- 1. Win over the sceptics
- 2. Use multiple channels of internal communication and roll out the new brand face-to-face with workshops or presentations.
- 3. Ensure your senior management team are visibly involved
- 4. Create inspiring values that are easy to remember
- 5. Make sure staff and volunteers can sum up your charity on the spot
- 6. Bring your brand to life
- 7. Recruit Brand Champions and set up a Brand Steering Group
- 8. Give staff and partners tools to manage the brand and protect your Intellectual Property in contract
- 9. Make sure staff behaviour and customer service matter
- 10. Create an effective creative briefing process and monitor your brand at regular intervals
5. Make sure staff and volunteers can sum up your charity on the spot.
Powerful charity brands are based on what lies at the heart and soul of your organisation. Perhaps the single most important message about successful branding is that it is not something that is painted on, but a reflection of who you are and what you believe in. For a brand to succeed, the brand platform (vision, mission and values) must be robust, compelling, understood and embedded across the organisation.
The best and most exhilarating and passionate charities are those where staff are united by a strong sense of purpose, where they understand why the charity exists and what they are collectively striving to achieve.
Far too often a charity’s vision, mission and values are lost, forgotten or worse, collecting dust in a filing cabinet. It is important that everyone working for you knows who you are and what you stand for. All staff should receive a copy of your vision, mission and values following the launch of the new brand in a format that will be remembered. This can be achieved by producing a short inspiring brand book, z-card (pocked-sized leaflet) or interactive animation – the more inventive and engaging the better.
The brand must also be a part of the induction of new staff. This will ensure your ‘corporate memory’ remains intact. Again, this can be easily achieved via the distribution of a brand book. A brand presentation or workshop may also be appropriate depending on the induction process you have in place.