Brand Camp!

We’ve spent a lot of time over the last few weeks conducting Brand Camps with a client that is getting ready to roll out a new brand. A Brand Camp is a diagonal cross-section of the staff with about 10–15 people in attendance. The Camps last about 1.5 hours, and during that time, the company introduces what the new brand position will be.

Time is spent talking about what they should keep doing to reinforce the brand position, and brainstorming about what they should start and stop doing to ensure the brand position is authentic. All of this happens before the new brand position becomes widely known and understood by the community.

It doesn’t hurt that this company already lives the brand position — so taking the time to do this right is going to set them on their new brand path firmly and completely.

Benefits of a Brand Camp

Having the courage to have these kinds of conversations with every member of the staff does several critical things for a new brand position.

1. First, every staff member has been invited to be an owner in the new position. This allows each staff person to make it their personal mission to live the brand in ways that can never happen if the brand is simply introduced and expected to be embraced.
2. The company gains the ability to focus on living the brand before the community fully expects it. This provides valuable time to ensure everything is in alignment so customers and potential customers feel the brand position the moment they walk through the doors.
3. The company gets a head start on aligning policies and procedures with the brand promise. There’s nothing worse than telling the world what to expect from your business and then having internal processes prevent you from delivering on it.

When the company is ready for the brand to be fully experienced by the community, they’ll be positioned for success because they took the time to engage every employee and invite them to make the new brand position their own.

The New Brand Position

We can’t wait to share the new brand position with you, but for now it remains under wraps. Until then, consider how a Brand Camp might help your organization align internally and succeed externally.