Abiah.com, Christian Organization and Ministry Brand Development

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Hi everyone,

Due to a new strategy Abiah is taking we will be changing our efforts from the BrandReturn blog to focus these recourses on our BrandTip Articals. 

If you would like to stay up to date on Abiah you can visit our Chief Branding Officers blog at Guyrichards.us or sign up for our BrandTip Articals that we send out twice a month.

See you soon...

5 things that hold our brands and businesses back

As business leaders and brand builders what often holds us back from the big leaps we deserve is our thinking.  The 5 issues below are things that easily trip us up and we need to break free of them to grow our business and our brand.  They'll keep us from thinking big or they'll allow us to convince ourselves we're only dreaming.

Which one(s) trip you up?

You're not clear about what you want.  Clearly articulating exactly what you want and are trying to accomplish is incredbily hard for lots of reasons.  One simple one is the shear number of words and the subtly in definitions.  It's hard to just find the words to appropriately describe what you're trying to create. 

But it's really hard to do if you just don't have a clear picture of the end result.  Just like you need to know your final destination before you start planning a trip, you've got to know where you're business is going before you can put together the tactics that will get you there.

You don't have a good strategy.  You have a strategy for running errands.  You even have a strategy for getting ready in the morning.  That strategy may or may not be the best strategy.  But you've got to HAVE a strategy before you can make it a good one.  When's the last time you sat down and looked at your business strategy?  This can be incredibly hard to do without help.  Plan some time NOW to work on this as soon as possible, then sharpen your pencil and get to work. 

You don't have the skills you need to accomplish what you want.  If your team doesn't have the skills you need now and doesn't have the skills you'll need to move your company forward, then you've GOT to sit down with your staffing team and put together a plan to get them.  You either aren't giving them the information they need to recruit effectively or your not giving them the money they need to find the right candidates, or you have the wrong people in the staffing function.  If you can't FIND people with the skills your organization needs then you have to commit to training and developing who you have.  You also better treat them well since you really can't afford to have them leave.

Your environment is holding you back. This is a big one.  It could be your physical environment isn't set up to make you successful...maybe you haven't invested in new equipment...you've outgrown your space...or it's a depressing environment to work in.  Or it could be the people in your environment...If you're surrounded my negative people that's going to weigh you down and stifle creativity in your company. 

Your thinking is holding you back.  This might be limiting beliefs, negativity, or other ways you're talking to yourself that you're allowing to keep you nailed right where you are.  We're really our own worst enemy some times and this can be the hardest thing to work on.  You need help to deal with this...either an incredibly honest friend or coworker or you've got to hire a consultant or coach to help you work through this.  A great book is Learned Optimism by Martin Seligman, the father of Positive Psychology.  You can visit his site, AuthenticHappiness.com, to learn more and take some assessments to get a benchmark on some of these areas.

Are you aware of how any of these have held you back?  Commit to breaking free of them today!

Don't let mindset hold your brand strategy back

Guy was recently at the Christian Leadership Alliance (formerly the Christian Management Association) conference in Houston, Texas.  One of the speakers was management legend Ken Blanchard.

Now one of the reasons people go to conferences is to make connections and hear the big speakers, and they think to themselves "boy I'd love to talk to him" (or her). 

Guy saw Ken Blanchard the day before he was to speak and took the opportunity to introduce himself.  I had sent Guy an email before he left telling him to say hi to Ken Blanchard for me (not thinking he'd actually have the chance to do it!). 

I've been working on a book and sent a draft of the manuscript to Ken in the hope he'd give me an endorsement...which he DID!!

Guy also went up after Ken's presentation (which was on thinking big) and told Ken how moved he was by it.  Guy shared a copy of Abiah's vision that he happened to have written in a notebook when we were working to get clear on it.

They talked for several minutes with Ken telling Guy that he's looking for young speakers for his Lead Like Jesus conference.

I'm not sharing all this to brag about this stuff but to share with you how important it is to be brave and think big when it comes to your business, your life, and accomplishing the mission the Lord has given you.

I'll be writing about this for a few days so stay tuned.

In the meantime, share with us how you're thinking big to accomplish great things in your business.

What color does your brand own?

Are you using color to effectively communicate your brand?  If you had to choose a color to align with your brand -- one that would convey the right emotions -- which would you choose of all the colors available?

The ASPCA has picked orange and this 3-minute video from Ad Age explains why and how the bright color was chosen.  You'll seee from the ASPCA site that it's not the familiar color of Florida's finest but the bright, deep color of life jackets.  Life jackets?  That's right.  As an exec from the ASPCA tells you in the video, what color better signifies what the organization is all about than the color of a life jacket.

The website has gotten an orange makeover to.  Can't say I like what they've done with the navigation section on the left.  Let's face it...a little orange goes a long way...but on the whole I like it.  And I love the concept of "owning" a color that shares what you're all about.

The world of fundraising is very competitive.  There's lots of worthwhile organizations out there that deserve our time, talent, and treasure.  Each of them must work hard to capture attention and generate additional revenue for their cause.  It's great to see the ASPCA being so creative about building their brand and not resting on their haunches...um laurels.

PS.  Check out how they're carrying the brand through gifts and merchandise.

How to stand out from and stand up to the big guys

I just dropped my car off to the place I take it for service.  I have 102,000 miles on my 10 year old Honda Civic and I'd like to get 102,000 more.

Taking my car in for service at this place always reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Jerry "breaks up" with his mechanic David Putty (who happens to be dating Elaine).  Putty is the one honest car repairman in the area and Jerry ends up patching up the little problem he has with him because a great car repairman is really irreplacable.

On the way home my husband, Lou, and I were talking about this episode, the importance of service and trust and it got me thinking...

Small businesses are always terrified when a big chain moves into the neighborhood but really they shouldn't be.  People will naturally try the new place out but that's a great opportunity for a direct comparison.  Here's some tips for how you can make sure they're going to come back to you.

Emphasize the humanity of the business.  Celebrate that the owner is actively involved in the business.  I love that I get to talk right to the owner of my repair shop.  It doesn't always happen but I love it when it does.  When customers have a problem or concern -- and even in the best place that will happen -- let them know the owner will hear about it.  Have the owner call or write them in response.

Communicate with and educate the staff.  Your brand comes alive through the actions of your staff.  The brand lives or dies in the thousands of moments of truth each staffer has with your customers, prospects, and vendors.  No matter how great your product or service is or how badly the community wants it, if it's not delivered brilliantly and seamlessly by your staff your business will fail.  Let your staff know how important it is that they excel at their jobs.  It keeps them employed and eating for one.  Plus, it allows the business to do well and they benefit from that through wages and benefits.  Provide ongoing training to help them grow professionally and personally.

Hire the best.  We've all worked with rotten people in our lives and it just brings everyone -- and the business -- down.  Since your brand is delivered by your staff, no decision is more important than who you bring on board to deliver on that promise you're making to the community.  Know what skills the people must have when they start and what you're willing and able to train on.  Soft skills like friendliness and empathy are almost impossible to teach.  Read that sentence again.  They are nearly IMPOSSIBLE to teach.  Those are the skills someone's parents should have taught them!  By the time they apply for a job their personality is deeply ingrained.  They won't change unless incredibly motivated to do that.  Yes, people do change...they just don't change very often.  Invest the time, efffort, and money to make the best hiring decision in every position. 

Provide the tools to do the job.  Give people the equipment they need to do their jobs well.  Listen to staffers' recommendations about what they need to perform and consider how you can give it to them.  That doesn't mean you'll always do it, but have the conversation about their ideas and brainstorm ways to make it happen within budget.

Let them make mistakes.  This is very scary but people learn more from making mistakes than from having successes.  From the time we were kids and learned that if we touch something hot we'll burn ourselves to as we grow and make more mistakes, those are the best learning opportunities.  When errors are made, help the person learn from them and get them involved in correcting it.  Not only is this a great learning opportunity for them but it builds tremendous loyalty between the two of you.

There are lots of other things you can do to compete against the big guys and grow your brand.  The average small business misses the opportunity that competition brings.  Use competition to challenge yourself and your team to get better at what you do.

What are you worrying about for 2008?

Forrester Research has put out a new report that analyzes information they obtained from 300 CMOs (Chief Marketing Officers) about the problems they're focusing on in 2008.

Apparently North American CMOs worry about effective budget allocation more than their global counterparts.  Forrester thinks those people should be worrying about what they refer to as "...the top three strategic issues: globalization, marketing technology, and their agency relationship."

Absolutely.

We're all facing more competition since the web has become the modern yellow pages for everyone...especially for business-to-business vendor searches.  Marketing technology is important because you can capture and analyze meaningful market data and meaningful customer information.  Of course data is pointless if you do nothing with it.  Or worse...if you ignore it.

We love reading that ANYONE thinks managing the agency relationship is important.  Frankly we'd love for CMOs to realize that we're here to make their jobs easier, not harder.  We're here to make you the hero of your organization.  We believe that kind of relationship happens when the client and the agency truly partner to grow the client's business. 

Are you looking to do great things in 2008?  Are you willing to partner with your agency and treat marketing as the powerful investment it is or will you continue searching for that magic wand to wave over your marketing budget?

Is your brand being sabotaged?

We're in some tough economic times right now and the brands that will survive and thrive are those that tighten their performance and truly distinguish themselves by delivering great products and service.

You can spend a fortune on a great identity and marketing plan but if you're not communicating, leading, managing, and monitoring what's going on in your company then you're wasting money.

Your brand is delivered by people. 

Those people need tools, information, training, and support to do their best.  If you're not paying attention to issues that impact brand alignment you're sabotaging your brand and your business.

A great investment would be to hire a mystery shopping company who would approach your company from every possible external point and give you a report.  That means they'd call your customer service center, try to find your website using key search terms, and even review print media.

Somehow you've got to take steps to get honest feedback from existing customers to discover their experience and perception of your brand.

Only when you've got that data can you begin to put together a plan to plug holes that may be leaking customers.

So what are you doing to bring your brand into alignment?

Check out our brand alignment test to see where you stand.

Is branding biblical?

We don’t believe in coincidences.  We know that God has a complex plan for the universe and each one of us fits in that plan somehow.  Well, on Friday Guy and I both had conversations about the same topic from slightly different sides and with completely different people.  The people we spoke with were wondering if the concept of branding is biblical.  We believe it is.

This got us thinking that, if those two people are thinking about it, others are too.  So we decided to share with you how and why we believe branding is biblical.  Hope you find it helpful.  Please don’t hesitate to share it with your colleagues and let us know what you think.

Is branding biblical?

A business grows out of the mind and heart of its founder.  It’s connected to the mission that God assigns to that person. 

A business’s primary earthly goal is to create value for the shareholders and that’s done by delivering outstanding value to the consumers who are served.  The basic themes that are in this business equation are service, sharing, and love. 

You’re probably wondering how love fits in a business model. 

It’s not romantic love of course but compassionate and caring love should be at the heart of all business plans.  Businesses don’t have to be ruthless to be successful.  Examples abound of “doing well by doing good.”  This doesn’t mean that there won’t be tough decisions to make.  That’s the nature of business and it’s the nature of life. 

Where does branding come in?

A brand at its most basic element is a promise made to consumers.  It represents the business’ reputation in the marketplace. 

Considering that definition and the fact that you are a Christian business leader, how can your brand be anything less than biblically based?

The Lord put a mission on your heart.  That mission is then used to found your business.  You’ve been entrusted with something to care for and grow just as the servants in the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30) were.  Growing your business involves helping consumers learn to make choice that’s best for each of them.  Branding is the process used to do that.

Branding allows you to communicate what makes you different from the thousands of other businesses in your segment.  It acts as a magnet to attract the consumers who most want what you provide and in the way you provide it. 

Growing a profitable business allows you to serve the Lord more effectively and accomplish your mission, whatever that may be.  As the business grows you don’t just accumulate money.  You actually change the lives of others, ranging from the customers you serve to the staff you employ.  Without the jobs you provide or the products and services you deliver people’s lives would be different from the lives they have because of the business you created.

You owe it to those you serve to have a clear, strong brand and to create a business that flourishes. 

Break through to your prospect's awareness

This morning my husband Lou and I took a late morning break at our favorite local coffee shop and when we drove down the street Lou noticed that one of the shops had been torn down.

"Wow," he said; "How many times have we driven down this street and now I can't remember what was in that spot."  I replied that it's amazing how we eventually don't even see what's right in front of us and it hit me how much that's true about our businesses and our brands.

Our poor brains are so overwhelmed trying to stay focused on what's important for us that they naturally start filtering out stuff that they don't need to think about about.  That includes paying attention to stuff we see every day.  Our brain is doing us a favor when it does that.

The challenge for us as marketers and brand builders is to break through the brain's natural defense system and catch the prospoect's attention.  How do you do that? Well, if people are used to getting email from you, capture as many snail mail addresses and send them something in the mail.

Have you upgraded the front of your store or office?  That building we past was a dull tan.  Yawn.  Enhance your building's physical appearance...at least upgrade your signage...to catch people's eyes and create a clear landmark.

Stumped for ideas?  Ask employees what they think you could do to improve your external appearance.  Ask customers for ideas.  Create a contest and give a fun prize for the best ideas.

What will you do this spring to wake up your prospects and customers?

Breaking through junk mail clutter

Brand development specialists often face the daunting tasks of sending direct mail pieces that actually get delivered, opened, and paid attention to.

In my former corporate life as an HR director I got TONS of catalogs, pitch letters, resumes, and general junk selling stuff from reference books, to seminars, to training supplies.  Most of it I barely glanced at as I tossed it in the recycle bin.

Some places encourage the mail room staff to just toss stuff that looks even remotely junk-like.

So what's a marketer to do?

Use some creativity to design and send a piece that people are more likely to open.

Yesterday I received a piece promoting a company that does outsourcing for a special type of graphic signage for a particular industry and I actually it.  Here's what they did well:

1.  Didn't use an envelope.  The information -- one 11 x 14 page and an 8 x 11 1/2 flyer -- came rolled up in a plain cardboard tube.  That's packaging you're compelled to open.

2.  Prize inside.  There was a little lollipop shaped like a baby's pacifier that rolled out of the tube when I opened it.  Now I really HAD to know what the messaging said!

3.  A sense of humor.  The main document was the 11 x 14 sheet and it had a large picture of a crying baby in one corner along with  the headline "Don't Cry!"  The subheadline tied in nicely and touched on the genuine feelings of frustrations that their propspects probably have over this technology.

4.  Got me thinking.  The simple 2 pages got me thinking about them and the conference that they mentioned they're displaying at.  I have no intentions of going to the conference but if it got ME thinking about it I'm sure it did the same for those who really are in or near the bull's eye of their target market.

Was it expensive?  Compared to a regular #10 business envelope it probably was.  But a #10 envelope is too easy to judge as junk mail and it's too easy to just open the envelope, pull out the thing that's making the envelope "lump" and then recycle it.  The real answer about the expense relates to how much a lead is worth, how many leads visit their booth at that conference, and how many of those leads become qualified and move through their sales funnel.

Assuming the list is made up of more qualified prospects than me, I think it's a gamble worth taking.

So what do you do to break through junk mail clutter to get to your prospects?