What a brand strategy is, what it isn’t, and six steps to developing a brand for your institution.

1. Developing a Brand Strategy for Your Institution
Defining Branding
February 20, 2008
© Lipman Hearne 2008. This material cannot be copied or reproduced without permission

2. Defining Branding
Agenda:
Defining brand
Branding in the higher education context
The role of identity in branding
Brand Claims
Steps to brand development
Brand Positioning
A Case Study

3. Brand: YOU

4. AT BIRTH

5. IN COLLEGE

6. CAREER CHANGE

7. OUTSIDE OF WORK

8. AT RETIREMENT

9. Brand is
NOT:

10. Defining Branding
Brand is not:
The next project after the website
Your mission statement
Cooked up in the cabinet meeting
“Category” attributes

11. Defining Branding
Brand is not:
A logo
Color scheme/look and feel
A rule book
Advertising

12. Brand
IS:

13. Defining Branding
Brand is:
Every association and experience
Functional and emotional
Intrinsic and original
Contextual and positional
Active and intentional

14. WINNING BRANDS:

15. Are championed by everyone
Pay attention
WINNING BRANDS: Are responsive
Change with the times
Move to meet goals

16. Meet a compelling need
(beyond “a degree”)
Inspire loyalty
WINNING BRANDS: Create a premium
Facilitate choice
Insulate against competition
Are ‘money in the bank’

17. The Challenges of Brand-building

18. Why the angst?

19. Defining Branding
Brands are abstract and metaphysical
Perceived as a ‘Zero-Sum-Game’
Perceptions affect brand—the ‘truth’ is vulnerable
‘Consumers’ are not rational
Come from commercial models
Requires collaboration and collusion

20. The role of identity in branding

21. IDENTITY IS A REFLECTION
OF THE BRAND

22. Distillation of experience
Essence
IDENTITY IS A REFLECTION
Reflection of value
OF THE BRAND
Impression of associated
qualities
Frame of reference

23. Defining Branding
What identity can’t do:
Can’t tell a story
Can’t fix a brand
Doesn’t drive the brand

24. Defining Branding
What identity does best:
Reflects a personality
Expresses an abstract notion
Establishes an organizing architecture
Provides the ‘brand collateral’ for product extensions
Establishes benchmarks and standards for consistent
visual expression and naming conventions

25. Positioning the Brand
Checklist for brand claim:
Can we really make this promise?
Distinctive in market
Relevant to constituents
Credible and supportable with evidence
Consistent with brand heritage
Feasible and executable

26. Reverse-engineering Some
Brand Claims

30. 6
STEPS TO BRAND
DEVELOPMENT

31. Understand presenting
1. concerns
Define the need. Use evidence
Consider the past

32. 2. Determine shared ambitions
Prioritize audiences
Capture objectives.
Set realistic goals

33. Conduct constituent research
3. Explore the competitive and
Analyze the world issue environment
outside. Constructively engage with
findings

34. Capture brand characteristics
4. Formulate a competitive
Draft beta brand brand claim
platform and strategy. Consider how to best deliver

35. Determine credibility and
“gap”
5. Explore emotional connection
Test and refine.
Listen for audience
preferences and habits
Refine platform and claim

36. 6. Develop marketing plan
Develop brand tools. Check identity and
architecture

37. Brand Positioning

38. Staking Your Claim

39. Brand totality of associations and experiences

40. Brand totality of associations and experiences
your brand in the competitive
+ Positioning environment

41. Brand totality of associations and experiences
your brand in the competitive
+ Positioning environment
= Brand claim the turf you stake and defend

42. Positioning the Brand
Checklist for brand claim
Strong and distinctive
Relevant to constituents
Credible
Consistent with brand heritage
Feasible

43. Positioning the Brand
Developing a brand claim
Blending science and insight
Holistic and strategic thinking
No single formula
Choosing how to focus now

44. Positioning Challenge #1
Getting beyond Distinguish between
“category” “points of parity” and
unique attributes

45. Positioning Challenge #2
Strength v. Balancing what you
Relevance are best known for
against what you learn
to be the most
important
“decision-drivers.”

46. Brand Positioning Priorities

47. Positioning Challenge #3
Motivating Understanding what
Desire audiences want from
your brand beyond a
degree or other
functional benefit

48. Positioning the Brand
Motivating desire
Asking the right questions
Ethnographic research
Cultural understanding

49. A CASE STUDY
Case Study:
Fielding Graduate University
Fielding Graduate University

50. Positioning the Brand
Fielding Graduate University
Founded in the early 70s as an “alternative”
to traditional in-residence graduate programs
“Human development” fields of psychology,
org development, education
For place-bound adult students
Now competing in for-profit online
environment

51. Fielding Competitor Positioning Landscape

53. Positioning Priorities: Fielding Graduate University
Academic quality
Institutional reputation relative to for-profits
and prestige relative to
“traditional” universities Top accreditation
Specialized
institutional focus
Flexibility
Reputation in disciplines
relative to for-profits
Technology
Commitment to social justice
Non-profit status

54. Brand framework
BRAND REWARD BRAND VALUE BRAND PERSONALITY
EMOTIONAL
Emotional benefits Principles Character and style
Ideals
BRAND ICONS BRAND FEATURES BRAND BENEFIT
Tangible symbols Defining attributes of the Functional benefits to
institution’s brand: relevant, constituents
tangible, verifiable
FUNCTIONAL
FOUNDATION
University GOALS
Institution’s stated mission

55. Validated Brand Platform: Fielding Graduate University
BRAND REWARD INSTITUTIONAL VALUE BRAND PERSONALITY
EMOTIONAL
“The Ph.D. that I was Respect for the individual Smart, creative, caring,
meant to get and that generates creative solutions independent
earns others’ admiration” and enlightened practice
BRAND ICONS CORE ATTRIBUTES BRAND BENEFIT
• Exclusive focus in inter-related fields of
Psychology, Human & Organization
Affiliation with/degree from
FUNCTIONAL
Development, and Educational Leadership
• Top professional accreditation respected graduate
• Dialogical/distributed learning model enabling
customized degree paths university in human
• Attracts self-directed professionals development fields
• Demonstrated research excellence
• Collaborative scholar-practitioner community
• Committed full-time faculty members
Mission:
Fielding Graduate University prepares its students to serve as reflective professionals through its innovative
doctoral and master’s programs, collaborative learning model, and continuing professional education. We support
professional and personal transformation through a learning model which integrates theory, research, and values
with high integrity practice and scholarship in Psychology, Human & Organization Development, and Educational
Leadership & Change.

56. Fielding Brand Claim:
A specialized graduate university providing all the
quality—plus the flexibility of on-line delivery—to draw
the most self-directed and creative human
development professionals

57. Positioning the Brand
Fielding strategy:
Play on ground competitors can’t
Specialized nature
Institutional solidity
Quality guarantors (APA accreditation)
Third-party endorsement

58. Positioning the Brand
Fielding strategy:
Show students as agents
Independent ways of thinking
Students as colleagues
Breakthrough solutions in disciplines

59. Positioning the Brand
Fielding strategy:
Don’t dwell in self-actualization space
Emotional appeals
Supportive culture (reads as remedial)
Soft imagery