Are your brand touchpoints working hard enough for you? Or do you suspect they could be doing more? It could be time to take your brand identity pulse, a more tactical exercise than a brand audit, which gauges the overall health of your brand in the marketplace. Taking your brand identity pulse is simply verifying your brand touchpoints still represent who you are as a company.
“It’s a significant undertaking to gain one overarching view of all of your brand touchpoints. But I promise, the process will teach you much about how you operate and how you treat your customers and employees.“
Start with your logo. Is it being used correctly wherever it appears? If your employees tend to toy with it – stretch or alter it – it’s a sign your logo isn’t effective. It could be time for a new or even evolved logo. At the very least, you need a brand standards guide to educate how to use your logo properly. (And… do you have a logo authority in your office? That one person who knows 100% how to use it properly? You should; every office should.)
How about your website? It should be your hardest working brand touchpoint. Is it? Does it perform for your customers and prospects the way it should? Is your user experience clear and straightforward? Ask your customers how they feel. Ask your employees (who know best of all) if your site is missing or misrepresenting anything.
Your social media channels are a major touchpoint. Do they feel like you? Do you even need them? Many companies feel they should have them all, but it’s not true. And are they current? Who’s in charge of updating them? Social media management isn’t a small add-on to an employee’s role. And few touchpoints are sadder than an out-of-date Instagram or Facebook channel that hasn’t been touched in months.
Throughout the process, you’ll turn to the more traditional touchpoints as well. Like your stationery. How are you using it? Do you still even need it, or could you simply use a digital version? Are you still the type of company that faxes documents? (Really?) Do you still need business cards? How many did you actually give out last year?
And your customer touchpoints. What happens when someone orders a product or service from you? How about your email marketing? Or the process when you send a quote or an invoice? And when you send flowers or a gift, is it representing your brand, or are they tired carnations that could be from anybody? These are all details that make up your brand presence. The smartest companies control each and every one of them.
The list goes on. Your email marketing. And email signature! Staff gifts. Your customer loyalty program. Your presence at trade shows. Office signage and wayfinding. At any time, ask for opinions. Write your customers and ask if you’re meeting their expectations. Ask your staff if you’re properly equipping them to be proud of where they work. Be ballsy and write your competitors for their take.
It’s a significant undertaking to gain one overarching view of all of your brand touchpoints. But I promise, the process will teach you much about how you operate and how you treat your customers and employees. Find yourself an agency who can help you take your brand identity pulse. Then plot this out, and uncover the opportunities to be better and make something amazing.
