The Fast Track to Brand Destruction
Make it all about you and your customers will walk
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
Early in my career, I worked as the advertising manager for a global manufacturer of agricultural machinery. It was a great period in my life and I thoroughly enjoyed working with the farmers and ranchers who feed the world. As part of my job, I attended numerous trade shows and conventions where I observed the business style of companies such as John Deere, Pioneer and Monsanto. Most are masters who passionately live and protect their long-earned brand positions. There were others though, which amazed the industry with their arrogance and stupidity. One in particular, which I will not name, stands out in my memory.
We are…
Founded in the 1950’s, this company was the dream of a man with a unique idea, a passion for customer service and a huge heart. Like the proverbial “better mousetrap,” his product was a piece of tillage equipment which did a much better job of turning soil than most competitive products. That wasn’t the whole story, though. This man was a brilliant marketer and cheerleader. His sales and customer service team, calling on farm machinery dealers, was trained not only on the features and benefits of the product; they were also taught his artful style of growing relationships.
Dealers and farmers were not just customers to him, they were friends who were honored and cherished. The product price, a bit higher than competitors, was never an issue. Quality, customer service and the company’s stellar brand image made it the product to own.
The company team, including sales people, engineers, factory workers and customer service folks, was taught that “we” included everyone who touched the product, including the dealers and customers. The message was that “We’re all in this together.” The company’s advertising and brochures were brilliantly conceived. Not only did they effectively tell the product story, they almost always included images of the farmer, dealer and company representative, strongly supporting the service and support message.
Over the years, the company grew and its brand was the envy of the tillage equipment industry.
I am…
In the late 1970’s, something changed. On one fateful day, the founder and owner suffered a fatal heart attack while working at his desk. Although his leadership had been skillfully conceived and executed, he had made one very serious mistake. He thought he would live forever and failed to develop a transition plan that would protect his company and legacy. As a result, the company was suddenly under the control of his young inexperienced son, a thirty-something playboy who loved to party and enjoy his father’s financial success. His personal reputation was as a spoiled and arrogant brat.
In an attempt to shore up industry confidence, Junior (he really was a Junior) hit the road, attending every trade show and conference in order to reassure farmers and dealers that all was well because he was in charge. However, his flamboyant lifestyle and big ego did not play well. He was nothing like his father and he quickly showed that he loved to be the center of attention rather than directing attention to the entire team and their loyal customers.
In a poorly-conceived move, he directed their ad agency to produce a series of magazine ads featuring his photo. His goal was to transfer his father’s personal brand to himself and to show customers that the family was still at the helm. In his photo, he was dressed in a three-piece suit and groomed to the hilt. He looked nothing like his customers who were people of the soil; hard-working and modest. Customers immediately began making comparisons. “He’s sure not like his Dad.” The agency had warned him that this was a bad move. They suggested that reassurance would come from ads that showed a continuation of the values and customer service they had come to expect.
Like this agency, the Brand Acceleration team works alongside our clients, carefully considering how each move will affect their brand. The key is to not only consider what our client has to offer but to carefully craft a message that reflects the desires of the audience. Like the ads featuring Junior, if the message is not believable, the brand will be harmed. In these days of iPads, social media and clever web sites, it’s very easy to lose sight of audience expectations, focusing instead on the beautiful package rather than the all-important content.
Over the course of three years, Junior made a series of desperate errors, from poor product direction and downgrades in quality to several deadly financial moves. At the end of it all, he eventually sold the struggling company to a large conglomerate which was on a spree, buying up weakened companies like his. Junior still managed to walkway a millionaire but his father’s dream was over. The factory was shut down and the production of products was moved to another state. Over two hundred people lost their jobs and the small community was severely harmed for several years to come.
What’s the point?
What Junior was never taught was that even though his family’s name was on the letterhead, it was not the family that made it great. It was his father’s overwhelming passion for conveying a vision of excellence through his team and to the customers. That was the fuel that grew it from a dream to a raging success.
It’s not about you!
Through good times and bad, company owners and managers must remember that their success is not about them. Their only chance for long-term success and survival is through a gut-wrenching, agonizing, passionate focus on the one thing that makes a company great, customers!
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction and real estate.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
The Lost Art of Appreciation
A simple “thank you” makes all the difference
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
As we approach Thanksgiving 2010, I can’t help but consider the many people whom have played an important part in what has been a very good year for me and Brand Acceleration. Like most of us though, I am often lax when it comes to expressing my appreciation.
As parents, we teach our children to always say “please,” “thank you” and “you’re welcome,” but I sometimes think we do a poor job of teaching them to truly understand and appreciate the importance of others.
When I was a child, it was very common for people to write thank-you cards and notes whenever someone did something nice. Of course, that was a time when letter writing was the norm. I remember watching my mother sit down to write letters to her friends and family members. It gave her and them great joy. Today, things are quite different. In the fast-paced, 140 character society in which we live, we’ve eliminated many of these formalities. A heart-felt thank-you letter has given way to a text or FaceBook message saying, simply, “THX.”
None of us succeeds in business or life entirely of our own doing. We get ahead as a team, not as individuals. In my life, I can easily identify the sources of my joy, and I am so grateful for what has been a wonderful year. To our employees, customers, families, vendors and many friends, I say thank you.
You are my blessings.
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction and real estate.
A simple “thank you” makes all the difference
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
As we approach Thanksgiving 2010, I can’t help but consider the many people whom have played an important part in what has been a very good year for me and Brand Acceleration. Like most of us though, I am often lax when it comes to expressing my appreciation.
As parents, we teach our children to always say “please,” “thank you” and “you’re welcome,” but I sometimes think we do a poor job of teaching them to truly understand and appreciate the importance of others.
When I was a child, it was very common for people to write thank-you cards and notes whenever someone did something nice. Of course, that was a time when letter writing was the norm. I remember watching my mother sit down to write letters to her friends and family members. It gave her and them great joy. Today, things are quite different. In the fast-paced, 140 character society in which we live, we’ve eliminated many of these formalities. A heart-felt thank-you letter has given way to a text or FaceBook message saying, simply, “THX.”
None of us succeeds in business or life entirely of our own doing. We get ahead as a team, not as individuals. In my life, I can easily identify the sources of my joy, and I am so grateful for what has been a wonderful year. To our employees, customers, families, vendors and many friends, I say thank you.
You are my blessings.
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction and real estate.
Monday, November 8, 2010
How Badly Do You Want Success?
Are you fully committed?
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
I recently had lunch with a young man who wanted advice about starting a business. He’s a very talented individual with a great work ethic. He has a job working for someone else but his long-time dream is to be self employed. Many have that same dream but few really understand what goes into starting and growing a business.
As a business owner, I am often approached for such advice. I’ve started, stopped, bought, and sold several companies. I’ve been self employed nearly half my career. I guess you could call me a habitual entrepreneur. It’s just in my blood and I love the process of creating and growing a business. I’ve made many mistakes and learned countless lessons along the way.
For the sake of clarity, when I talk about self employment, I am not referring to freelancing or projects taken on to fill a financial void while searching for a job. I’m talking about a real company – full-time self employment.
Today’s challenging economy has spat a large number of very talented people onto the job market and many have considered self employment as the next step in the career path. Before starting a business, there are several questions that must be answered. Only by clearly understanding where you stand on each should you move into the world of self employment.
Why do you want to be self employed?
People start companies for several reasons but the most common is the need for a job. Big mistake! Most new companies require at least 1 ½ to 2 years to become self-sustaining. If all the owner desires is a job, he or she had better have the patience, hustle, and resources to ride out this crucial startup period.
How far are you willing to bend?
There will be times, whether you’re self employed or work for someone else, when you will have to work with people you simply don’t like. As a business owner, you have the ability to decide which employees, vendors, and clients to allow into your circle.
We once had a series of meetings with a construction industry supply company which had expressed an interest in signing Brand Acceleration as its marketing communications agency. The discussions went well until the third meeting. As is often the case, when you allow someone to speak long enough, their true personality will eventually be revealed. At that point in time, the company owner/president became belligerent, not only with us but with virtually every one of his staffers. Now, we’ve worked with difficult people before but this guy was rude, condescending, and just downright abusive to every person in the room.
When I started Brand Acceleration, I vowed to myself that I would not work with any person I didn’t like, nor would I ask anyone on my team to work with such a person. At the end of that meeting, I politely declined the business, telling the owner that it just didn’t appear to be a good fit for us. As a business owner, you need to know how far you’re willing to be pushed, even if you desperately need the business.
Are you up to managing the details?
Companies often fail because they outgrow the ability of the owner to manage the details of running a business. For example, many restaurants are started by people who consider themselves great cooks, just to die because the owner is overwhelmed by the minutia of running a business. Staffing, accounting, taxes, insurance, leasing, equipment, and other details are more than some people can handle. At some point in time, it stops being fun and the business shuts down. If you’re not up to the daily grind of business ownership, don’t jump in. You’ll regret it.
Have a passion for excellence
As a business grows, the owner needs to remain committed to providing excellent products and/or service. You must be able to do this while managing the details and growing the company. The moment you turn your back on your clients and begin cutting corners, you’re doomed to fail.
Surround yourself with great people
Over the years, my most trusted mentors, some former employers, taught me to surround myself with great people and then get out of their way. This applies not only to employees but also to suppliers and vendors. I’ve found that they make me and my company look great by providing excellent deliverables to our clients. It’s also important to swiftly remove underperformers. Regardless of how great the team is, your customers will remember the poor service resulting from the actions of the one person who dropped the ball. As the business owner, you must build, monitor, and make changes in order to protect your company brand.
Always offer and demand loyalty
The glue that holds the Brand Acceleration team together is the loyalty and caring that we share for one another. Our clients, employees, and vendors are our friends, too. We care for one another and function much as a family.
How badly do you want success?
One of the biggest things that budding business owners fail to consider is the amount of work they’ll have to do. The idea that self employment means you won’t have to work as hard is pure fantasy. You’ll work harder than you’ve ever worked in your life. As a business owner, you can forget the concept of a 40-hour work week. Sixty or eighty hours may be more realistic, especially during the startup phase. You’re going to live and breathe that business during your every waking moment.
I recently saw a YouTube video of Mr. Eric Thomas, Advantage Director at Michigan State University. In his Secrets of Success video series, he asks the question, “How bad do you want your dream?” In it, he dramatically demonstrates the importance of the passion, desire, and commitment required to succeed at anything, including self employment. This is one of several of his speeches on YouTube.
Are you fully committed?
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
I recently had lunch with a young man who wanted advice about starting a business. He’s a very talented individual with a great work ethic. He has a job working for someone else but his long-time dream is to be self employed. Many have that same dream but few really understand what goes into starting and growing a business.
As a business owner, I am often approached for such advice. I’ve started, stopped, bought, and sold several companies. I’ve been self employed nearly half my career. I guess you could call me a habitual entrepreneur. It’s just in my blood and I love the process of creating and growing a business. I’ve made many mistakes and learned countless lessons along the way.
For the sake of clarity, when I talk about self employment, I am not referring to freelancing or projects taken on to fill a financial void while searching for a job. I’m talking about a real company – full-time self employment.
Today’s challenging economy has spat a large number of very talented people onto the job market and many have considered self employment as the next step in the career path. Before starting a business, there are several questions that must be answered. Only by clearly understanding where you stand on each should you move into the world of self employment.
Why do you want to be self employed?
People start companies for several reasons but the most common is the need for a job. Big mistake! Most new companies require at least 1 ½ to 2 years to become self-sustaining. If all the owner desires is a job, he or she had better have the patience, hustle, and resources to ride out this crucial startup period.
How far are you willing to bend?
There will be times, whether you’re self employed or work for someone else, when you will have to work with people you simply don’t like. As a business owner, you have the ability to decide which employees, vendors, and clients to allow into your circle.
We once had a series of meetings with a construction industry supply company which had expressed an interest in signing Brand Acceleration as its marketing communications agency. The discussions went well until the third meeting. As is often the case, when you allow someone to speak long enough, their true personality will eventually be revealed. At that point in time, the company owner/president became belligerent, not only with us but with virtually every one of his staffers. Now, we’ve worked with difficult people before but this guy was rude, condescending, and just downright abusive to every person in the room.
When I started Brand Acceleration, I vowed to myself that I would not work with any person I didn’t like, nor would I ask anyone on my team to work with such a person. At the end of that meeting, I politely declined the business, telling the owner that it just didn’t appear to be a good fit for us. As a business owner, you need to know how far you’re willing to be pushed, even if you desperately need the business.
Are you up to managing the details?
Companies often fail because they outgrow the ability of the owner to manage the details of running a business. For example, many restaurants are started by people who consider themselves great cooks, just to die because the owner is overwhelmed by the minutia of running a business. Staffing, accounting, taxes, insurance, leasing, equipment, and other details are more than some people can handle. At some point in time, it stops being fun and the business shuts down. If you’re not up to the daily grind of business ownership, don’t jump in. You’ll regret it.
Have a passion for excellence
As a business grows, the owner needs to remain committed to providing excellent products and/or service. You must be able to do this while managing the details and growing the company. The moment you turn your back on your clients and begin cutting corners, you’re doomed to fail.
Surround yourself with great people
Over the years, my most trusted mentors, some former employers, taught me to surround myself with great people and then get out of their way. This applies not only to employees but also to suppliers and vendors. I’ve found that they make me and my company look great by providing excellent deliverables to our clients. It’s also important to swiftly remove underperformers. Regardless of how great the team is, your customers will remember the poor service resulting from the actions of the one person who dropped the ball. As the business owner, you must build, monitor, and make changes in order to protect your company brand.
Always offer and demand loyalty
The glue that holds the Brand Acceleration team together is the loyalty and caring that we share for one another. Our clients, employees, and vendors are our friends, too. We care for one another and function much as a family.
How badly do you want success?
One of the biggest things that budding business owners fail to consider is the amount of work they’ll have to do. The idea that self employment means you won’t have to work as hard is pure fantasy. You’ll work harder than you’ve ever worked in your life. As a business owner, you can forget the concept of a 40-hour work week. Sixty or eighty hours may be more realistic, especially during the startup phase. You’re going to live and breathe that business during your every waking moment.
I recently saw a YouTube video of Mr. Eric Thomas, Advantage Director at Michigan State University. In his Secrets of Success video series, he asks the question, “How bad do you want your dream?” In it, he dramatically demonstrates the importance of the passion, desire, and commitment required to succeed at anything, including self employment. This is one of several of his speeches on YouTube.
Click here to take a look.
To my young friend, here’s what I said: If, after considering these very serious questions, you still have a burning desire to start your own company, then you may just have what it takes to succeed. Develop a well written business plan, establish a team of advisors, get your financing together, and then go for it.
I wish you much success and personal satisfaction.
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
We Don’t Need a Babysitter
Americans are demanding a new approach
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
When I was a child, my brother and I were thrilled at the idea that our mom and dad would go out and leave us at home without a babysitter. “We’ll be okay,” we would say, “We can take care of ourselves.” Part of the maturing process is a desire for independence, a chance to grow, stretch, and show what we can accomplish when given a chance.
As a parent, I remember doing everything possible to teach my daughter to be independent, to grow and take measured risks. Today, she is one of the most mature and independent young individuals I know. While she works well with others, she is also willing to step up, take the lead and be responsible for the outcome.
As we approach a very important election, it’s interesting to watch politicians and constituents wrestle with the “What are you going to do for me?” mentality. At a time when federal government spending and the national debt have grown far beyond sustainability, it seems the American people are beginning to realize that spending cuts are inevitable. They are absolutely necessary for survival. The challenge is deciding what to cut.
A dependent class
Over the decades, many have become dependent on the government to take care of them. As a result, there seems to be an inability (or unwillingness) to make even the most basic decisions without first consulting the government (law) to determine how or if something can or can’t be done. We’ve become a paralyzed and dependent class.
I recently saw a news story about an experiment that was conducted to see how people would react to an injured person in a public place. A man pretended to be injured in a railroad station, stretched out lifelessly on the platform to see how other passengers would react. Countless people walked by, looked at him, and then walked away. No one offered help. Why?
When they were asked why they did nothing, several reasons were cited. First, most people thought the railroad officials would call for help. Next, they thought it was a police issue – none of their business. Many were afraid of the liability if their actions were wrong. Finally, a few said they just didn’t have the time. The point is that we’ve become a dependent class, afraid of taking even the most basic responsibility to help ourselves or others. We expect someone else to handle just about everything.
The times, they are a changin’
Today, with a lingering recession and a federal debt that has spiraled out of control, even the dependent class has begun demanding that the federal government go on a diet. They’re saying it’s time for them to back off and stop spending money we don’t have. For the first time since the 1920’s, Americans are demanding that the federal budget be reduced, dramatically. The difficult part though, is that we’ll need to take more personal responsibility. For example, we’ll need to be smart enough to get a flu shot and cover our mouths when we cough without waiting to hear a government funded ad telling us to do so. Duh!
Just as many families, due to a job loss, have had to learn to live without restaurant dining, vacations, expanded cable television service and other luxuries, our bloated federal government is being told by voters that it, too, will have to cut back.
How will we survive?
Like an addict who struggles to break an addiction to alcohol or drugs, Americans are indicating that they are ready to break the addiction to government. I’ve been amazed to see people do whatever it takes to pay the bills, reduce their debt, and provide for themselves and their families. They’re showing that they can survive without government dependency.
Having started several businesses over my career, I’ve learned that when left alone, businesses will grow, thrive, expand, and hire. We often hear about all of the money that is sitting on the sidelines, just waiting on a sign that the economy is improving. I believe, and I think most business owners would agree, that investors and employers are waiting to see which direction our elected officials will take the country. Will they raise taxes and expand government or will they cut spending and taxes and trust the American people to jump start the economy of the greatest job producing engine ever seen on the face of the planet? Personally, if I had to choose between government babysitters or the ingenuity and work ethic of the American, people, I’d choose the latter.
Just as we did when we were children, people are saying, “We’re big boys and girls. We don’t need a babysitter. Just get out of our way.”
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Americans are demanding a new approach
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
When I was a child, my brother and I were thrilled at the idea that our mom and dad would go out and leave us at home without a babysitter. “We’ll be okay,” we would say, “We can take care of ourselves.” Part of the maturing process is a desire for independence, a chance to grow, stretch, and show what we can accomplish when given a chance.
As a parent, I remember doing everything possible to teach my daughter to be independent, to grow and take measured risks. Today, she is one of the most mature and independent young individuals I know. While she works well with others, she is also willing to step up, take the lead and be responsible for the outcome.
As we approach a very important election, it’s interesting to watch politicians and constituents wrestle with the “What are you going to do for me?” mentality. At a time when federal government spending and the national debt have grown far beyond sustainability, it seems the American people are beginning to realize that spending cuts are inevitable. They are absolutely necessary for survival. The challenge is deciding what to cut.
A dependent class
Over the decades, many have become dependent on the government to take care of them. As a result, there seems to be an inability (or unwillingness) to make even the most basic decisions without first consulting the government (law) to determine how or if something can or can’t be done. We’ve become a paralyzed and dependent class.
I recently saw a news story about an experiment that was conducted to see how people would react to an injured person in a public place. A man pretended to be injured in a railroad station, stretched out lifelessly on the platform to see how other passengers would react. Countless people walked by, looked at him, and then walked away. No one offered help. Why?
When they were asked why they did nothing, several reasons were cited. First, most people thought the railroad officials would call for help. Next, they thought it was a police issue – none of their business. Many were afraid of the liability if their actions were wrong. Finally, a few said they just didn’t have the time. The point is that we’ve become a dependent class, afraid of taking even the most basic responsibility to help ourselves or others. We expect someone else to handle just about everything.
The times, they are a changin’
Today, with a lingering recession and a federal debt that has spiraled out of control, even the dependent class has begun demanding that the federal government go on a diet. They’re saying it’s time for them to back off and stop spending money we don’t have. For the first time since the 1920’s, Americans are demanding that the federal budget be reduced, dramatically. The difficult part though, is that we’ll need to take more personal responsibility. For example, we’ll need to be smart enough to get a flu shot and cover our mouths when we cough without waiting to hear a government funded ad telling us to do so. Duh!
Just as many families, due to a job loss, have had to learn to live without restaurant dining, vacations, expanded cable television service and other luxuries, our bloated federal government is being told by voters that it, too, will have to cut back.
How will we survive?
Like an addict who struggles to break an addiction to alcohol or drugs, Americans are indicating that they are ready to break the addiction to government. I’ve been amazed to see people do whatever it takes to pay the bills, reduce their debt, and provide for themselves and their families. They’re showing that they can survive without government dependency.
Having started several businesses over my career, I’ve learned that when left alone, businesses will grow, thrive, expand, and hire. We often hear about all of the money that is sitting on the sidelines, just waiting on a sign that the economy is improving. I believe, and I think most business owners would agree, that investors and employers are waiting to see which direction our elected officials will take the country. Will they raise taxes and expand government or will they cut spending and taxes and trust the American people to jump start the economy of the greatest job producing engine ever seen on the face of the planet? Personally, if I had to choose between government babysitters or the ingenuity and work ethic of the American, people, I’d choose the latter.
Just as we did when we were children, people are saying, “We’re big boys and girls. We don’t need a babysitter. Just get out of our way.”
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Get Out of the Way, Dr. Jekyll
Or, are you Mr. Hyde?
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
Something that has often puzzled me is when a company of community spends vast time and money to hire great people or vendors and then seeks to change them. What the heck is that about?
Every organization dreams of adding a real winner to the team, a person who will outperform any and all previous records. They put the word out that they’re looking for a killer salesperson, manager, economic developer, vendor (you name it) to take them to new levels of success.
They glean resumes, scour references, and put candidates through the interview wringer in order to discover Mr. or Ms. Glorious. A winner! After a few days or weeks on the job, they discover that Mr. Glorious does things a little differently.
I once met just such a winner. He was known industry-wide for achieving incredible sales and division growth. He was young, brash, aggressive, and allowed nothing to stop him. He showed up at the office around ten, took long and expensive lunches (with clients), played golf almost daily, and soon racked up sales that were three times higher than any other salesperson. The company president loved his sales but hated his style.
The “old man” was a by-the-book traditionalist who made it his mission to reign in Mr. Glorious. He expected employees to be at their desk, working, by eight and to never, ever, leave before five. He was obsessed with getting every minute of work out of every employee. The idea of paying for unproductive time made him crazy.
The office was full of eight-to-five drones who plodded along, as expected, putting in their time, and accomplishing very little. They followed the rules, did what they were told, kept quiet about any disagreements and probably took their frustrations home to their families. You see, the company president was notorious for using his authority and strong personality to mold employees and vendors into nice, neat clones of himself. As a result, few new ideas came out of the company. Not only was the place only mildly productive, it had become boring.
Long story made short, Mr. Glorious soon moved on. His personality and work style were far too different and he wasn’t about to change. But the story didn’t end there. A few years later, the company was purchased by a larger competitor that was buying up smaller companies in a massive acquisition spree. At the helm of the buyout giant was, you guessed it, Mr. Glorious. His company was widely known as the place to work. There were few rules. The employees functioned as a team and they had fun in what was a very unique, yet functional, workplace.
It happens to vendors, too!
If you’re a regular Rants reader, you are aware of my position on brands. You can’t change them by getting a new logo. If your company or community has a bad reputation (brand), a new logo won’t change a thing. You’ll simply become a bad company or community with a new logo.
I once saw a Fortune 500 company hire a respected marketing communications firm and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for a new logo. The brand team viewed countless concepts. Some were very conservative and others were wildly unique. They wanted to modernize the company image and position it as the cutting edge leader they believed it to be.
After almost a year, a decision was made. The CEO, who had not been part of the process, chose to stay with the same logo the company had used for over a century. The brand manager, under massive pressure to explain what he was thinking when he suggested a new logo, fired the agency.
Today, the company is stuck in a rut, globally viewed as old, slow and vulnerable to takeover. It does great work but a musty cloud of age hangs over its future.
It takes a visionary!
Companies and communities want the excitement and rewards of being at the center of a flurry of success. The problem is that their leadership is often unwilling to do the things required to create that success. Leaders must be willing to take risks and break with tradition in order to create the kind of success and excitement they desire.
Wildly successful organizations are almost always led by a top executive who has a vision and courage to make bold moves. He or she is often seen as a bit odd, maybe even nutty. My experience however, is that this type of undisciplined visionary will make amazing things happen. They are willing to be different, refusing to follow the crowd.
Here are just a few business visionaries who became famous for their risk taking tendencies and courage. Each grew massive empires and created countless jobs:
Henry Ford (Ford Motors)
Sam Walton (Wal-Mart)
Oprah Winfrey (Harpo)
Bill Gates (Microsoft)
Steve Jobs (Apple)
Meg Whitman (eBay)
Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)
Jeff Bezos (Amazon)
They were not afraid to be different. They were notoriously odd. Their friends, colleagues and the business community labeled them as dreamers. They were privately and publicly scoffed. But, they didn’t stop. They sought partners and employees who were also different.
Are you such a visionary? Are you willing to be different?
When are you going to get started?
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Or, are you Mr. Hyde?
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
Something that has often puzzled me is when a company of community spends vast time and money to hire great people or vendors and then seeks to change them. What the heck is that about?
Every organization dreams of adding a real winner to the team, a person who will outperform any and all previous records. They put the word out that they’re looking for a killer salesperson, manager, economic developer, vendor (you name it) to take them to new levels of success.
They glean resumes, scour references, and put candidates through the interview wringer in order to discover Mr. or Ms. Glorious. A winner! After a few days or weeks on the job, they discover that Mr. Glorious does things a little differently.
I once met just such a winner. He was known industry-wide for achieving incredible sales and division growth. He was young, brash, aggressive, and allowed nothing to stop him. He showed up at the office around ten, took long and expensive lunches (with clients), played golf almost daily, and soon racked up sales that were three times higher than any other salesperson. The company president loved his sales but hated his style.
The “old man” was a by-the-book traditionalist who made it his mission to reign in Mr. Glorious. He expected employees to be at their desk, working, by eight and to never, ever, leave before five. He was obsessed with getting every minute of work out of every employee. The idea of paying for unproductive time made him crazy.
The office was full of eight-to-five drones who plodded along, as expected, putting in their time, and accomplishing very little. They followed the rules, did what they were told, kept quiet about any disagreements and probably took their frustrations home to their families. You see, the company president was notorious for using his authority and strong personality to mold employees and vendors into nice, neat clones of himself. As a result, few new ideas came out of the company. Not only was the place only mildly productive, it had become boring.
Long story made short, Mr. Glorious soon moved on. His personality and work style were far too different and he wasn’t about to change. But the story didn’t end there. A few years later, the company was purchased by a larger competitor that was buying up smaller companies in a massive acquisition spree. At the helm of the buyout giant was, you guessed it, Mr. Glorious. His company was widely known as the place to work. There were few rules. The employees functioned as a team and they had fun in what was a very unique, yet functional, workplace.
It happens to vendors, too!
If you’re a regular Rants reader, you are aware of my position on brands. You can’t change them by getting a new logo. If your company or community has a bad reputation (brand), a new logo won’t change a thing. You’ll simply become a bad company or community with a new logo.
I once saw a Fortune 500 company hire a respected marketing communications firm and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for a new logo. The brand team viewed countless concepts. Some were very conservative and others were wildly unique. They wanted to modernize the company image and position it as the cutting edge leader they believed it to be.
After almost a year, a decision was made. The CEO, who had not been part of the process, chose to stay with the same logo the company had used for over a century. The brand manager, under massive pressure to explain what he was thinking when he suggested a new logo, fired the agency.
Today, the company is stuck in a rut, globally viewed as old, slow and vulnerable to takeover. It does great work but a musty cloud of age hangs over its future.
It takes a visionary!
Companies and communities want the excitement and rewards of being at the center of a flurry of success. The problem is that their leadership is often unwilling to do the things required to create that success. Leaders must be willing to take risks and break with tradition in order to create the kind of success and excitement they desire.
Wildly successful organizations are almost always led by a top executive who has a vision and courage to make bold moves. He or she is often seen as a bit odd, maybe even nutty. My experience however, is that this type of undisciplined visionary will make amazing things happen. They are willing to be different, refusing to follow the crowd.
Here are just a few business visionaries who became famous for their risk taking tendencies and courage. Each grew massive empires and created countless jobs:
Henry Ford (Ford Motors)
Sam Walton (Wal-Mart)
Oprah Winfrey (Harpo)
Bill Gates (Microsoft)
Steve Jobs (Apple)
Meg Whitman (eBay)
Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)
Jeff Bezos (Amazon)
They were not afraid to be different. They were notoriously odd. Their friends, colleagues and the business community labeled them as dreamers. They were privately and publicly scoffed. But, they didn’t stop. They sought partners and employees who were also different.
Are you such a visionary? Are you willing to be different?
When are you going to get started?
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Put Your Tools to Work
Maximize the effectiveness of your brochures, web site and other marketing communications tactics.
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
When I was a child, I had a friend whose Dad was a tool fanatic. He loved to take people to his garage where he could show off his collection of tools. He had a tool for every imaginable project. In fact, it wasn’t uncommon to see him and a buddy hangin’ out in his garage, cold beer in hand, talking about – tools. He had hundreds of them and knew how to use every one. Like Tim, the Tool Man, Taylor of the 90’s sitcom, Home Improvement, he was a tinkerer. He loved to build, fix, replace, improve or overhaul just about anything.
In my business, marketing communications, we use tools, too. Such tactics as brochures, web sites, logos, videos, and presentations are just a few tools that we regularly produce for our clients. However, beautifully produced tools have limited effectiveness if not put to use in powerful ways.
Let’s explore just a few ways to maximize your investment in marketing communications tools:
Ramp up your web site
From the outset, it’s important to understand that web sites are passive. They don’t reach out to an audience, they don’t make calls, and they are only viewed if someone either has the web address or a search leads them to it.
At Brand Acceleration, we consider a web site to be a destination. Our goal, as marketing communications experts, is to counsel our clients about ways to drive visitors to their web site. There are countless ways to do that. Once a well-produced web site is in place, a series of tactics should be considered to grow brand awareness and encourage audiences to visit your web site. Advertising, direct mail, e-mail marketing and other tools, strategically planned, are very effective.
Brochures – Make them work!
Each year, we develop numerous brochures. Beautifully designed and well written, they effectively communicate key messages to highly-targeted audiences. The question we always ask clients is, “How are you going to use them?” Most often, they are to be used as a leave-behind, handed to a prospect at a meeting, or distributed at a trade show.
Consider other options, though. A schedule of direct mailings can successfully grow brand awareness, clarify your position, and drive recipients to your web site.
There’s more!
E-mail marketing is a powerful and very effective tool. In addition to being reasonably inexpensive, it is portable, meaning the recipient can read it on his or her i-Phone or BlackBerry. It can also include links that connect recipients to your web site.
When stocking your tool box with such items as those listed here, you should give serious consideration to your overall communications strategy. How they work together, how they encourage web visits, and how they position your brand are all very serious considerations.
So, go to your garage (supply closet), inventory your tools and ask yourself this very serious question:
“How can I put these to work today?”
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Maximize the effectiveness of your brochures, web site and other marketing communications tactics.
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
When I was a child, I had a friend whose Dad was a tool fanatic. He loved to take people to his garage where he could show off his collection of tools. He had a tool for every imaginable project. In fact, it wasn’t uncommon to see him and a buddy hangin’ out in his garage, cold beer in hand, talking about – tools. He had hundreds of them and knew how to use every one. Like Tim, the Tool Man, Taylor of the 90’s sitcom, Home Improvement, he was a tinkerer. He loved to build, fix, replace, improve or overhaul just about anything.
In my business, marketing communications, we use tools, too. Such tactics as brochures, web sites, logos, videos, and presentations are just a few tools that we regularly produce for our clients. However, beautifully produced tools have limited effectiveness if not put to use in powerful ways.
Let’s explore just a few ways to maximize your investment in marketing communications tools:
Ramp up your web site
From the outset, it’s important to understand that web sites are passive. They don’t reach out to an audience, they don’t make calls, and they are only viewed if someone either has the web address or a search leads them to it.
At Brand Acceleration, we consider a web site to be a destination. Our goal, as marketing communications experts, is to counsel our clients about ways to drive visitors to their web site. There are countless ways to do that. Once a well-produced web site is in place, a series of tactics should be considered to grow brand awareness and encourage audiences to visit your web site. Advertising, direct mail, e-mail marketing and other tools, strategically planned, are very effective.
Brochures – Make them work!
Each year, we develop numerous brochures. Beautifully designed and well written, they effectively communicate key messages to highly-targeted audiences. The question we always ask clients is, “How are you going to use them?” Most often, they are to be used as a leave-behind, handed to a prospect at a meeting, or distributed at a trade show.
Consider other options, though. A schedule of direct mailings can successfully grow brand awareness, clarify your position, and drive recipients to your web site.
There’s more!
E-mail marketing is a powerful and very effective tool. In addition to being reasonably inexpensive, it is portable, meaning the recipient can read it on his or her i-Phone or BlackBerry. It can also include links that connect recipients to your web site.
When stocking your tool box with such items as those listed here, you should give serious consideration to your overall communications strategy. How they work together, how they encourage web visits, and how they position your brand are all very serious considerations.
So, go to your garage (supply closet), inventory your tools and ask yourself this very serious question:
“How can I put these to work today?”
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
What is the Definition of (Your) Brand?
You might be surprised at what you learn.
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
A few years ago, I received a call from a nice lady who was inquiring about our economic development marketing communications services. She’d heard that Brand Acceleration was “the best” (her kind words) in the industry. “We don’t need a brand,” she said, “We just got a new one. What we need is someone to help take our message to market.” Huh?
Such comments never cease to amaze me. “We don’t need a brand. We just got a new one.” It was apparent that she had no idea what “brand” is.
Whether a community or company, it’s very important to not only understand the definition of “brand,” but to know what your brand represents. To be clear, “brand” represents the feelings, thoughts and emotions that people experience when they think of your community or company. Simply put, your brand is your reputation.
But, here’s the twist. Your brand is not defined by you! It’s defined by others. How you, as president, mayor, marketing director or economic developer, define your brand is only one small part of the equation.
What does your brand represent?
About ten years ago, I was an account director at another advertising agency. One of my clients was a global manufacturer of industrial parts that were used by the automotive and consumer electronics industries. While the company made great products, the leadership just couldn’t overcome their own huge egos and accept the fact that their brand was defined by the marketplace.
In our early discussions, they told me all about how wonderful they and their products were. Terms like “revolutionary,” next generation,” and “cutting edge” rolled easily off their tongues. But, when I asked how their customers and prospects would define them, they looked at me as if I were speaking another language. I was. Not knowing how to answer this question, the begrudgingly agreed to brand research that, in their minds, would confirm their beliefs.
We launched a team of people to conduct brand interviews with their staff, prospects, customers and industry leaders worldwide. What we discovered shocked them. Their brand was virtually nonexistent. You know that sound you hear when you let the air out of a balloon? I swear I heard that same sound as their massive egos deflated.
How did they respond to this vital information? They denied the validity of the research, of course. The president of the company swore at me, challenged the credibility of the agency and basically said we were incompetent. We settled the debate by offering to conduct a second round or research – a series of telephone interviews to either confirm or discredit the earlier findings. If the finding were the same, the client would pay for the entire research effort. If not, they would owe us nothing. Do you want to guess how it turned out?
What does your brand really represent?
For many, the fact is that they have a very weak or non-existent brand. This is especially true of cities and counties. Even though they may be locally known for their long history in such industries as agriculture, steel making, etc., when you travel more than a hundred miles away, nobody knows them.
Lack of brand is not always bad, though. The good news is that you may have a blank canvas, allowing you to create your own brand position, within reason. You certainly can’t try to position yourself as something you’re not. If your staff, stakeholders or residents won’t buy into the effort, it will never work. It has to be believable. If your city is best known for the dark, dingy, nasty, abandoned factory at the edge of town, it’s kind of hard to convince prospective residents and employers that it is a center of a contemporary lifestyle and high-tech industry.
Where do you start?
For us, we prefer to have a clear understanding of the current brand position. Through brand research or even a few basic interviews, we strive to gather information about a company or community’s brand from its key audiences. Utilizing a well defined set of exercises, we conduct on-line or face-to-face interviews to identify common beliefs. With this information, we can craft a message strategy that we know will be believable, powerful and effective. By the way, we never use focus groups. Want to know why? Send me an e-mail or give me a call.
Live the brand
If you really want to be known as the best, the place to begin is with the daily activities of every person on your team, from the leadership to the person on the factory floor. Everyone must live the brand, striving to be the best. A new logo won’t do it. I don’t care how beautiful your logo is, if the person who answers the phone is rude or unintelligible, that is your brand. You know what they say about first impressions.
My challenge to you is to grow a powerful brand by committing to brand excellence. From clean, beautiful entryways at the edge of town to the cheerleading company owner, always strive to be the best. If you’ll do that, you’ll make my job a lot easier.
As a marketing communications and public relations firm, we’ll proudly take that message to market.
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
You might be surprised at what you learn.
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
A few years ago, I received a call from a nice lady who was inquiring about our economic development marketing communications services. She’d heard that Brand Acceleration was “the best” (her kind words) in the industry. “We don’t need a brand,” she said, “We just got a new one. What we need is someone to help take our message to market.” Huh?
Such comments never cease to amaze me. “We don’t need a brand. We just got a new one.” It was apparent that she had no idea what “brand” is.
Whether a community or company, it’s very important to not only understand the definition of “brand,” but to know what your brand represents. To be clear, “brand” represents the feelings, thoughts and emotions that people experience when they think of your community or company. Simply put, your brand is your reputation.
But, here’s the twist. Your brand is not defined by you! It’s defined by others. How you, as president, mayor, marketing director or economic developer, define your brand is only one small part of the equation.
What does your brand represent?
About ten years ago, I was an account director at another advertising agency. One of my clients was a global manufacturer of industrial parts that were used by the automotive and consumer electronics industries. While the company made great products, the leadership just couldn’t overcome their own huge egos and accept the fact that their brand was defined by the marketplace.
In our early discussions, they told me all about how wonderful they and their products were. Terms like “revolutionary,” next generation,” and “cutting edge” rolled easily off their tongues. But, when I asked how their customers and prospects would define them, they looked at me as if I were speaking another language. I was. Not knowing how to answer this question, the begrudgingly agreed to brand research that, in their minds, would confirm their beliefs.
We launched a team of people to conduct brand interviews with their staff, prospects, customers and industry leaders worldwide. What we discovered shocked them. Their brand was virtually nonexistent. You know that sound you hear when you let the air out of a balloon? I swear I heard that same sound as their massive egos deflated.
How did they respond to this vital information? They denied the validity of the research, of course. The president of the company swore at me, challenged the credibility of the agency and basically said we were incompetent. We settled the debate by offering to conduct a second round or research – a series of telephone interviews to either confirm or discredit the earlier findings. If the finding were the same, the client would pay for the entire research effort. If not, they would owe us nothing. Do you want to guess how it turned out?
What does your brand really represent?
For many, the fact is that they have a very weak or non-existent brand. This is especially true of cities and counties. Even though they may be locally known for their long history in such industries as agriculture, steel making, etc., when you travel more than a hundred miles away, nobody knows them.
Lack of brand is not always bad, though. The good news is that you may have a blank canvas, allowing you to create your own brand position, within reason. You certainly can’t try to position yourself as something you’re not. If your staff, stakeholders or residents won’t buy into the effort, it will never work. It has to be believable. If your city is best known for the dark, dingy, nasty, abandoned factory at the edge of town, it’s kind of hard to convince prospective residents and employers that it is a center of a contemporary lifestyle and high-tech industry.
Where do you start?
For us, we prefer to have a clear understanding of the current brand position. Through brand research or even a few basic interviews, we strive to gather information about a company or community’s brand from its key audiences. Utilizing a well defined set of exercises, we conduct on-line or face-to-face interviews to identify common beliefs. With this information, we can craft a message strategy that we know will be believable, powerful and effective. By the way, we never use focus groups. Want to know why? Send me an e-mail or give me a call.
Live the brand
If you really want to be known as the best, the place to begin is with the daily activities of every person on your team, from the leadership to the person on the factory floor. Everyone must live the brand, striving to be the best. A new logo won’t do it. I don’t care how beautiful your logo is, if the person who answers the phone is rude or unintelligible, that is your brand. You know what they say about first impressions.
My challenge to you is to grow a powerful brand by committing to brand excellence. From clean, beautiful entryways at the edge of town to the cheerleading company owner, always strive to be the best. If you’ll do that, you’ll make my job a lot easier.
As a marketing communications and public relations firm, we’ll proudly take that message to market.
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
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