Where do branding and strategic planning intersect? Better yet, where should they? I strongly believe that integration of the two efforts is critical. Yet, to date, the closest SimpsonScarborough has come to integrating a branding initiative with strategic planning is to conduct our work in a parallel process.
Here’s what I know:
(1) The biggest criticism of strategic plans is that they are too inward-focused, often reflecting the interests of faculty, staff, administrators, and board members more than responding to the needs of external stakeholders such as prospective students, parents, alumni, and potential industry partners.
(2) Branding initiatives begin with research with key internal and external constituents. The purposes are to identify the authentic strengths and personality of an institution, explore the needs and interests of its customers, and determine a powerful and focused strategy for positioning the institution within its very competitive market.
Most strategic plans I see are distinctly lacking in exactly the sort of insight from external audiences that a branding study generates.
There absolutely must be a direct link between how a university positions itself from a marketing standpoint and how the institution invests its resources, which is determined in large part by the strategic plan. If there is to be any “truth in advertising,” the brand strategy should reflect the direction the strategic plan is taking the institution. The reverse should also be true: the strategic plan should provide evidence that the brand strategy is authentic.
I’m not naïve. I know some will counter that unlike for-profit organizations, colleges and universities are mission-driven institutions—that we determine the strategic direction of our college using our mission statement and values as our guide rather than focusing on revenue generation or customer needs. That, in fact, is the naïve argument. Any college or university that continues to try to operate as if it doesn’t have to compete and provide real, tangible value to its external stakeholders is living in a fantasy land.
As I’ve said to many of my clients, an “If you build it, they will come” philosophy only works in the movies. Today’s universities are facing very real competitive pressures that require them to have a keen understanding of how to position against peer institutions and appeal to the needs of prospects, parents, guidance counselors, alumni, research partners, employers, and other audiences that contribute to the health and success of the institution. Truly integrating a branding initiative with the strategic planning not only ensures the ultimate plan is market-focused but also maximizes the authenticity of the brand strategy. Both initiatives benefit.
Here at SimpsonScarborough, we are testing this theory. This summer, we’re kicking off a branding initiative that is completely integrated and in lock-step with the strategic planning process. We are working with an enlightened new university president who insisted on bringing the two initiatives together. We’ll report back throughout the year on how it’s going. I’m sure there will be aspects of this experiment that work well and others that don’t; I promise to report on both!
