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INDEPENDENT LIVING CANADA
JOB POSTING - NATIONAL DIRECTOR
The National Director is accountable for promoting and fostering the development of the Independent Living Movement across Canada including but not limited to the effective and efficient operation of the National office. more ...
Tackling a re-brand
By Andy Levy-Ajzenkopf
June 23, 2008
Answer this question: What’s the number one soft drink company in the world? Chances are, you just answered Coca-Cola or Pepsico. And they’re No. 1 and 2 on any given month. So how did you know the answer? Simple. Brand marketing.
In principle it’s an obvious equation. The more you can get your organization’s name and cause into the public consciousness, the more impact and response you’ll have. To put it crudely, in the corporate world, the more you’re noticed (and associated as a good corporate citizen and/or brand) the more sales you’ll generate.
For nonprofits, it’s a little trickier. Voluntary sector organizations have to brand with societal goals in mind and the hopes of attracting donors. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be done. Think of the United Way or the Salvation Army, two major charities that most Canadians can identify and speak about knowledgeably. And their logos are just as easily remembered and recognized; the United Way’s rainbow-arced open hand and the Salvation
Army’s trademark red shield.
But what happens when an organization wants to re-brand? That’s a different proposition. Imagine if you were asked how you would change United Way’s iconic mission or logo (not that it needs it) to make it more relevant or memorable? It’s not easy.
Janay Ferguson, president of LiteHouse Strategic Marketing and Communications in Calgary, works exclusively with nonprofits and offers this description of a re-brand. “Re-branding assumes there is already a brand in place. If that is the case, a re-brand is simply an update of the existing brand – it may also be referred to as a brand refresh,” she says. “I define brands as an expression of an organization’s vision, mission, values, areas of differentiation and aspirations – all articulated in a way that is easy to understand and memorable.”
Seeking independence
According to Ferguson, a re-brand is necessary if an organization’s mission has changed. And there are questions to ask before embarking on the re-brand road.
“What is motivating the change? Has the vision or the mission changed? Those are the two key drivers behind a brand identity – if they have not changed, then the brand should be intact. It may simply be an issue of communications and marketing to help explain and align people to the brand,” she says. “I recommend a brand audit occur approximately every five years. This will measure perceptions and efficacy of the existing brand and will help identify if a re-branding or refresh is required.”
In Ottawa, Traci Walters, national director for Independent Living Canada (ILC) – formerly known as the Canadian Association of Independent Living Centres (CAILC) – recalls how and why her organization made the switch to a new branding scheme this past May after more than 20 years being known as CAILC.
“In the spring of 2007 we announced a new logo and slogan and we thought our work was completed on branding. We created the new logo and created a slogan… and kept our original name. However, in May 2007 our marketing committee held a corporate think tank… to tap into the minds of corporate representatives. They raised some thought-provoking questions that made us realize that our work was not yet done,” she recalls. “The most compelling statement was: why we called ourselves the Canadian Association of Independent Living Centres? I don’t know how many times people have said to me that they thought the centres were places where people live, not realizing that our member organizations are actually local resource centres for people with disabilities.”
For Walters, it was a revelation and made her realize that the leadership in a nonprofit sometimes has to take a step back from organization to look at it with fresh eyes.
“One of our corporate guests suggested that if our main mandate is to promote the independent living movement/philosophy, we [should] simply call ourselves Independent Living Canada,” Walters says. “I remember looking around the room at the various board members and I could see the light bulb turning on for all of us. It just made so much sense. Looking back now – why did it take 20 years and an outsider to figure that one out? During our brand development process I don’t think we asked for opinions from corporate Canada – local members, people with disabilities, other stakeholders but [we] forgot about corporate Canada.”
A clear re-vision
Most marketing experts agree that the vision and mission statements are the driving force behind any successful brand and/or re-brand.
“Vision represents what the organization aspires to achieve. It is this vision that is typically the inspiration for people to get involved with or support a specific organization over another,” Ferguson says. “The mission explains the details of how they plan to achieve the vision – the who, what and why of the organization. It tells people why the organization exists and is relevant. The brand of course, is an expression of all of these points.”
In addition to changing their logo and name, Walters and ILC also had the task of devising a new vision and mission for the organization.
“Once we had spent so much time [working on] a new logo - we didn’t have one before - and slogan and, ultimately, a new name, it was important that we had a national voice. It quickly became apparent that we needed to be consistent in our messaging,” Walters says. “We have just completed several months creating our new mission/vision and other marketing statements and created a style guide for use by the entire [Independent Living] network.”
Team re-brand
Walters adds that ILC involved stakeholders, focus groups and her board, as well as its executive directors in the re-brand process in order to get consensus on the changes.
“As frustrating as the process seems at times, it was necessary to have the buy-in from our network,” she says.
“Within a matter of months, 12 Independent Living Centres have already adopted the [new] logo and slogan. Prior to that, every IL Centre had a different logo. It is the constant and ongoing brand recognition that will solve many of our image, communication and messaging problems. Branding is much more than a logo. We have also created branding tools including the style guide, key messaging documents for various audiences, templates for newsletters, PowerPoints, a disability lexicon and more.”
ILC also engaged the services of a PR agency to provide leadership and knowledge in the re-brand process, something Ferguson highly recommends for nonprofits undergoing a brand shift.
“I recommend using a reputable and trained brand professional to introduce and lead the process and ensure key stakeholders are involved and able to participate when appropriate. A well developed process will include measurements to ensure the brand is aligned and effectively moving the organization toward greater success,” she says.
More than this, Ferguson believes a successful re-brand will revitalize not only the organization’s external image, but also its internal morale.
“My clients typically experience multiple effects from the branding process, including program alignment, focus on strategic directions and goals, targeted fund development strategies, more effective human resource retention and recruitment, clear and concise communication of their vision and mission in a way that is easy to understand, and memorable and improved moral and cohesion among staff and volunteers,” she states.
Avoid re-jection
So what’s the most glaring error an organization can make when it comes to its brand?
“The biggest mistake I see is when organizations treat branding as a project that has a beginning and an end. You can’t check branding off the ‘list of things to do’.”
“The biggest mistake I see is when organizations treat branding as a project that has a beginning and an end,” Ferguson answers. “You can’t check branding off the ‘list of things to do’. Just as you wouldn’t leave your mission unattended or unmanaged, brands are thoughtful and need to be protected to remain strong. When left unmanaged, brands may leave themselves open to risk of misinterpretation. It is important to apply rigor when branding. There are models and processes that have been developed in order to mitigate risk and inaccuracy, and that lead the development, implementation and management of a strong brand.”
Walters has this piece of advice for her sector colleagues thinking of a re-brand. “Make sure to have plenty of lead time and involve all partners in the process. I think that it was a very good idea to invite people outside of the organization, such as corporate guests, into the process. We are often too close to the organization to be objective about how we are perceived by the public,” she says. “We learned that it takes time and patience and you never get 100% agreement on a logo or slogan but the process is built on consensus.”
Top 5 re-brand rules for nonprofits
1. Determine what’s motivating the change in brand.
2. Build in plenty of lead time for the project
3. Involve all stakeholders in the consultation process
4. Hire a brand-marketing professional to lead the process
5. Conduct a brand audit every five years
Strengthening the Social Fabric of Communities
Christie Simmons
May 30, 2008
538 words
“What would happen if charities didn’t exist?” asks Tyra Henschel, executive director of Alberta’s Promise.
The answer, while impossible to gage, gets at the root of how crucial the non-profit sector is to Canada’s economy, quality of life and to the strength of our communities’ social fabric. According to Mrs. Henschel, charitable dollars are an investment that when well placed, ripple through society and positively impact virtually everyone.
As part of her work with Alberta’s Promise – a provincial organization dedicated to uniting donors and charitable organizations to help kids – Mrs. Henschel strives to ensure charitable money and effort does work as efficiently as possible. Beyond providing professional development to their partner organizations, Alberta’s Promise works to increase and most appropriately direct resources.
Through their activities, says Mrs. Henschel, corporations and partner charities have come together to help kids in a variety of ways that ultimately allow them to become productive contributors to society. And that, she says, is where the investment gives back. By helping others, Canadians are helping themselves and society as a whole becomes stronger.
“This kind of work has a huge impact on society,” says Mrs. Henschel. “This is about having a great concern for the future. It’s about the economy and who will fill our jobs.”
Those who work with Independent Living Canada, formerly the Canadian Association of Independent Living Centres have a similar view. This organization is geared not to fixing or preventing disabilities but rather to reducing barriers for those who are living with disabilities so that they can fully contribute, rather than depend on society.
According to Traci Walters, National Director, the organization’s network of 28 Independent Living Centres are run by and for people with a broad range of disabilities. The organization’s intent is to give disabled people more control over their lives and provide them services that allow them to participate in all aspects of society. It is not, says Ms Walters, about charity. Their organization is about investing in an untapped workforce of people with disabilities, an investment that will pay off politically, culturally, socially and economically.
“Often people are asked to donate,” says Ms Walters. “Now we ask people to invest. And when people invest they feel they are part of something bigger – whether they’re individuals or corporations. By us forging ahead, it’s making the world a whole lot better for those who acquire a disability – or age. And that’s all of us!”
It all starts with the individual, says Ms Walters. Individuals work to enhance and strengthen the community and strong communities make for robust societies.
In her work as vice president philanthropy and funds development with the Simkoe/Muskoka YMCA, Linda Clemow has seen first hand how those who receive often end up giving back.
The Y’s Strong Kids Campaign, which is raising funds to help kids get to summer camp, is heavily promoted and supported by camp alumni – many of whom couldn’t pay when they went, says Ms Clemow. And the camp experience itself, she says, has been a crucial ingredient in many cases to helping kids get their lives on track so that they do become confident, successful, contributing members of society.
“These camps have helped raise the next generation of leaders,” says Ms Clemow. “It’s wonderful to be able to see how people lives can change!”
