What’s the most effective way to tap into culture as a brand? With culture moving so quickly it can be easy for brands to latch onto the latest shiny thing and feel that this is the best way to create a culture first approach. But at KRPT we always tell our clients to start with one key element… Your brand values. The most effective cultural positioning needs to come from the brand itself. What does the brand represent, what is your TOV and what is your differentiator. These are the perfect foundations to understand what pocket of culture you should authentically align yourself with and how you should turn up. Whether you are innovating, supporting or creating, if the way you turn up in culture aligns with what your brand represents then it will feel more natural and people will believe your message. When brands chase trends rather than figuring out their meaning in culture it can feel disjointed and cringe. Stone Island are a perfect example of a brand getting this right at the moment. Their partnership strategy and timing with Liam Gallacher was a stroke of genius (his Instagram post announcing the collaboration has 93k likes in 3 hours!). But this is rooted in a long term strategy that aligns to the brands core values.
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External Marketing & Digital Director | Strategic Thinker with a Global Lens | Always Curious, Always Learning (The Intern in Me Lives On!)
Excellent read perfectly ahead of the coming marketing trend: culture and people. How culture is key for brands to consider and articulate in their marketing strategy: - Dynamic Flow of Relationships: Culture influences interactions from group dynamics to individual connections. - Code of Reference: It serves as a crucial reference point for generating and strengthening bonds. - Granular User Experience: Cultural expression extends to the finest details of user experience. It's important to distinguish this from cultural appropriation, as seen in current debates about top luxury French fashion brands drawing inspiration from ethnic groups. Thanks @Meg. I loved it.
Culture is hot right now. But what does 'culture' really mean? And why should brands care? Meg Asaro, Vault49’s Head of Strategy, dives in to define 'culture' in the context of brands for our latest Insights article. Outlining why understanding culture is essential for effective brand building, Meg also shares a list of prompts to consider when embedding your brand in culture. Read 'Why Culture Matters' here: https://lnkd.in/e7Mfpt4R
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Personal Brand Strategist | Helping my clients maximize their authority and influence to accelerate business growth and gain recognition.
True or false: A CEO’s personal brand can significantly impact company culture. Obviously, I wouldn’t be writing this if the answer wasn’t ‘true.’ According to a recent survey from business advisory firm Brunswick Group, employees have more enthusiasm about their leaders when their CEOs are active on social media. That’s a testament to how a CEO’s personal brand can influence company culture. Whether you’re sharing your experiences in the trenches or insights about what motivates you, it pays to invest time and energy into building your personal brand. But you can’t expect to move the needle with generic posts. Authenticity is the magic ingredient that inspires people around a unified vision for an organization’s future. Your actions, values, and messaging can profoundly influence your organization's ethos. And we all know how much a healthy company culture can boost that bottom line. So, ensure your entire team has access to your messaging by building an active, consistent personal brand. How have you leveraged your personal brand to foster a healthy company culture? #personalbrandingtips #CEObranding #executivebranding
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Do brands shape culture? 🤔 Shaping and influencing culture seems to be a topic adland won't let go. I've spent over 20yrs working with brands, helping build cultural relevance and fame in many different categories. In truth, in all that time, I've seen perhaps a very small handful of brands actually play a role in shaping culture (you know the ones, they're the case examples in every workshop ever). And that doesn't mean that other brands aren't still commercially successful btw. To me, it feels arrogant for a corporation to believe it has a place to shape culture, but it can be legitimate for it to perform a role, or become a representative of culture. So let's start from the viewpoint of what can a brand do to support culture? See marketing as an investment into culture where the ROI is respect, instead of control. Believe me it delivers a better result. Let me know if you'd like to hear more about creating brand respect?
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Building a strong brand culture strategy is as much about knowing what to avoid as it is about best practices. Here are three key pitfalls to steer clear of: 1. Ignoring Employee Input: Top-down approaches can miss the mark. Your employees are the lifeblood of your brand culture. Neglecting their insights and perspectives can lead to a strategy that doesn't resonate with the very people it's meant to inspire. 2. Lack of Authenticity: Trying to mimic another organization's culture or forcing values that don't align with your own can backfire. Authenticity is crucial; your brand culture should reflect who you are and what you genuinely stand for. 3. Inconsistency Across Touchpoints: A brand culture strategy isn't just for internal consumption; it should be evident in every interaction with your brand. Inconsistency between what you preach and what you practice can lead to a credibility gap. At Culturefy, we believe in a holistic approach to building a brand culture strategy – one that is inclusive, authentic, and consistent. ➡️ https://loom.ly/cTdBN-o #BrandCulture #StrategyMistakes #CulturefyInsights #CorporateCulture #EmployeeEngagement #AuthenticityInBusiness #BrandIdentity #Leadership #OrganizationalDevelopment #CompanyValues #BusinessStrategy #CultureBuilding #BrandAlignment
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👉 Part of good brand work means defining your organization's VALUES. Why? Values give us organizational guardrails. They’re great at helping people know what your cultural norms and expectations are, which is a key driver of culture. They’re especially helpful when someone strays outside of those values. They’re a gentle- but non-negotiable - way to bring people back into community alignment. At Brand & Board, we stand by these values for our clients and for each other: ✨ Lead with Positive Intent: Recognizing the sector is hard, we lead with a shared intention of only wanting what’s best for you and your organization. 👭 Relationships are Everything: Feeling safe, valued, and respected for your contributions makes for a productive and enlightening experience. 😇 Honesty is the Only Policy: We’ll tell you what we think. You’ll tell us what you think. We won’t sugar coat struggles, and we’ll celebrate the heck out of big wins. You may think you know your organization’s values. But if we asked every employee, funder or Board member, would they say the same thing? Write them down. Talk about them. Bring them to life. Watch what happens.
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🚨 Controversial Take: Brands Don't Create Culture, They Reflect It 🚨 and what is cultural capital. In the world of branding, the truth is: brands don't create culture—they reflect it. Working with talented strategists ( cc Arthur Brenac), I've witnessed the pitfalls of trying to impose a brand's vision on youth culture, like in the infamous Kendall Jenner Pepsi ad. 🚫 The result? Clichés and missed marks. Culture is driven by individuals—artists, musicians, filmmakers, athletes, and more. Brands succeed when they tap into this cultural pulse and provide a platform for genuine expression. They don't generate cultural capital; they translate it into economic value. When brands mistakenly think they’re the originators of culture, they often end up with misguided campaigns. Our role as marketers and strategists is to connect products and services with existing cultural trends, not to invent culture. But hey, if creating culture is what you're passionate about, perhaps it’s time to embrace a more artistic path. Until then, let’s focus on authentic engagement rather than forced innovation. What’s your take on this? 💬👇 #BrandStrategy #Marketing #CulturalCapital #Authenticity #Branding
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Branding & Strategy. Building disruptive brands 👉 Accelerators, Incubators, Startups, Founders, Tech, CRETech, Hospitality, UAV, PropTech, Food & Bev, AgTech, DTC, Retail
[Common Rebranding Pitfalls #2] Ignoring Internal Culture. If you’re thinking about rebranding, keep this in mind: The Pitfall: A brand is not just an external image but a reflection of the company’s internal culture. Failing to align the internal culture with the brand’s external message can lead to inconsistencies. The Consequence: This misalignment can erode trust, as customers may sense a lack of authenticity in the brand’s messaging and actions. Check out the full list of pitfalls here: https://lnkd.in/emXKCUhW Whether you’re a company or an individual - knowing the pitfalls could help you steer clear of branding mishaps. #BrandAuthenticity #InternalCulture #RebrandingStrategy #BusinessTrust
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Brand culture is so much more than just your slogan and image! And I want to share what is it exactly. It's the way you show your clients, employees, or society in general your beliefs, values, experiences, and material traits. However, it is a double-edged sword because it can hurt your image as a brand if the culture is shown in a wrong or negative way. Sometimes it is unintentional or maybe even created by the public voice, so it is better to create and establish it yourself before it does somebody else!
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When it comes to creating brand work; if it doesn't resonate, you’re wasting money. I spoke to a Strategy Leader at a world renowned branding agency in New York last week. They're on a mission to integrate the significance of brands into their internal culture. And they're doing this by using a two step approach: 1. Who are the brands we work with and what is the story we are trying to tell? 2. How do we make sure that the brand we are putting out into the world is being lived? In order to make this happen, it's about ensuring that those people internally understand the real value of brand itself. And how much culture plays a part in that. So why wouldn't you encourage work that speaks to the human experience? If the work brands are putting out aren't speaking to consumers on a human level, then there isn't much point.
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