Corporate Brand Valuation

At some point, even though it is intangible, a corporate brand becomes an asset, and
has a monetary value. When this happens your brand becomes a valuable commodity,
just like property, equipment or inventory. Three of the more common corporate
branding challenges is how to reach that point, how to know when you have, and how to
attribute value.

Brand Communications Coherence

When developing a corporate brand, it’s important that your corporate communications
have a uniform style and tone. The question is, how do you develop the right tone for
your target market, and what can you do to ensure it is carried across all
communications?

Measuring and Metrics

Sending your marketing message out into the world and not measuring its success can
be an expensive and ineffective way to market your brand. The question for many of our
customers is which metrics to measure, and how?
Customer Experience
Big companies spend millions on customer experience. Think of IKEA and their
warehouse experience, Scandinavian esthetic and calling their staff members “co-
workers”, or the chilly whiteness and tangible cool of the Apple Store? Many small
businesses struggle to develop a cohesive brand identity, and that can muddle the
customer experience too.

Sustaining Branding
Perhaps the biggest of the small to mid-sized company corporate branding challenges
is sustainability. Many companies struggle to create a plan that allows them to maintain
their branding and marketing efforts long term.

The Role of Digital Marketing

In a small to mid-sized business arena, digital marketing has, fortunately, created
several solutions to these and other corporate branding challenges. Content marketing
(and often, outsourcing to a content specialist) can help to solve some of the style and
tone issues businesses face.
Digital tools like Google Analytics, Search Console and Alexa.com can all give you facts
and figures about how many people you are reaching, and how responsive they
are. Social media gives brands immediate feedback (although that can also be a double
edged sword when you make a marketing mistake!)
Even consistency is easier when you use digital marketing as a part of your corporate
branding toolbox, because you have the ability to schedule posts and automate many of
the processes involved.
 While digital marketing may not solve all of the challenges related to branding for
smaller and mid-sized companies, it’s certainly a great suite of tools to start with, and it
can definitely help us to compete in a noisy world, full of bigger brands and bigger
marketing budgets.
If you are struggling with branding, tell us about it. Share your branding challenges and
thoughts here.

 Marketplace
Becoming familiar with your marketplace is key. Your brand needs a purpose for that particular
marketplace. The brand must be able to move ahead with a fine tuned vision and the ability to
change and expand within the marketplace.
 Strategy
Building the strategy for the brand needs to incorporate trends such as digital marketing,
programmatic advertising, and cross channel marketing. The brand strategy should be both
internally and externally inspirational. For instance, inspiring employees and partners to continue to
strive for excellence.
 Competition
Keep your competition in your pocket, and always keep your competition guessing what is next up
your sleeve. Staying ahead of trends in the industry, creativity, a strong strategy, and a professional
staff will keep your brand at the top.
 Customers
Using millennials as an example, this generation is 18 – 34 years old and spends up to $2.5
TRILLION annually. But with a mistrust for big businesses, emotions, the desire to share opinions,
and the use of social media to make purchases, the brand targeting millennials must adhere to what
the brand stands for being sure to back-up the brand with actions, not mere words.
 Organisation
A structured, conservative corporation will appreciate a brand with a strong backbone and a clear,
concise message whereas a new, sheik restaurant will appreciate a brand that is flowing, fun, and
ever-changing. Don’t confuse the brand and have the end result being a frustrated customer.

 Financial challenges