Three ways to align internal and external brand communications and move your organization closer to its vision

What happens when only 4 players on the soccer field know which goal is theirs? The remaining 7 players may well be gunning for the opposite goal!

Over a decade of helping companies craft their communications strategy, I've often found massive misalignment between an organization's internal and external communication.

A frustrated CEO recently shared with me that her employees had lost their edge. They were way too internally focused, their speed-to-market was not as fast as it needed to be, and they couldn’t find a good balance between serving customers well while making healthy margins. The result? Slow progress against the company strategy and an inability to profitably deliver on the value proposition. She had attempted to motivate employees and be clear about the strategy, but was falling short and looking for answers on what to do next.

Turns out the experience this CEO was having is not at all unique to her. It matches my own experience with people in organizations of various kinds all around the world. In his book, The?8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness, Stephen Covey shares poll findings from a 23,000-employee survey spanning several industries.

The results were startling: Only 37 percent said they had a clear understanding of their organization’s vision. Just one in five was enthusiastic about their team's and their organization's goals. Only one in five said they had a clear "line of sight" between tasks, team's and organization's goals. Only 15 percent felt that their organization fully enables them to execute key goals and just about 20 percent of the surveyed said they fully trusted the organization they worked for.

Juxtaposing the above statistics to soccer, what you get is a ridiculous setting: Only four players on the field know which goal is theirs (!). Only two players know what position they play and exactly what they're supposed to do. All but two players would, in some way, be competing against their own team members rather than the opponent's!

As absurd as this sounds, that's exactly how many organizations are operating today when they don't invest sufficiently in their internal communications strategy.

Despite the latest gains in technology and product innovation, most people are not thriving in the organizations they work for. They're neither fulfilled nor excited; they are frustrated. They're not clear about where the organization is headed or what its highest priorities are. Bogged down and distracted, most of them feel they can't change much.

What's the cost of this misalignment? The personal and organizational cost of failing to fully engage the passion, talent and intelligence of the workforce is far greater than all the taxes, interest charges and labor costs put together says Covey.

The solution is for organizations to realize: We are what we communicate. We communicate what we are.

In many cases, it's best to overhaul the entire communications strategy with a focus on bringing about an alignment between internal and external communications. How the business communicates internally is just as important as how it’s presented externally.

Unless employees are convinced of the authenticity, importance, and relevance of their company’s purpose and strategic goals, they will not be fully empowered to contribute towards driving business results.

Where can organizations start with aligning internal and external communications? By focusing on consistency.

The goal should be to create a culture that unifies your brand image both for your workforce and your customers.?When both ends of this spectrum are prioritized, the result is a workforce that's aligned with your organizational goals. This is where the magic happens and your employees start becoming your advocates. After all, brand content shared by employees has a 561 percent further reach than content shared by the actual company.?This is a super power most organizations are failing to tap into.

Customers have multiple touchpoints with companies, and each point of interaction needs to emphasize the same messages.

If an employee in sales, customer service, accounts receivable or anywhere else in the organization does not represent the brand, it's a sign to coworkers and customers that the company itself does not entirely believe in its own message.

So, where should organizations begin with bringing about brand consistency internally and externally?

#1 Integrate your brand communication into your company culture

If you engage your employees differently from how you expect them to engage your customers, your organization is operating with two set of values. You can’t expect your employees to deliver benefits to customers that they don’t experience or embrace themselves.

Start by using the same principles to design and manage experiences for both employees and customers. Begin with clearly identifying and articulating your brand aspirations. Do you want your brand to be known for delivering superior performance and reliability? Or is your brand about making a positive social impact? Or is your brand about challenging the status quo and being a disruptor?

Your employees should clearly understand what makes your brand different and special from a customer perspective. They should clearly understand who the company’s target customers are, as well as their primary wants and needs. They should use your brand purpose and values as decision-making filters and they should understand how they contribute to a great customer experience —?even if they don’t have direct customer contact.

If your people think they don’t play a role in interpreting and reinforcing your brand and that brand building is your marketing department’s responsibility, then your culture lacks brand integrity.

#2 Identify the current pulse, then plan internal brand campaigns

Start by tapping into your most valuable resource - your employees. Use their expertise and insider knowledge through surveys, focus groups, interviews or any other traditional marketing means. Identify particular points of pride (which can be developed and emphasized) and potential spheres of resistance.

Through your research, identify what already works and what values are manifesting through the company culture. Think of ways to build on these successes, using champions who are in key positions to communicate brand values. Be sure to also note potential points of resistance and strategize ways to take that into account during the campaign.

Consider the timing carefully. While cohesive internal alignment is always vital, there are particular moments when a new initiative can be most effective—new leadership, new space, a major change in products or company direction and,?of course, a rebranding project—are great times to strengthen existing internal branding or introduce a new campaign.?

Research about employee attitudes and points of pride is what will help you tap into what works and what you need to correct; this is a vital first step in internal branding initiatives.

#3 Give employees the tools they need to live your brand?

Start by developing a key theme around which employees can rally. Create a buzz using easily accessible images and branded products. As much as possible, connect to your company’s history and the roots of your brand to clarify your message. This will help personalize the story and allow employees to play a role in the institutional memory.

Organize mandatory brand training sessions, but be mindful to keep the meetings brief and spread them out over a period of time. Keep the groups small and the messages clear and consistent, so everyone—from management to sales to those on the field—can understand and identify with the values of the brand.

Be careful not to overburden employees with reading materials and training information; too much information can confuse the message, frustrate employees and distract from the experiential aspect of the ethos.

Allow the principles of an external branding campaign to inform the internal process, always keeping an eye on persuasion and storytelling, making sure that the brand is continually activated within the company.

Give employees the tools they need:

• Onboarding: Brand values should be consistently explained to every new employee.
• Provide swag:?Brand messaging resonates all the more when employees see it day in and day out. Give away branded artifacts that will be used consistently.
• Collateral: To help every department understand how important their role is?to the brand as a whole, develop collateral explain each department’s role in the fulfillment of your brand promise.
• Artifacts: Every aspect of the company culture?should become a reflection of the brand ranging from employee incentives, mentorship programs, career development training and social structures to even compensation models—all of it must connect to and reflect company values.
• Physical spaces ranging from interior design to internal?signage and workspace types—all ties back to the brand itself, allowing the message to infuse every aspect of the employee experience. This way, work becomes synonymous with the values of the brand; employees don’t just do their jobs, but live its values.

Effective branding communication is an ongoing journey

How organizations operate on the inside should be inextricably linked with how they wish to be perceived on the outside. When the internal and external brand messaging is aligned and integrated, organizations can not only increase operational efficiency and accelerate innovation, they can also better compete for talent and customer loyalty with intangibles that can’t be copied.

The key to achieving alignment in internal and external brand messaging is to remember that all of this is an ongoing journey, not a one-and-done activity.

Enable your players to know which goal is theirs, what positions they're playing and exactly what they're supposed to do. It's time to get your team aligned and ready for the game!