i.e. does the proposition to the consumer build or detract from the higher-level set of associations you need to be known for in order to achieve your business strategy. In the case of Volvo for example, does an advertising proposition deliver on the communications brief, whilst reinforcing (and not undermining) the attributes of safety, reliability and quality.

Mobile-First Is Dead, Says Google Display Ad Chief Neal Mohan, Forbes