By Andrew Blum*
Branding isn’t just purely about your name or your company’s name recognition. Branding now consists of a mix of PR, internal communications, social and digital media, your website, logos and advertising, and more.
The best branding method? Make your message consistent.
Every time you communicate in different mediums and channels, your message should have the same ideas. Although you are targeting different audiences, the bottom line is you want them to understand who you are and what you do.
Of course, there will be some differences, such as what you might tell employees versus what you want to say to the media or stockholders of a public company.
The best way to sync your brand with all communications is to make sure your executive, design and communication teams are all on the same page.
Does your website convey the same underlying message as press releases? Do your press releases convey the same messages as your social media channels?
Does your logo mesh with your promotional copy or advertising?
How you describe your company in marketing materials should be consistent with descriptions in PR materials, but with a different style of wording.
These questions are important to consider in many branding circumstances, such as producing an ongoing branding campaign, when you are tweaking an already-existing campaign, and especially in rebranding.
To ensure that everything is consistent, you might want to assign one or two people to be final arbiters of your messages so they maintain consistency. It wouldn’t hurt to have someone review your materials from time to time. You might be surprised to see there are inconsistencies that have gotten through.
One last thing to consider: hiring a branding agency can be very helpful, especially if you’re rebranding.
*Andrew Blum is a PR consultant and media trainer and principal of AJB Communications. He has directed PR for professional services and financial services firms, NGOs, agencies and other clients. As a PR executive, and formerly as a journalist, he has been involved on both sides of the media aisle in some of the most media intensive crises of the past 25 years. Contact him at ajbcomms@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter: @ajbcomms
