ABC - Anchoring the brand concept
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KAMAL GHOSE has been a marketing and brand management practitioner for 16 years, and has wide consulting experience. His areas of research interest are internal branding of services and branding on the Internet. Over the last eight years he has held a number of academic marketing positions and has recently taken on the role of Head of the School of Business at Otago Polytechnic, New Zealand.
Abstract
Kamal Ghose Head, of School, Business, Otago Polytechnic, Fourth Street, Private Bag 1910, Dunedin, New Zealand Tel: ⫹64 3 4796119; Fax: ⫹64 3 4716862; E-mail: [email protected]
A successful website requires the creation of new customer experience that takes advantage of the unique capabilities of the Internet. In spite of the unprecedented opportunities provided by the digital media, only a handful of organisations have achieved significant visitor conversion rates. Growth in the number of repeat visitors is the lifeline of successful Internet marketing strategy. ‘The word of mouth nature of the Internet means it’s very costly if customers have a poor experience on your site’.1 Customer experience is the key to creating perceptions in the digitised world. From the user’s first click on the website to the point when a user experiences site loyalty, customer experience changes over time. To create the desired customer experience, the need for constant quick learning at all levels of the organisation is crucial. ‘The organisations that will truly excel in future will be the organisations that discover how to tap people’s commitment and capacity to learn at all levels in an organisation’.2 The internal brand proprietors or the employees are the driving force creating the gravitational pull to attract the target customers and appropriately position the brand in their minds. Each one of the internal brand proprietors needs to be aware of the ‘total customer experience’, which is responsible for creating customer perceptions. Creating a strong brand internally is as important as it is to create a strong brand externally. The system of anchoring the brand concept (ABC) provides a set of ongoing brand anchor audits to ensure optimal customer experience. Proper application of action learning set principles3 can weave the ABC brand audit into the daily fabric of the organisation. Ongoing ABC brand audits become a pillar of organisational culture connecting the ‘vertebral column’ to the different parts of the corporate body. They lead to the creation of an ideal climate for development of an effective learning community and for individual learning. The role of human relations (HR) becomes interwoven in internal brand creation. HR aims to encourage employee commitment and sets performance parameters aimed at simultaneously increasing employee involvement and satisfaction. Minimum market requirements (MMR) take the form of a constantly expanding spiral, and action learning becomes a regular feature of the ABC scaffolding. Weak links in the brand chain are the result of lack of appreciation by the employee of the pivotal role t
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