A Strong Corporate Identity is a Marketing Goldmine

When you hear the term 'corporate identity' you most likely either wonder what exactly it means, or know that your company has a strong or a weak one. Your corporate identity is vital today because it lets others know what your company stands for. Whether you are in marketing, or any other business, your corporate identity sets you apart from all the rest, and gives everyone in your company something to believe in. It is important because it reflects every aspect of your company. It represents not only customer interaction, but also the role your employees play in your company, and how they feel about it.

Dan Vivian, joint managing director of Design Group, has some great advice for those looking to create or strengthen their corporate identities. “You need to decide what is the core proposition of the company — what you do and what you sell,” he said. “If you don’t know what the company stands for it is difficult to create an identity. If you have no vision or proposition for the company, it will fall apart.”

Here are a few tips from Vivian on working up the most powerful corporate identity possible:

• If you don't know what your company stands for, have a brainstorming session with a few key colleagues from different departments and really hash out your ideas.
• The Goal: Come up with an image and message that will lodge in people's minds.
• Your identity should be as consistent as possible. Imagine it as one loud voice shouting from a rooftop instead of a lot smaller voices, which could get confusing.
• One key goal is to get everyone in your company backing the identity. Make sure your entire company is motivated by the identity, and that no one is confused by it.
• Identify your reasons for change. The reasons could be many or few, and can range from entering a new market to realizing new competition to simply becoming more visible in your sector.
• Once your identity is in place, commit to maintaining it and check in on it regularly to be sure that everything is still relevant and 'working.'