Introduction:
In today’s competitive business landscape, maintaining a strong and consistent brand identity is crucial for long-term success and outperforming your competition.
However, many companies overlook the importance of having a dedicated brand governance team, mistakenly believing that it is an unnecessary expense.
There is no doubt that many companies can’t afford one, and that understandable, it’s not cheap.
According to Association of National Advertisers (ANA), the average budget for a brand governance team is $3.3 million. Don’t have that cash, that’s why we built an Automated Brand Identity Monitoring solution that acts as your outsourced brand compliance team at a small fraction of the cost.
But for those companies that can dedicate resources to focus exclusively on brand, it is a must do.
For the rest of this post we will delve into the tangible and intangible costs that companies incur when they neglect to establish a dedicated brand governance team, highlighting why it is a worthwhile investment.
Tangible Costs:
Inconsistent Branding: Without a dedicated brand governance team, ensuring consistency across various marketing materials, advertising campaigns, and communication channels becomes challenging. Inconsistencies in branding can confuse customers, erode brand trust, and hinder customer loyalty. This lack of consistency often results in additional costs to rectify brand-related issues and redesign materials that do not align with the brand guidelines.
Marketing Inefficiencies: When there is no centralized oversight, individual departments may create their own marketing collateral, resulting in duplicated efforts, inefficient resource allocation, and disjointed messaging. This can lead to wasted time, resources, and increased costs associated with producing and distributing ineffective marketing materials.
Legal Risks: Without proper brand governance, companies are vulnerable to legal risks, such as trademark infringement or unauthorized use of copyrighted material. These legal issues can result in costly litigation, reputational damage, and potential loss of market share.
Missed Business Opportunities: A lack of brand governance can lead to missed opportunities for brand extensions, partnerships, and collaborations. Without a clear strategy and consistent brand representation, potential business ventures may be hesitant to align with a company that lacks brand coherence, resulting in missed growth opportunities.
Intangible Costs:
Damage to Brand Reputation: Inconsistencies in branding and messaging can erode consumer trust and tarnish the reputation of a company. When customers encounter conflicting brand experiences, they may perceive the company as unprofessional, unreliable, or even dishonest. The intangible cost of a damaged brand reputation can be difficult to quantify but can have long-lasting negative effects on customer perception and loyalty.
Decreased Employee Engagement: A lack of brand governance can lead to confusion among employees about how to represent the brand. This can create a disengaged workforce that lacks a clear sense of purpose and direction. When employees do not understand or feel connected to the brand, their motivation and commitment to delivering consistent brand experiences diminishes. This can result in decreased productivity, higher employee turnover, and increased training costs.
Weakened Competitive Advantage: Consistent branding sets companies apart from their competitors and establishes a unique value proposition. Without a dedicated brand governance team, companies risk blending in with competitors, losing their distinctiveness, and diluting their competitive advantage. This can make it challenging to attract and retain customers in a crowded marketplace.
While the tangible and intangible costs of neglecting brand governance may not always be immediately apparent, they can significantly impact a company’s bottom line and long-term success. Inconsistent branding, marketing inefficiencies, legal risks, missed business opportunities, damage to brand reputation, decreased employee engagement, and weakened competitive advantage are just some of the consequences that companies may face without a dedicated brand governance team.
Investing in a dedicated brand governance team ensures consistent and coherent brand representation, protects against legal risks, enhances customer trust and loyalty, and provides a strategic advantage in the marketplace. By allocating resources to establish and maintain a brand governance team, companies can mitigate these costs and position themselves for sustainable growth, enhanced brand value, and long-term success.
Whether you have a team or not, Astute’s Brand Monitoring Solution can help enhance dedicated teams or act as an outsourced compliance partner at a price that won’t break the bank.
