Brand Communications Planning and

Management
Mindset
3 Key Shifts in Brand
Communications:

• Brand @ Centre Stage

“If people fall out of love with your brand,
you go out of business”
The Economist 2001
• The Shift to Integrated Marketing
Communications (IMC)

“promotional messages
communicating in a consistent
voice to attain maximum
communications impact”
 What is a brand?
How does a brand come to be?
 “The brand is a focal point for all
the positive and negative
impressions created by the buyer
over time as he comes into
contact with the brand’s products,
distribution channel, personnel
and communication”

Jean-Noel Kapferer
“A broad conceptual appeal”
Thomas Oosthuizen

“A total experience”
Jeremy Sampson
Inside-out

or

Outside-in 
• The Shift from IMC to Integrated
Brand Contact
Management

Every point of contact

communicates!
“Moments of Truth” - Jan Carlson
What does Brand Contact
Management entail?

1. Identifying Sources of Brand

Contact
A case in motion: consider Banking!
4 Sources of Contact:

 Product Related Sources

 Service Contacts
 Planned Contacts
 Unplanned Sources of Brand
Contact
2. Prioritising Sources of Brand
Contact

 Frequency of contact
 Impact of contact
3. Integrating points of contact

Meaning?
Every point of contact must communicate
and reinforce the identity of the brand.

Consistent brand image

Integration demands focus!

 Increasing competitive activity

 Increasing levels of product parity
 Increasing levels of brand parity
 Increasing levels of clutter
Brand Identity → Brand Image
↑
Brand Positioning → Focus
Outcome of Integrated Brand Contact
Management?

product contacts

¤
service contacts planned
contacts
Real Implications:

 Companies → Brand Contact Task Team

 Agencies → Strategic Partner
 Agencies → Integrated Communications
Agencies
 Agencies → Account Teams
 Foster → Outside-in, zero-based, media-
neutral mindset
 Performance-based remuneration
Agency Remuneration

 Media commission based

 Media-neutral / zero-based and
accountable
– Fee-based
– Cost-plus agreements
– Performance-based
The Planned Brand Contact Strategy

(The Promotional Plan, The Marketing

Communications Plan, The Campaign
Strategy)
Reinforce:

 In context of Integrated Brand

Contact Planning
 Aim → Single-minded and
Integrated Brand Identity
 Function as a Strategic Partner
Guidelines in Choosing a
Communications Partner:

 Communication objectives?
 Insight - industry
 Conflict in interest
 Budgets
 Culture
 Future growth
 Track record
The Planned Contact Planning
Process
 Phase One
Situational Analysis
“It is a capital mistake to theorise
before one has data”

Sherlock Holmes to Dr Watson

 Objective?
Objective? ↓
Key Issues
Levels of Situational Analysis:

1. Industry and Competitor Analysis

2. Company Profile
 “Virgin stands for a sense of challenge.
We use the credibility of our brand to
challenge the dominant players in a range
of industries, whom we believe exert too
much power and therefore restrict
consumerism”

Clifford Joffe MM - Virgin Atlantic SA

 Virgin Checklist:

 The best quality

 It must be innovative
 It must be good value for money
 A challenge to existing alternatives
 It must add a sense of fun or
cheekiness
3. Consumer/Customer Analysis
Confirm sources of sales!

 New Category Users

 Brand Loyals
 Brand Switchers
 Other Brand Loyals
 Consumer Research:
↓

Source Consumer Motivation

Define Profiles
4. Product and Brand Analysis
Brand Communications Audit
↓
Contact and Content Analysis
Contact Analysis

 Full blown contact analysis - Brand

Contact Task Team
 Hone-in on Planned Contacts
 Assess impact and integration
 Content Analysis - Semiotics

Aim → Brand Language and Integration

Verbal levels
“the written or spoken word”
 Brand name
 Pay off line
 Headlines
 Body copy
 Scripts
Non Verbal Levels
“everything over and above the written or
spoken word”

 Logo  Tone of voice

 Colour  Lighting
 Typography  Icons
 Layout  Mediums
 Association &
differentiation
Perceived quality Awareness
& leadership
Market
Loyalty behaviour

Aaker’s Brand Equity Measures