In particularly difficult moments for brand management, with marketing and communication budgets that are significantly affected by the economic crisis, the Marketing Association has led a project that has just concluded, focused on updating this topic and the learning acquired by the best practices.

During the last quarter, the meetings of two working groups, led respectively by Carlos Marina and Gonzalo Brujo, were held, around “the management of the brand within the organizations” and “the brand towards the outside of those organizations”, reaching the conclusions and recommendations that were presented yesterday in CaixaForum. Its presentation to professional media and partners of the mkt Association was followed by a discussion table coordinated by Jose Luis Navarro, who participated from the beginning in the coordination of this ambitious project.

The working groups were formed by marketing, communication and CSR professionals, consultants, etc. who are mkt corporate partners and who have extensive market experience around the brand, as the most important intangible of the companies. This accumulation of real-life practice of many types of markets, is what gives maximum validity to the work of the two groups and their conclusions.

The operational recommendations that were raised are diverse, relevant and some are quite innovative. Mention among others: coherence and consistency, the strategic assessment of the brand, its consideration in the agenda of Boards of Directors, marketing and cross-brand in the structure of companies, the possible figure of corporate brand director, portfolio optimization, strategies in the digital environment, proximity via more communication, creation of a strategy for the brand, mix of online and point of sale, …

All these ideas, their development and monographic articles will be the object of a publication that will be published by the Marketing Association in September.

Consulations: The real market experience for a better empowerment of the Brand

The process of creating Brand / Corporate Reputation of a company must have each of the following elements:

The content, the principles

• It must be a strategic process, developed in a participatory manner, where all the stakeholders of the company are involved both in its conception and in its dissemination.
• Among the various “stakeholders”: shareholders, suppliers, media, customers, institutions, etc., the employees are the interest group to take more into account.
• The profile of those who work in the company must be that of “Marketing we are all”. To do this, we must create channels for active participation of employees, train them in the values ​​and principles of the brand and compensate them in relation to the creation and maintenance of the same.
• This effort must be sustained and honest, consistent with the values ​​and principles of the company.

The way to do it

• The plan must be formalized, “written on paper.”
• You have to establish continuous elements of measurement, to be able to demonstrate that the Corporate Brand is worthwhile.
• It must occupy a preferential place in the agenda of the Boards of Directors, of the Management Committees of the companies.
• It is necessary to appoint a Director / executive / responsible for the Corporate Brand, with an independent budget and a Committee of Corporate Reputation, transversal, multifunctional (Marketing, Sales, HR, Financial, Production, etc.).