“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

– Warren Buffett, Investor

Identify the essence of your brand and position your company appropriately in the marketplace.

Karen Kang, a renowned brand strategist, in her book “Branding Pays” defined the following five-step system to reinvent your brand.

1. Positioning

Define your unique value. Positioning provides the rational foundation for branding. It makes your brand credible. It articulates your unique value and provides meaningful differentiation.

2. Messages

Develop the key messages that support your value. You may wish to revisit the elevator pitch we defined in the previous step and flesh it out into a set of talking points that help you articulate your positioning in a clear and concise way.

3. Brand strategy

Define an authentic, 360-degree brand by combining your rational and emotional value. The key elements you will need to create are your core values, strengths, brand personality, brand image, and brand promise. It helps you to deliver on your brand in thought, image, word, and deed.

4. Ecosystem

Develop a strategy for relationship building and management. In the end, it’s not what you say but what others say about you that determines your reputation. Your ecosystem acts as a marketing and sales team that can catapult your brand from unknown to desired.

5. Action Steps

• Develop an action plan that includes brand improvement and brand communication so your brand can be known and recognized.
• Write your top three priority actions for building your brand over the next 30 days.