Branding and brand management

There are as many definitions of 'brand' as there are brand managers and marketing 'consultants'. Your logo is not your brand. Let's say that again: your logo is not your brand.

Brand' in the modern sense, is commonly associated with the name of a product or service, similar to a trademark. A brand is more than the name or logo, of course, it is the promise to the customer, and their perception of how well you deliver upon that promise.

If you are serious about your organisation's brand and creating a lasting and meaningful experience for your customers, good brand management is the linchpin around which you need to build this experience.

The question of a house of brands or a branded house leads into brand architecture and is another way to approach the development of your architecture and structure. Whether you are an established brand looking to expand, or a new business mapping your brand and product structure, you will benefit from a considered approach to brand hierarchy, allowing you to scale your brand when you grow.

When a brand manager begins to map and develop a brand hierarchy, it is important to consider your audiences and your product or service offering. Understanding how to build your brand architecture, or make a change to brand architecture is a skill brand managers, and indeed the entire executive team, should have a confident handle on.

If brand management is a little bit like herding cats, then brand management in a decentralised environment takes an incredible amount of finesse and a strong plan. A strong brand is vital, and more difficult, to corral in a decentralised organisation. These are our top tips for brand management in a decentralised environment.

Congratulations on taking the first step to identify if your organisation will benefit from a rebrand. Rebranding an organisation, particularly one at enterprise level, is a complicated prospect and needs to be approached with the right framework to support a successful transition.

When it comes to re-branding, history is littered with both shining success stories and epic failures. While there’s undeniable entertainment value in picking apart those “what were they thinking?” moments, the most valuable insights come from studying brands who won fans and favour with inspired names, fresh logos and bold new directions.

What does it mean to debrand? Somewhat confusingly, the term debrand has two definitions. Debranding: the removal of brand elements to appear less corporate and more personal. Debranding: the shift away from any recognisable brand to appear generic, thus aiming to reduce ad spend and price and increase profits accordingly.

The definition of a franchise, franchisee and franchisor make the whole premise seem simple. Any brand or marketing manager working within a franchise will tell you it is the very opposite of simple and takes incredible finesse and management to ensure the balance between brand and ease for franchisees.

Brand management for a franchise is best suited to someone who has outstanding marketing knowledge, an ability to influence stakeholders and draw upon empathy to achieve the best result for the network. Brand management and marketing for a franchise traditionally involves building and balancing three types of brand positioning.

For a franchise business, successful branding is a lot like sailing with the wind behind your sails. Successful branding helps your business gain momentum through little effort on your part; once the public trusts and recognises your brand you remove a huge hurdle from the sales process.