No successful brand should operate and sustain their operations absent of a good brand strategy with a PR angle. Strategy is simply the building block. A good brand strategy with a PR perspective supports your overall brand’s objectives and will maintain your brand's reputation in the best possible way. The strategy identifies key messages and objectives that will be the focus once the strategy has been laid out. These key messages will be the foundation that’ll help your brand connect with its audiences and stakeholders.
As you create a brand strategy, the right audiences, creators, and businesses will naturally reveal themselves to you. Having knowledge of who your brand should connect with will amplify your brand’s voice – resonating key messages will now come in the tone of great appeal.
The existence of a brand strategy should also support implementation and management of your PR/marketing activities. You will need to identify the metrics by which your brand will measure success. I have found that setting clear measurable goals as a baseline is a great way to track progress and success of the strategy.
Your PR strategy will, of course, clarify your key messages and bring a plethora of good to your brand, but ultimately it should prepare you for when things might go wrong. A good PR strategy amidst a challenge or crisis will keep your team in a level headed position, a proactive approach will give them a sense of clarity with what to do.
Over the past 10 years in this industry I have cultivated my role as a strategist. I have been able to recognize the growing need and appreciation brands have developed for the need of ongoing strategy conversations. Strategy is the foundational framework that points brands towards the future in a real and tangible way. However, we must recognize that strategy by itself is not the roadmap. Strategy must have an execution and implementation that guides, measures and evaluates.
