Outlines 15 explanations for the fog which has enveloped the nascent domains of corporate identity and corporate marketing. However, the fog surrounding the area has a silver lining. This is because the fog has, unwittingly, led to the emergence of rich disciplinary, philosophical as well as “national”, schools of thought. In their composite, these approaches have the potential to form the foundations of a new approach to management which might be termed “corporate marketing”. In addition to articulating the author’s understanding of the attributes regarding a business identity (the umbrella label used to cover corporate identity, organisational identification and visual identity) the author outlines the characteristics of corporate marketing and introduces a new corporate marketing mix based on the mnemonic “HEADS”[2]. This relates to what an organisation has, expresses, the affinities of its employees, as well as what the organisation does and how it is seen by stakeholder groups and networks. In addition, the author describes the relationship between the corporate identity and corporate brand and notes the differences between product brands and corporate brands. Finally, the author argues that scholars need to be sensitive to the factors that are contributing to the fog surrounding corporate identity. Only then will business identity/corporate marketing studies grow in maturity.

Corporate identity, corporate branding and corporate marketing ‐ Seeing through the fog

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand the internal branding process from the employees' perspective; it will empirically assess the relationship between internal branding and employees' delivery of the brand promise as well as the relationships among their brand identification, brand commitment and brand loyalty. Design/methodology/approach – On a census basis, a quantitative survey is carried out with 699 customer-interface employees from five major hotels. Findings – Internal branding is found to have a positive impact on attitudinal and behavioural aspects of employees in their delivery of the brand promise. As employees' brand commitment does not have a statistically significant relationship with employees' brand performance, it is not regarded as a mediator in the link between internal branding and employees' brand performance. Furthermore, the study shows that brand identification is a driver of brand commitment, which precedes brand loyalty of employees. Practical implications – A number of significant managerial implications are drawn from this study, for example using both internal communication and training to influence employees' brand-supporting attitudes and behaviours. Still, it should be noted that the effect of internal branding on the behaviours could be dependent on the extent to which it could effectively influence their brand attitudes. Originality/value – The results provide valuable insights from the key internal audience's perspectives into an internal branding process to ensure the delivery of the brand promise. It empirically shows the relationship between internal branding and the behavioural outcome as well as the meditational effects of employees' brand identification, commitment and loyalty.

/pdf/internal-branding-an-enabler-of-employees-brand-supporting-5cmkh38c64.pdf

Internal branding: an enabler of employees' brand‐supporting behaviours

The internal brand refers to the employee perspective of a brand. It is an area of focus that has received scant attention from both academics and practitioners, particularly in the charity sector. This study, by contrast, seeks to redress this imbalance by exploring senior management views of the internal brand in some of the UK's leading charities, those whose level of voluntary income makes them one of the 100 highest “earners” in the UK. Compared with classical, product‐led definitions, the internal brand proved more complex, comprising four fundamental components: the functional, symbolic, behavioural, and experiential. The study demonstrated several uses for the internal brand including unifying the workforce around a common purpose, acting as a catalyst for change and contributing to the professionalisation of the charity sector. “Managing by brand” was thought to imply a brand‐centric focus that allowed senior managers to manage beyond the legal and organisational requirements of the job. It was n...

The internal brand in leading UK charities

Organizations are nowadays concerned with managing their corporate image There is a strong

positive correlation between people’s perceptions of a company and pro-corporate supportive

behaviour In this study, past researchers on corporate image were incorporated to create a

platform for framework which identifies the variables of relationship between corporate image

and customer loyalty cum profitability The study utilized descriptive statistics, bivariate

correlation and linear regression to investigate the impact of corporate image on customer

loyalty and profitability within the Nigerian service industry (banking) The study adopted the

research instrument of self-structured questionnaire which was in line with the reviewed

literature and focused on the main variables in the study It was found in the model parameters

that physical environment, service offering and customer loyalty have significant impact on the

level of profitability Thus, we can rightly conclude that the level of satisfaction among customers

tends to affect the service offerings and customer loyalty which has a direct link with corporate

profitability

/pdf/corporate-image-a-strategy-for-enhancing-customer-loyalty-3mh8t4fvw7.pdf

Corporate Image: A Strategy for Enhancing Customer Loyalty and Profitability

Despite the costs of charity re-branding, there is little research in the public domain of its effect on staff. This study addresses that gap in knowledge by evaluating the effects of re-branding large UK charities on staff knowledge, attitudes and behaviour.


A quantitative survey of 465 charity staff was carried out in 10 large UK charities. The study shows that knowledge has benefited most from re-branding although unevenly across different levels of seniority. Length of service has no effect on levels of knowledge but level of support was positively correlated.


The impact of re-branding on attitudes proved positive with staff at all levels feeling more motivated, involved and valued as a consequence. However, the study also demonstrates that not all staff feel engaged with the re-branding process for the organisation to capitalise fully on enhanced staff performance.


Behaviour was less affected by re-branding with the exception of a very positive impact on staff retention. The report discusses the practical implications for charity managers.



Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The effects of re-branding large UK charities on staff knowledge, attitudes and behaviour

This paper presents findings from five years of research and experience based learnings on how to design organisations which are aligned around the leadership belief that behaviour = brand = reputation. The methodologies, Brand Alignment and The ACID Test help leadership teams develop this critical asset and bring it to life throughout the organisation. The idea is developed of brand as an action learning core which nurtures the system of relationships a company forms and sets out the argument that a brand's promise should act as an interlinking web of knowledge and as an aligner of cultural values.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1057%2Fbm.2000.11.pdf

Dave Allen

Papers

The ACID Test™ — a communications tool for leadership teams who want to interact with the whole organisation