A few years ago, Starbucks got some flak for shutting down every one of its over seven thousand U.S. stores for two hours to conduct a “partner” (i.e. employee) training event in the company’s efforts to “renew its focus on the customer”. Founder, Howard Shultz explained that “Our unprecedented level of commitment to and investment in our people will provide them with the tools and resources they need to exceed the expectations of our customers.” Closing the stores sent an unmistakable message that Schultz was serious about his expectations that all 135,000 Starbucks employees deliver on the brand promise.
On the other hand, a 2001 University of Michigan study on customer service ranked McDonald’s among the poorest performers relative to customer satisfaction, noting that it failed to demonstrate its organizational values and deliver on its brand promise – to provide outstanding service, quality, value, cleanliness; and to have every customer in every restaurant smile. In contrast to those external messages, the study noted that the top five complaints by McDonald’s customers were rude employees; being out of Happy Meal toys; slow service; missing product/wrong order; and unclean restaurants. As per the study, “poor customer service may be costing McDonald’s up to $750 million per year in lost business.”
MacLaverty, McQuillan and Oddie noted in their Internal Branding Best Practices Study that “The more we have studied internal branding the more convinced we have become of the crucial role internal branding plays in the successful implementation of business strategy. A company’s most powerful means of delivering a defined brand experience is through the intermediation of its employees and by effectively delivering on the brand promise. Only in this way can business strategy successfully be executed, enabling business plans to be achieved. Or put more succinctly – ignore internal branding and you are likely to imperil your business.”
Internal branding, according to them, “is the set of strategic processes that align and empower employees to deliver the appropriate customer experience in a consistent fashion. These processes include, but are not limited to, internal communications, training support, leadership practices, reward & recognition programs, recruitment practices and sustainability factors.”
With a screaming headline, “Don’t Neglect Internal Branding”, Steve Mckee wrote in BusinesWeek that “internal branding is simply having a continuous process in place by which you ensure your employees understand the “who” and “why” behind your business proposition.” It is partly internal communications, but goes beyond the typical staff memos and HR updates. While it is related to training, it is about much more than the “how” of what needs to be done.”
Internal branding is increasingly seen as a cost-effective way to motivate employees to optimize performance and sales, yet I must admit that it is not a popular concept, in so far as the default mode for most companies is to focus entirely on marketing efforts aimed at promoting the brand to consumers. However, to live up to the “hype”, it is necessary to take care of your internal processes, that is, to ensure that your people and practices are aligned to your company’s values, whereby everyone who is a part of your organization believes in and reproduces those values.
This is what internal branding seeks to achieve. You cannot produce a good marketing message to the public unless you start from within. Or how can you expect to make customers loyal to something your employees don’t feel loyal to themselves?
Such contemplation mirrors Karen Alsfine’s thesis that “The real value of brand lies in how it manifests in the people who deliver on the brand promise.” Similarly, Leslie de Chernatony observes that, “Branding promises are wasted unless employees understand the brand promise; are committed to delivering the brand promise; and are more likely to genuinely deliver an authentic brand experience when their values align with the espoused values of the brand.” And just as I am wont to say, “In business, as in brands, never make promises you have no intention of keeping or that you may find difficult to keep.”
In response to his own poser, ‘Internal branding- What exactly is it?’ Allan Steinmetz offers that “Internal branding is a cultural shift within an organization, where the employees become more customer focused and more business focused. Internal branding, done well, allows employees to transition from being “Informed,” to “Understanding” the information, to becoming “Committed”, so that they “Change Their Behavior’ in support of the company goals…When all is said and done, successful internal branding lifts brand equity, customer focus and ultimately shareholder value.”
Olufemi Adeyemo
image: news.bbc.co.uk
organic branding 