For some budget-conscious organizations, branding is considered a superficial luxury. But that is short-sighted thinking, according to Marilyn Wilker, marketing communications strategist at Mint Chip Communications, a Chicago-based brand strategy and advertising company.
“Branding is not just a name and a logo,” she said. “A brand is a promise between an organization and its constituents.”
Ms. Wilker, former head of marketing communications at the Cleveland Clinic, led a discussion on branding a RYAN Associates’ 26th annual national conference in October.
For those who doubt the value of an investment in branding, Ms. Wilker said, “It makes your budget work harder. If you have a unified look and feel, you don’t have to spend quite as much because your organization and your brand are instantly recognizable.”
What is branding?
Branding is the clearest and easiest way to represent an organization and the principles or products it represents, she said. An organization’s brand positioning statement is the promise it makes to consumers.
For example, McDonald’s, Disney, Target, and Apple are all instantly identifiable brands. Their easily recognized logos and slogans trigger certain expectations. Each promises a familiar, consistent experience, which conversely makes them unique and sets them apart from the competition.
Ms. Wilker said a particularly effective brand is a:
- visual representation of the strategy
- tangible concept that appeals to the senses
- means to fuel recognition, amplify differentiation, and make complex ideas accessible
- unification of disparate elements into a whole system
Branding helps:
- enhance an organization’s reputation
- distinguish an organization from its competitors
- support a premium or high-value pricing strategy
- build trust
- encourage loyalty
- drive business
- build internal pride
- leverage resources and your budget
Successful branding
The development of a brand for an occupational health program or clinic requires a team effort, Ms. Wilker said. The beauty of branding is that it “ensures there is one voice that is unique and differentiating.” Successful branding also makes everyone in an organization a brand steward.
“Each person who works for your organization is a representative of your brand. If they believe in the brand, it can serve as a rallying cry that can unify your organization,” Ms. Wilker said, “and that unity can help build business.”
When developing or changing a brand, Ms. Wilker recommends that organizations identify and research brands they especially respect and see what worked for them.
Managing brand hierarchy
Occupational health programs that are affiliated with a larger organization often are beholden to the branding strategy of their parent. This can create challenges. A health system’s lengthy positioning statement may consume an occupational health program’s core message, which may be as simple as: “Enhancing worker health.” In such cases, a balanced approach is recommended. This usually involves the use of the corporate brand in conjunction with a message tied to the occupational health program’s value statement.
In addition, as healthcare systems and provider networks consolidate, there is a risk of brand clashing that may confuse internal and external constituents.
Ms. Wilker said architecture for rebranding existing entities helps lend consistency, and visual and verbal order to diverse elements. Representatives within each organization must identify and reach an agreement on interrelationships among the parent company, subsidiary companies, products, and services.
For instance, when Dignity Health acquired the U.S. HealthWorks occupational health clinic network in 2012, U.S. HealthWorks added the tagline, “A wholly owned, for-profit subsidiary of Dignity Health focused on the occupational health care practice.” In other cases, such as when independent urgent care clinics are acquired by health systems, they may find it expedient to rebrand themselves by leveraging their affiliation, e.g., Mercy Urgent Care. In this case, the urgent care clinic benefits from Mercy’s strong hospital brand. At the same time, making urgent care central to the brand makes it easy for consumers to understand the services they offer, Ms. Wilker said.
