Want to enhance your company’s reputation? This method can help

Ros Weadman is a brand communication and reputation specialist who combines her professional expertise in strategic communications, psychology and education to help organisations build a purpose-driven brand and strong positive reputation.

The following is an extract from her book Enhance your reputation — how to build a brand people want to work for, buy from and invest in, which introduces us to the BrandCred Method — a strategic brand alignment blueprint for building brand credibility, fostering trust and enhancing reputation by aligning what you think, say, do and give.

Introducing the BrandCred Method

The BrandCred Method is your strategic brand alignment blueprint for aligning what you think, say, do and give to build a credible and trusted brand, and enhance your reputation.

BrandCred Method™ Dimensions.

The BrandCred Method puts credibility at the heart of reputation. This is because credibility goes to the heart of a person’s or an organisation’s character. Perceived credibility defines your reputation.

Credibility is the quality of being trusted and believed in. Words that denote credibility include trustworthiness, authenticity, believability, reliability, dependability, integrity, character and kudos.

In a highly competitive and commoditised marketplace, credibility, or lack of it, is the number one factor shaping brand reputation. 

The BrandCred Method proposes that credibility is based on the convergence of four key business dimensions: culture, communication, customer experience (customer-X) and citizenship. The degree of alignment between the four dimensions determines whether credibility is high or low.

Credibility is at the intersection of these elements. It affects all aspects of business, positively or negatively — sales, customer loyalty, employee engagement and retention, and reputation!

The BrandCred Method is a blueprint for building brand credibility, fostering trust and enhancing reputation by aligning what you think, say, do and give.

The four dimensions of the BrandCred Method

Reputation can be viewed as an emotional relationship between a person and a brand. And this feeling will influence whether that person will buy from you, work for you, sponsor you, volunteer for you, advocate for you, invest in you. 

Given this, it makes sense to understand what drives reputation and how these drivers can be influenced to shape a reputation that’s good for business.

The BrandCred Method explores four drivers of brand reputation, which, when in sync, build credibility, foster trust and help shape a positive reputation.

More than anything, the method proposes a way of running a business or organisation. It promotes consistency of thinking, communicating and behaving, which is necessary for building credibility. 

The following diagram identifies the various elements of each dimension of the BrandCred Method. These are discussed in the following chapters.

BrandCred Method Dimensions and Sub-Elements.

Dimension 1: Culture

Culture refers to the general ethos of an organisation and includes beliefs, values, rituals, behaviours, standards, attitudes and the like. Culture defines what an organisation thinks.

The elements of culture are:

• Purpose — the reason you exist; the ‘why’ that captures your unique contribution to, and impact on, your clients and society;
• Philosophy — the fundamental truths you believe about the world/life/business that overarch your approach to service delivery; and
• Principles — the core values you uphold and that guide your decisions, language and behaviour.

Dimension 2: Communications

Communications refers to the messages and brand image an organisation conveys to the outside world through its words and visual identity (logo, colours, shapes, pictures and symbols) as well as the mediums and tactics it uses to convey them. Communications define what an organisation says.

The elements of communications are:

• Positioning — the brand image you project, including style, voice and attitude; the brand space you ‘own’ in the marketplace based on your point of difference and key competitive advantages;
• Proposition — the unique value proposition that differentiates you from competitors in terms of the package of benefits delivered through your product/service; and
• Promotion — the mix of mediums and tactics you use to convey messages to the marketplace.

Dimension 3: Customer-X

Customer-X (customer experience) refers to the degree of fulfilment in meeting customer needs and expectations through the delivery of products/services. It’s also the kind of interactions an organisation facilitates via its marketing platforms and customer touchpoints. Customer-X defines what an organisation does.

The elements of customer-x are:

• Product — the suite of products/services, price points, processes and distribution channels designed to meet customer needs, and the degree of personalisation; 
• Platforms — the online and social media channels a business uses to communicate with the market and how well these meet user needs and expectations; and
• Participation — the opportunities for customers to provide input and feedback about the product/service and public participation techniques to ensure informed decision-making.

Dimension 4: Citizenship

Citizenship refers to the corporate social responsibility of an organisation in embracing a higher purpose beyond profit-making or delivering on the brand promise. This can be how an organisation contributes to the greater good, whether on a local, regional, national or global scale. Citizenship defines what an organisation gives.

The elements of citizenship are:

• Public spirit — the community-mindedness of the organisation and willingness to contribute to the greater good for better social, environmental and economic outcomes;
• Philanthropy — the donation of funds and other resources to support worthy causes such as promoting the welfare of others; and
• Pro bono work —professional services provided without charge or at a heavily reduced fee for the benefit of a deserving individual, group or cause.