How do you align your brand audit with your brand goals?

1 Define your brand goals

Before you start your brand audit, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your brand. What are your short-term and long-term objectives? How do you measure your brand success? What are the key performance indicators (KPIs) that reflect your brand value and impact? Your brand goals should be SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. They should also align with your overall business goals and target audience needs.

2 Identify your brand audit scope

Once you have your brand goals, you need to decide what aspects of your brand you want to audit. A brand audit can cover various elements, such as your brand positioning, messaging, visual identity, voice, tone, personality, values, culture, customer journey, touchpoints, channels, competitors, and stakeholders. Depending on your brand goals, you may want to focus on some areas more than others, or conduct a holistic audit that covers all aspects. You should also determine the time frame and resources for your brand audit.

3 Collect and analyze data

The next step is to gather and examine data that relates to your brand audit scope and goals. You can use various sources and methods of data collection, such as surveys, interviews, focus groups, reviews, feedback, analytics, reports, audits, benchmarks, and best practices. You should aim to collect both qualitative and quantitative data that can provide insights into your brand performance, perception, awareness, loyalty, satisfaction, and differentiation. You should also analyze the data to identify patterns, trends, gaps, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

4 Evaluate and prioritize findings

After you have collected and analyzed the data, you need to evaluate and prioritize your findings. You should compare your current brand state with your desired brand state and see how well they align. You should also prioritize the findings based on their relevance, urgency, and impact on your brand goals. You can use tools such as SWOT analysis, gap analysis, or scorecards to help you organize and prioritize your findings. You should also document and communicate your findings to your team and stakeholders.

5 Develop and implement action plan

The final step is to develop and implement an action plan based on your findings and priorities. You should define the specific actions, tasks, responsibilities, timelines, and budgets for improving your brand alignment with your goals. You should also set the expected outcomes, deliverables, and metrics for tracking and measuring your progress and results. You should also communicate and collaborate with your team and stakeholders throughout the implementation process and ensure that everyone is on the same page.

6 Review and update regularly

A brand audit is not a one-time event, but a continuous process of monitoring and improving your brand alignment with your goals. You should review and update your brand audit regularly, at least once a year, or whenever there are significant changes in your business, market, or customer expectations. You should also celebrate your achievements, learn from your challenges, and adapt to new opportunities and threats. By aligning your brand audit with your brand goals, you can ensure that your brand stays relevant, consistent, and impactful.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?