Connecting Your Brands and Putting Them to Work

Brand alignmentfor higher ed

Eric Norman and Tamsen McMahonSametz Blackstone Associates

Julie RaffertyHarvard School of Public Health

CASE D1 28 January 2011

Diagram four main branding strategies Branding strategies in action

What’s in the tour / goals

Because it affects: How much you spend to promote your offerings How much credit you get for your offerings How well you can “sell in” or “sell across” Your alumni’s pride in their alma mater Donors’ perceptions of your heft and momentum

Why care about brand alignment?

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Four main strategies

Brands—Parent brand—Child brands (or Sub brands)

Brand strategy—Relationships among brands

Brand identity system—Names and visual design

Speaking the same language

Brand strategyThe approach (or combination of approaches) used by organizations to identify themselves and their entities / offerings––and the relationships between these entities / offerings.

Speaking the same language

Institutional focus

Program / offering focus

Master Source Endorsed Product

Parent brand influences all offerings Umbrella value proposition extends to across offerings No unique identities, usually generic naming

Master (umbrella) branding

Institutional focus

Program / offering focus

Master

Master branding

Master branding

Tight familial relationship with parent and child/sibling brands, but space between them

Distinct value propositions under familial value More subtle identity variations; systematic nomenclature

Source branding

Source

Institutional focus

Program / offering focus

Source branding

Source branding

Overt but subtle relationship with parent / sibling brands Unique identity, name and value proposition, backed by

parent or family brand

Endorsed branding

Endorsed

Institutional focus

Program / offering focus

Endorsed branding

Endorsed branding

Unique identity and name Unique value proposition No overt relationships with parent or sibling brands

Product branding

Product

Institutional focus

Program / offering focus

Product branding

Strategy tradeoffs

Succeeds or fails on its own

Requires separate media / comm’s

Expensive to introduce / maintain

Unique identity & value proposition

Can show focus

All entities / experiences contribute to reputation of parent brand

Leverages all communication / media $s

Less expensive to introduce / maintain

Unified, over-arching identity and value

Supports integrated selling

Master Source Endorsed Product

Institutional focus

Program / offering focus

Brand strategies in action

Parent brandParent brand

Child brand,master brandedChild brand,master branded

Master brandedpropertyMaster brandedproperty

Child brand,endorsed brandChild brand,endorsed brand

Child brand,endorsed brandChild brand,endorsed brand

Child brand,product brandedChild brand,product branded

Parent brandParent brand

Child brand,master brandedChild brand,master branded

Child brand,master brandedChild brand,master branded

Child brand,master brandedChild brand,master branded

Child brand…brand strategy?Child brand…brand strategy?

Name / nomenclature Logos Color palette Graphic design

—Typography—Composition—Signature design gestures

Commission / approval / production process

Levers for expressing brand strategy

Names

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New England University School of Business New England University Men’s Basketball New England University Photonics Center New England University Department of Biology

Names / nomenclature: Master

New England University Warbucks School of Business New England University Woodchucks New England University InterGlobalCorp Photonics

Center

New England University Novus Magazine

Names / nomenclature: Source

Warbucks Business School at New England University InterGlobalCorp Photonics Center at New England

University

Warbucks Performing Arts Center at New England University

Names / nomenclature: Endorsed

Warbucks Business School The Woodchucks InterGlobalCorp Photonics Institute

Warbucks Museum

Names / nomenclature: Product

Logos

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Standardize your logo / seal / wordmark and distribute templates—Typographic style(s) for subbrands

Encourage / require consistent source or endorsing brand banners

Logos

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Parent brand markParent brand mark

Colors

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Standardize core and supporting colors—Publish specs across media

Strong or distinctive use of core color(s)

Color palette

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Consistent color paletteConsistent color palette

Design

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Consistent typography, composition, and signature design gestures

Graphic design

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Distinctive design cuesDistinctive design cues

Whoa! What does this mean?Whoa! What does this mean?

Working withlittle spaceWorking withlittle space

…and even less space…and even less space

Processes

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Requirements versus coordination—Where is the most powerful influence?—Where are the greatest chances for success?

If any one of the above is centralized, better chance of achieving brand strategy

Central archive of strategy documentation, direction, and assets helps

Staff training, vendor requirements and audits

Commission / approval / production process

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Based on your institution’s strategic goals, which brand strategy / strategies should you use?

What distance do we need between brands to get the right credit?

What level of inter-operability do we want to imply to build a bigger picture?

What is the value of the whole vs the parts? What are the practical implications (and possible

consequences) of a strategy?

Questions to consider

For your reference