Why Brand Image & brand Consistency is Important

What is Brand Image and Why Does it Matter?

Brand image can be defined as the overall perception that the general public has of your company (or brand). Good branding can increase customer loyalty and advocacy, help with word-of-mouth marketing, and have a dramatic effect on sales.

The public’s perception of your brand can have a big impact on the longevity of your company. However; a positive brand image can be hard to build, and easy to lose.

One way that a brand's image can be ruined is by inconsistent branding - but more on this later, first let's look at how a brand image can be developed.

How do you Develop a Brand Image?

Developing a brand has been likened to raising a child - It takes time, effort, and almost constant careful monitoring.

Why are we trying to be?

One of the first things that’s needed, is to decide where you want your brand to sit in the marketplace. Do you want to be known as cheap & cheerful, or would you rather your brand be seen as a high-end luxury, perhaps exclusive brand? Neither is right or wrong, it's all down to how you want your brand to be thought of by the public.

Decide what you want the core message of your brand to be, and from this build a mission statement.

Who is Our Target Market?

Once you have decided where you want your brand to be, there are a few options for the next stage. However now that we know how we want our brand to be seen, it would be good to know WHO we want to target. When we decided what our brand image should be like, who did we envisage as our customers? Who do we want to portray this image across to?

Once you start to develop persona cards, include details about where the target personas spend their time, both at work, and in their leisure time.

By developing several person-cards, we can ensure that we are targeting all advertorial and marketing copy to the right demographic.

How do Our Target Market See us at Present?

Now that we know how we want to be seen, it's time for some hard-truth's... How do our chosen demographic personas see us at present? This can be a tough one to find out, however techniques like consumer surveys, email-outs to existing newsletter subscribers with a link to an online survey, that has questions about how the public see your brand, and city-centre field marketing surveys can all help discover how the chosen demographic sector of the general public see's your brand at the moment.

Care must be taken to ensure that you are surveying the right demographic, of course. Good targeting of where/how the surveying takes place can help with this, and there are several specialist marketing research companies that can plan such campaigns. Depending on the size of your brand however, this doesn't have to be expensive, and a 'DIY' approach can be considered, as long as there is careful planning.

Measure the Disparity between Desired Brand Image & Current Public Perception?

Depending on the questions asked, it should be relatively easy to measure the disparity between your desired brand image and that of the existing public one.

One way to do this is to ensure the questions have a 'score choice', like:

• Out of 0 to 10, how cheap do you feel [brand name] products are?
• Out of 0 to 10, how much of a special treat do you consider [brand name] products to be?

If you know what you would like the ideal answer to be (out of 0 to 10), then you can enter the ideal data, along with the survey data, on a spreadsheet, and draw up a 'pearson's correlation' to measure the difference. - This isn't as complicated as it sounds, as Microsoft Excel has the function built in.

This is of course just one example of how a disparity in desired and actual brand image can be measured. There are likely lots more than professional agencies use.

Now we have the current brand image benchmarked, we can start promoting our brand image in order to shift the public's perception, and measure our success against the initial benchmark.

How to Promote Your Brand

Based on your desired brand image, and keeping the mission statement in mind, brainstorm how you can shift the public’s perception of your brand.

• For example, if you wish to be seen as a luxury brand, but the public currently see's you as a low-end product supplier, check how your product is currently marketed.

• Is the product packaging design in-line with your desired brand and product image?

• Are you advertising via the right channels? No matter whether print or web based, it's vital to ensure your brand and products are seen in the right places. Now that you have your target persona's and details about where else they spend their time, ensure that you are reaching this audience (DO consider the product design first though, otherwise advertising efforts may be wasted).

• Could you sponsor any events that would be attended by your target audience? Event sponsorship can be a great way to raise your brands profile, and help to associate it with the right demographic.

• Field Marketing campaigns are another great way to help reach the right audience. A highly trained, well briefed field sales agent can make great in-roads towards shifting the public’s perception of your brand and products. Of course the effects do vary depending on how well trained the field sales staff is. There are several field marketing recruitment agencies that can help find the right staff for large brands.

• Another great way to shift the way that the public see your brand is through an experiential marketing campaign. Experiential agencies can help you to develop high impact PR stunts that can have a dramatic impact on how the public see your brand, and can generate a buzz that, with the right planning, can go viral.

• Develop your website - Is your brand's web presence a good match for your desired brand image? If you are hoping to position yourself as a luxury brand, but have a website that is either out of date, ugly, slow or difficult to use, then this should be changed - ideally BEFORE efforts to shift brand perception - the last thing you want to do is spend resources on altering the public’s perception of your brand, only to have that ruined when they visit your website.

• How do you perform on social media? These days it is almost expected that a brand will have a social media presence. In fact, a lack of social media branding can say a lot to internet users, and give off messages that your brand isn't interested in what people are saying about it - Not a great way to encourage brand advocacy.

The points above are just a few examples of how you can grow your brand image, and shift the public’s perception of your brand.

Most of these points work best as part of a carefully planned and well executed branding campaign, the effects of which can be measured by repeating the surveys carried out earlier, being careful to perform the surveys in a very similar way to how they were carried out previously.

It is important to remember however that results are rarely instant, and that more than one branding campaign may be needed - The general public don't always shift this perception of a brand as easily as some would like!

Why is Brand Consistency important?

As you can see from the above, shifting the public’s perception of your brand, and building a brand image takes a lot of time, effort and careful planning.

If the brand gives out an inconsistent message however, all of the effort taken can be undone in a fraction of the time it took to develop the brand image.

Every part of the business needs to be aligned to the brand image; otherwise things can go wrong very quickly:

• For a brand selling based on quality products, sales agents can push price discounts as a sales tactic, rather than explaining the quality of the brands products, which done wrong, could distract from the brand image.

• For companies trying to give across an image of a brand that cares, customer service and complaints departments can respond in ways that hurt the brand massively

• For a brand that tries to put across an image of a fun, dynamic agency, employees can complain on social media about "another boring day at the office... yawn!"

• These are just a few examples of how, in a matter of hours or days, a lack of consistency in how the brand 'puts itself across' can undo months of work, hundreds of thousands (or in some cases millions) of pounds worth of brand image development.

How to Remain Consistent

One of the first things to do is to develop an internal brand book. This should include everything from the image the brand is trying to get across, rules of external communication, social media policy, and clear instructions on how to raise issues with their managers should they be unsure about anything at all.

It's very important for staff members to feel 'safe' about coming to their manager(s) with brand related questions, as this ensures that any potential issues are raised as soon as possible, and 'nipped in the bud'.

This can also help staff feel 'closer' to the brand, more of a part of the company, and encourage them to act as brand ambassadors.

Summary

Although a lot of effort, identifying how you want your brand to come across, who your ideal demographic personas are, checking how they see your brand at present, and working at bridging the gap between how you would like customers to see your brand and how they actually do feel about your company can have a huge impact on the growth of your brand.

Data Collection and Analysis - How to Get The Budget You Need For a Campaign

Data Collection and Data Analysis

Making the decision to outsource marketing responsibilities to an external company can be a big decision for companies of all sizes and the financial implications of doing so can certainly be a deciding factor. One aspect that can be vital when choosing which route to take is having the appropriate data to back up any budget requests. Establishing effective data collection routes from inception to completion of a campaign can provide marketers with comprehensive sets of data that can be used for the pre, during and post analysis of field marketing campaigns, allowing for accurate comparison of effectiveness which can be essential for securing a bigger budget for the next marketing push.

When it comes to running an effective field marketing campaign, companies really have two options. Unless a firm already has full time employees with expertise in field marketing and data collection, it is highly likely they will need to hire in short term staff in order to set up appropriate in house systems from which to run and manage a field marketing campaign. This approach can be seen to have both advantages and drawbacks. While it does mean you can hand pick your team to be as in sync with a company's objectives and ethos, it does mean that a firm has to put a huge amount of time and effort into advertising, interviewing and allocating the positions that become available throughout the course of the campaign. The other option is to outsource to an outside field marketing firm that specialises in running tailor made campaigns for external companies. By taking this approach, businesses can benefit from having the field marketing firm take care of the hiring process guaranteeing you get only people who have been deemed suitable by experienced recruiters that maintain databases of candidates and regularly advertise for new recruits (eg. cosineuk.com/join-us/). Once a firm has established a team, be it in house or external, they can focus on ensuring the data collection process runs smoothly from start to finish.

One aspect of data collection that is becoming more and more prolific and important to marketing campaigns is web based analytic solutions. These are not to be confused with simply straight web analytics but instead offer a far richer array of data for marketers to interpret. This article does a fantastic job of underlining the key differences between the two disciplines. Data generated through platforms such as Facebook, Foursquare and Twitter can provide great insights as to how the public are responding to your campaigns and strategies. Digital interaction with consumers through technology such as mobile phone scannable QR codes can also be great for accessing the effectiveness of field marketing campaigns that focus on increased brand interaction.

Here's a short video that gives a brief insight to the use of Facebook's inbuilt 'Insights' tool for data collection:

By amassing a diverse selection of datasets firms can arm themselves with the necessary tools to compare the range of different field marketing campaigns. Data gathered either in house or externally can enable budgets based on efficacy of previous campaigns instead of speculation. This can be absolutely essential for securing a bigger marketing budget as the relative costs of campaigns are far more justifiable in the eyes of accountants if you have the necessary figures to back it up.

H & S Practices for Field Marketing Sampling Campaigns

Sampling Campaigns can be a highly effective form of field marketing providing they are used in an ethical and safe manner.

Field Marketing

Good practice in sampling campaigns will include safety of samples, effective presentation of samples, good health and safety practices, equipment safety and awareness of environmental hazards.

We have already touched on good examples of ethical attributes for field marketing campaigns here.

If your business/company does not adhere to basic ethical elements of field marketing, your sampling campaign could fail.

Safety of Samples

The safety of your customer or consumer is paramount when undertaking a sampling campaign. Therefore extreme care must be taken when preparing samples from the early planning stages right up to handing out the products.

An example of this may be a food product that contained dairy products. The ingredients of the product must be explained in detail to every customer to avoid any allergic reactions.

Likewise if part of your campaign is to give sweets to children then consent from a parent or responsible adult must be required. You won't know if a child is diabetic or has any other dietary requirements so always check first if it is suitable to give any of your products to children. Further information about food safety around children can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BverkBofnfo

  

Responsible sampling sounds basic but there are elements which will not be so obvious. Guidelines to responsible sampling campaigns can be found via the Direct Marketing Association at www.dma.org.uk

Health and Safety

It can be a law breaking offence to not adhere to health and safety regulations. If your sampling campaign involves food products then temperatures must be kept under food hygiene guidelines. For example if you giving out ice cream samples at an outdoor event, a freezer van must be used to store the product.

The temperature of the ice cream must be maintained but the temperature in the freezer van must also be kept within guideline limits. Therefore the van's engine must be regularly run to keep the temperature cooling units at the appropriate level to store the ice cream.

Sampling Campaign

Any staff administering food products as part of your sampling campaign must have a hygiene certificate and must also be supplied with the equipment to keep their workstation clean. This can include disposable plates, knives, cups and hygienic wipes.

Safety Equipment

Any equipment or apparatus that you use in a sampling campaign must be safe and checked. If you are using any stands or stages, these must be made of fire retardant materials to make sure that they meet fire regulations. Any electrical leads or wires must be kept clear and organised to reduce any risk of tripping or injuring someone.

The same principles apply to using any props in your campaign. For example if you have a visual display, which may include strobe lighting, you must clearly state this before anyone takes part in your demonstration/campaign.

Environmental Hazards

These need to be taken into account to make sure that no props, leaflets or rubbish is left at a venue, which has been used for a sampling campaign. One of the most common forms of environmental hazards when running sampling campaigns is to distribute leaflets, once the consumer has read the leaflet, they maybe drop the leaflet which is littering; this needs to be cleared up, not only from a legal perspective but also a clean site will give a good image of your brand or company as a whole.

Some councils will demand that organisations and companies holding sampling campaigns need to hold a licence for handing out leaflets. The Clean Neighbourhoods Environmental Act 2005 is enforced frequently to reduce littering of leaflets and other environmental hazards.

Field Marketing Sampling Campaign

The act restricts the areas where leaflets can be distributed, and both the company and consumer can be fined if they are found to be littering leaflets in these areas. There are some exemptions for charities, religious groups and political events; check what is allowed and more importantly what is not.

If your field marketing sampling campaigns stick to these legal and ethical practices, your product is more likely to be a success. You will also be safe in the knowledge that your product has been handled in the best way and that all health and safety measures have been adhered to.

4 Important Ethical Attributes for Field Marketing Campaigns

 

Effective Field Marketing campaigns can work wonders for promoting brand image and individual product awareness. However, without due consideration of the potential ethical complications of a campaign, the associated benefits can quickly be lost and you can even cause significant damage to how the public perceive your company. Brand reputation is one of the first things to consider when adopting any field marketing scheme and how ethical your brand appears to the public is undoubtedly a significant factor. Some major brands even class this as one of the most important aspects of their brand. For example, Pret A Manger is keen to use marketing to promote the ethical practices and initiatives the company is involved in to create the image of a caring and charitable company.

Without having to change the direction and image of your brand, there are several factors of field marketing to consider in order to maintain sound ethical practice. Get these wrong and you could not only cause irreparable damage to your image, but also harm the people who you should care about most in any business; you customers. Here are 4 important ethical attributes you should insure your campaign coheres to:

Honesty

Honesty is perhaps one of the most important factors in advertising is also one of the easiest to get wrong. Making sure your field marketing schemes don't promise more than your product can deliver is vital in retaining the trust of the public. Whether they're demonstrations, samplers or leaflets, honest claims and product descriptions prevent customer dissatisfaction which can tarnish the reputation of your brand.

Target Market

Some markets are more susceptible to marketing practices than others. Any field marketing campaign should have a specific target market in mind, it is worth being careful that your campaign doesn't target a demographic that is seen to be more vulnerable than others. Companies have got into hot water in the past for aggressively targeting the elderly in face-to-face marketing. By using unethical techniques such as this, it is possible to encourage people to purchase goods or services they may not need or want. This is certainly an unethical practice and should be avoided at all costs when crafting your campaign.

Privacy

With digital media playing an ever more important role in partner to field marketing, many people are becoming increasingly concerned about online privacy. Many companies collect and store personal information such as email addresses and phone numbers for use in their campaigns. Should your campaign collect such data it is of vital importance that you take the proper steps to ensure that the data is secure and not being sold on to others. This is not only correct ethical practice but the law. For more information on what this may mean for you, have a look at the DataProtection Act.

Controversial Marketing

Another ethical aspect to consider when formulating your marketing strategy is whether your scheme will be controversial or offensive. While edgy or 'out there' campaigns can prove to be very successful, it's important they don't cross the line and cause offence; what may be amusing or entertaining for your target demographic could be seen as hurtful or inappropriate to others. One form of controversial marketing that is not only unethical but often illegal is 'negative marketing'. Negative marketing is where companies discredit rival brands or products in order to promote their own. This can be seen as petty and distasteful in the eyes of the public and should not be considered as a viable marketing tactic.

While it is possible to avoid the pitfalls of unethical field marketing on your own, it may prove beneficial to seek the help of a professional marketing company, such as www.cosineuk.com who have built up a vast wealth of experience by managing various campaigns for multiple companies.

 

Why it Pays to Keep Field Marketing Ethical

As I've mentioned before on this blog, I'm a strong believer that Field Marketing, much like any other industry, should be conducted ethically with profits never taking precedent over the treatment of customers, clients or employees. However, it's important to realise that being ethical doesn't necessarily come at the expense of profits - in fact keeping things ethical can actually have a positive effect on the success of field marketing and business in general.

Firstly it's crucial to remember that unethical business practices can be hugely detrimental to your company and its profits. Making big promises might help attract public interest but if you fail to live up to your promises then you risk leaving your customers feeling short-changed, possibly leaving them unwilling to use your business again. Also remember than making promises you know you cannot keep could also land you in hot water with authorities if your customers take issue. Hiding sneaky get-out clauses in your company small print might make sure you are legally covered but it likely won't win you any fans and may attract negative publicity, for example the Tesco iPad blunder I talked about in a previous post.

Field marketers need to take special care not to cross a line and dip their toes into murky, unethical waters. While the face-to-face nature of many field marketing techniques provides a great opportunity for savvy salesmen to persuade would-be customers to take the plunge, there are also important considerations to be made. It could be tempting to use overly-aggressive tactics to get a sale or to bully or trick a young or elderly customer into paying for something they did not want, do not need or do not understand - however such techniques come at a cost. These customers may have given your their money today but they are unlikely to return. Field marketing agencies also have their clients to consider. If a customer feels they have been taken advantage of they will take it up with the client company, something which will not reflect well on the marketing agency in question and could lead to them not being used again or even dropped immediately.

By contrast, doing things by the book and focusing on customer satisfaction can have a hugely positive effect on business. A customer who is pleased with the treatment they have received is far more likely to return and might suggest you to their friends and family. Good word-of-mouth is something that most businesses simply can't afford to ignore. The potential positives of ethical marketing have been highlighted in a report by Ethisphere detailing  the most ethical companies of 2012. Major brands like Microsoft, Starbucks and PepsiCo all appear, showing it is possible to be both ethical and hugely successful.

The fact is that while it is possible to cut corners in pursuit of a quick buck, in the long term it pays for field marketers to keep things honest. In the long term, ethical equals profitable; a fact that should definitely not be ignored.

The Importance of Auditing

Auditing is a technique which can be very helpful to Field Marketing agencies. It is surprising, then, that thorough audits are few and far-between when it comes to extended field-marketing. This article will address the merits of Audits.

An audit is a kind of self-concerned market-analysis, by which a Field Marketer can gauge the impact of a brand or campaign, and use the information to plan their next course of action. It is often divided into two categories: Internal Auditing and External Auditing.
 

An External Audit covers areas outside of the brand/agency's control, such as the economy, public concerns, the competition or even the market in-general. Such areas are important for a brand, because they must shape their campaign to fit-in with the outside world, or face a potential zero, or negative, Return on Investment (ROI). Internal Audits are less-frequent, which is a shame, as the whole idea of an internal audit is to assess one's current situation in the light of any recent campaign. In short, an External Audit is to know where you are going, whereas an Internal Audit is to know where you currently are.

Auditing, situation dependent, works by comparing results to goals (for example, actual quarterly sales to predicted quarterly sales). Often, in marketing, it also involves comparing actions (past or current) to a number of specifications. To simplify, imagine that a big supermarket chain, such as Sainsburys, has asked for an audit of its marketing campaign for a home-brand of cake. You, the Auditor, are an external agent, and thus are most likely to conduct an external audit, given that internal managers (with knowledge of the company structure) would likely be the more efficient choice for an internal audit. Some external auditing tasks require analysis of conduct against things like 'health-and-safety' or 'company policy' to ensure that a campaign does not negatively affect company reputation, as well as distributing a questionnaire amongst consumers asking them for feedback on the campaign. 

Marketing Audit

In the world of marketing, audits are often used to gauge the impact of a particular campaign. I have previously written on the subject of 'lastability' of a marketing campaign: particularly that field marketing tends to have a short-term effect on its target-audience. However, I feel that Auditing could assist in extending the 'shelf-life' of a marketing campaign. One of the reasons for marketing falling-short of targets is its failure to adapt to a changing market. Customer interests are constantly shifting, and marketing firms like Cosine (cosineuk.com/) must occasionally adjust their approach. One part of auditing, customer feedback, is especially helpful in this sense, as it not only garners feedback on the campaign, but also gives organisers an idea of the direction in which consumer interest is heading. Thus, a campaign can be tweaked, and given an artificial 'boost' to its length of appeal.

It is therefore important for Field Marketers to audit themselves, and their clients. It seems like a basic marketing skill, but a surprising number of Field Marketing agencies do not invest nearly enough in the discipline, preventing their campaigns from growing and adapting, and sometimes perhaps saddling the reputation of their clients with 'outdated' or culturally-irrelevant themes. A marketing campaign which grows and changes, cutting out obsolete content, appearing to take into-account consumer concerns, and yet retaining a memorable image is the most ideal response to a thorough audit. Take, for example, tea-distributors 'PG Tips'. The iconic image of the monkey as the company mascot has been maintained throughout recent years. However, due to feedback and animal-rights movements, the company ceased using live monkeys in its adverts, switching to using puppets. 

Compare the following commercials, and consider the implications, had PG Tips not audited their approach.

                                                                      

    

                                                                Circa 1971

                                                                  

 

 

                                                             Circa 2010

Field Marketing and Ethics

Does field marketing need to be conducted ethically? Do ethical and trustworthy business practices provide tangible benefits and is the longterm view prevalent enough to allow this most basic of business practices to shine through in the modern commercial world?

In the profit driven world of commercialism, ethics might seem like the furthest thought from the minds of some executives. When the aim is to make money, the temptation is always there to cut corners, promise lots and give little because by the time the consumers have bought the product or service it's too late, and with some crafty small print, businesses can fall back on that very well worded text to protect it's sales. So long as you're making money you can't lose; Or can you? The world of marketing when it is 'at-a-distance' is one where very few of the decision makers have to confront their customers. But in the word of field marketing or experiential marketing the people at the coal face are right there and visible to potential and existing customers. The opportunity here is only one of how much goodwill can a field marketing campaign generate towrd a brand and for what budget can this be acheived?

Tesco had an opportunity to act in a manner far outstripping the expected corporate stance recently; it was a minor clerical error with a misplaced decimal point, in their online store, that offered new iPads for £50.00 instead of £500.00. When customers flocked to take advantage of what seemed like a brilliant deal Tesco defaulted on all purchases referring to a small print clause stipulating no deal was complete until shipment. The result was that, although they breached their customer's trust, they did save lots of money on iPads not sold at 90% discount, the moment for their chance to step up came and went and the bad press has clung to them .... for a while at least. At the time of the furore there was a golden opportunity, in field marketing terms, to take this mistake and generate incredible amounts of good will and brand loyalty; face to face in every store and collection point across their considerable network of customer facing venues. They didnt choose to go in that direction and for some spectators at least a perceived opportunity was lost.

What about the long term impact of mistreating customers however? 

 

For Tesco, all of those customers who have had their transactions cancelled may very well now take their future business elsewhere. It is not only the potential iPad sales that have been lost, but all of the unhappy customers have told their friends of their mistreatment and the resultant bad feeling generated that may over time add to the negative brand impact. Word has generally been spread across the country that Tesco made a mistake and then failed to honour their 'in-error' commitment. The same goes for field marketing exercises, the wrong impression created on the day can last and reach to un-imaginable heights and lengths of time. Many of us have experienced bored, pushy or just over zealous face to face marketers in-store, on the street and at our homes, this leaves us with a concious and subconcious reaction to logos and brands that can last for a considerable time - longevity can work both ways.

Other successful businesses have proved that an ethical outlook can be very valuable. Customers like to feel appreciated and clients like to deal with agencies they can trust for their field marketing contracts. The success of entrepreneur Richard Branson is testament to this, his Virgin brand is highly prided on providing ethical, trustworthy services and dispelling the image of hard nosed, sharp suited capitalism, perhaps that's why he even has a friendly beard. 

On the other hand however, that's not to say the image of ethics is not open to manipulation. Apple, the globally successful technology company, is a remarkable success, especially popular amongst younger customers who have been known to respond poorly to the image of corporations and capitalism. Apple appear to have recognised this and the laid back, ethical image was one of the many keys to their success; whether the production methods of the company's products were representative of the same ethical approach is, for many, a good question.

Therefore field marketing agencies that can present an ethical approach will be successful, treating customers well and earning their trust for the benefit of long term loyalty. This approach is a longer term view but as the world continues to evolve and customers become more savvy, the more a company or brand can do to foster long term loyalty the better they position themselves for the times ahead.