Local brand consistency.

Brand consistency is a top priority for all brands in all sectors, as it is constantly discussed & sought after.

Quite rightly too. Consumers are savvy & it's hard to hide any failings in this area. There are many touch points where you can slip up before delivering the product or service.

Including the brand’s ‘strapline’, its promises, website, social, in-store, & many other things.

To protect your investment & gain customer trust & business, it’s vital to ensure everything about your brand tells the same story.

So, what are the local sins?

Brands don’t just design a logo, shoot a TV ad & then sit back waiting for the cash to roll in! There are programs & teams that nurture & develop the brand, with guidelines for each of the 4 stages of the customer journey.

The ‘Awareness’ stage of the journey will be handled primarily by the brand itself… national advertising in all the right places, beautiful website, etc. But… Local retail partners may have conflicting ideas about awareness, as they may want to promote their own name or brand and stand out from other partners, which may contradict the brand's promise.

The ‘Consideration’ stage overlaps with the local partners' territory, as they have their own websites, social media, & video channels. This can lead to confusion if their content differs from the brand's. It's important for local partners to uphold the trust built during the awareness stage.

In the ‘Buying’ stage, local partners play a major role. Are their offers consistent & timed with the brand's activity? Do they promote other products alongside the brand's? These sins can be unsettling for prospects.

The ‘Post-Sale’ stage is also in local hands with a risk of comms that don’t align with the brand promise… & customers are now arguably ‘owned’ by the local partner.

Where is redemption?

It’s all about making things easy for your local partners. They don’t break the rules because it’s hard. They do it because it’s easier.

Some brands require absolute alignment from local partners in every area, including marketing. However, this approach is difficult & rarely successful, unless the brand is highly in demand.

For all the others it’s a case of persuading & educating local partners to be brand consistent. Our recommendation is to provide them with everything to execute their own marketing – easily, effectively, & cheaply.

Easily?
A Local Marketing Hub gives local marketers easy access to personalised materials, saving them time & effort. Once they try it, they find it irresistible.

Effectively?
A specialist agency team manages the Local Marketing Hub, offering proven marketing plans, increasing partner engagement, & creating consistent on-brand campaign templates.

Cheaply?
The service could be free for local partners. Investment is small compared to national marketing spend, but justifies the cost as local activity increases exponentially & adds to the brand's footprint.

National to Local experts We Are Acuity have 25 years experience in effective local marketing for national brands. If you are impatient to know more, why not visit this page to download the full range of fascinating FREE ebooks today? Packed with tips, tricks and ideas it will be well worth your time. See you next week!

Or if you'd like to read more about Local Marketing have a look at our blog page "Local Thinking': https://www.weareacuity.com/local-thinking-our-blog

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