Are You Happy With Your Branding on LinkedIn: Episode XVII | BRAND POSITIONING

Today I am celebrating my new brand awareness campaign from Healthy Career Nurses - a fast-moving Generation Z health and fitness brand - that promotes well-being through videos, courses, and merchandise - (app soon to come 2025) Plus more innovations are in the pipeline.

Rather than tell you how to build a global brand on LinkedIn, I will tell you how I am doing it, and hopefully, you will find some useful points.

?? DOES THAT SOUND GOOD?

The Customer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) model is a well-established concept for crafting robust brand strategies. It's an essential component for building a new brand on LinkedIn or across the digital marketing landscape. This article aims to provide an ideal framework for analyzing the fundamentals of brand building, focusing on the core marketing activities.

When targeting founders and marketing professionals, it's crucial to use industry-relevant terminology and address their specific goals.

Healthy Secrets is no-more brand

Dear Readers of "Social Media Marketing for You" on LinkedIn,

I want to provide an update regarding the brand "Healthy Secrets," which some of you may be familiar with from my previous discussions. After careful consideration and based on the principles outlined in the acclaimed textbook "Strategic Brand Management" by Kevin Lane Keller, Toni Apéria, and Mats Georgson, I have made the strategic decision to end the "Healthy Secrets" brand.

This decision is driven by a shift in my marketing narrative and investment priorities. As a brand, "Healthy Secrets" may no longer align with the evolving direction I wish to take in my content and messaging. Additionally, I have identified other branding activities with higher potential returns on investment (ROI), prompting me to reallocate resources strategically.

One of the key principles discussed in the textbook is brand equity – the added value that a brand name brings to a product or service. While "Healthy Secrets" served its purpose, it may not have been generating sufficient brand equity or financial returns to warrant continued investment at this stage.

Brand positioning and changing narratives are also crucial considerations. As my marketing narrative evolves, the existing "Healthy Secrets" brand may no longer resonate with the new direction I wish to take. Ending this brand allows me to reposition myself more effectively and craft a narrative that aligns better with my long-term goals.

Moving forward, I will be focusing my efforts on building a new long-term brand called "LinkVerse." This brand better aligns with my current strategic objectives and has greater potential for growth and successful extensions.

By following the principles outlined in "Strategic Brand Management," this decision aims to optimize my brand portfolio, ensure a coherent brand strategy, and allocate resources to brands with higher growth potential and ROI.

I appreciate your understanding and continued support as I embark on this new phase of my marketing journey. Rest assured, I remain committed to providing valuable insights and strategies to help you succeed in the ever-evolving world of social media marketing.

Dear Valued Readers,

As we embark on a new chapter in our journey together, I want to extend a warm welcome and express my deep appreciation for your continued support and engagement with "Social Media Marketing for You" on LinkedIn.

Before we dive into the exciting new direction, I thought it would be fitting to share one last glimpse into the world of "Healthy Secrets." This brand has been a significant part of our narrative, and to honor its legacy, I have decided to leave the previous entry of this publication intact. This way, you, the readers, can savor some of the old flavors and reminisce about the journey we've taken together before we transition into a new format.

Change is an inevitable part of growth, and as entrepreneurs and marketers, we must embrace it with open arms. The decision to end the "Healthy Secrets" brand was not an easy one, but it was a strategic move based on the principles outlined in the renowned textbook "Strategic Brand Management" by Kevin Lane Keller, Toni Apéria, and Mats Georgson.

Our evolving marketing narrative and investment priorities have led us to this pivotal moment, where we must reallocate resources to branding activities with higher potential returns on investment (ROI). While "Healthy Secrets" served its purpose admirably, it may no longer align with the direction we wish to take or generate the brand equity and financial returns we seek.

As we bid farewell to "Healthy Secrets," we welcome a new era with the "LinkVerse" brand. This brand better aligns with our current strategic objectives and holds greater potential for growth and successful extensions. Together, we will forge a new path, crafting a narrative that resonates with our long-term goals and positions us for sustained success.

I invite you to join me on this exciting journey, where we will continue to share valuable insights, strategies, and best practices to help you thrive in the ever-evolving world of social media marketing. Your support and engagement have been invaluable, and I look forward to continuing our collaborative efforts as we explore new horizons together.

Thank you for your understanding and unwavering commitment. Let's embrace this transition with open hearts and minds, ready to embark on a new adventure that promises to be even more rewarding and fulfilling.

Repositioning a brand

Repositioning the brand on LinkedIn might be premature at this stage, as not all of my revenue models are fully operational yet—a common challenge when depending on social media's evolving features.

Nevertheless, I'm focused on maintaining the marketing alignment with what I can achieve as an emerging entrepreneur and the amount of brand equity I can build on LinkedIn. My presence is growing daily through publications and by expanding my thought leadership in various domains, such as Generative AI. Yet, staying true to the brand values and its perceived worth is a challenging task.

For larger firms, shifting the brand to target different markets can be somewhat simpler since it doesn't involve fragmenting the brand across different segments.

Business leaders might prefer to remain within a single market but tweak the brand's principles, rather than its marketing strategies, to stay aligned with the overarching business strategy. Success in the next quarter, particularly for publicly listed companies, can hinge on this balance. Another consideration for boardroom discussions is the assessment of geopolitical tensions or risks to determine the appropriate framework for repositioning the brand.

What should CMOs do in the Geopolitical Risk of repositioning a brand?

The concern over global supply chain risks impacting the stock market significantly is increasingly shared among Fortune 500 companies. Assessing the risk of repositioning a brand to a new market is crucial, as is deciding on the framework to employ. CEOs, CTOs, CMOs, and other stakeholders must utilize AI to test scenarios and mitigate market risks. This approach ties back to the original business strategy and the ongoing marketing efforts being observed and adjusted.

Effectively, your new role as CMO should be to hunker down with your team and not just come up with formal solutions. Instead, assess the safety of your branding activities within the current mix of business operations. Yes, your marketing budget may have been reduced recently, but you still have a responsibility to protect and enhance the firm's brand image. Hopefully, over time, you will develop more effective strategies to accomplish this task, possibly through generative AI or other means. And of course, remain true to how you communicate these changes across your media channels, including LinkedIn.

Summary

I thoroughly enjoyed writing this article on one of my favorite topics: enhancing brand image through social media marketing on LinkedIn. While today's discussion was aimed at CMOs and other key stakeholders, we must strive for alignment and develop frameworks to manage geopolitical risks and tensions. This effort is key to effective strategic brand management. It's important to bolster marketing efforts in specific markets for global brands and for smaller businesses to pivot safely where necessary.

The decision to reposition a brand, regardless of its size, is significant and requires careful consideration. For example, we need to evaluate the necessary marketing budget for repositioning and understand the associated risks, especially those related to geopolitical tensions as discussed in this article.

Recommendations

1. Deep Dive into Brand Associations: Regularly assess and strengthen your brand's associations. Focus on enhancing positive associations and neutralizing any negative ones. This involves a thorough understanding of your current brand image in the market and working to improve its strength, favorability, and uniqueness.
2. Leverage Agility for Repositioning: Use the inherent agility of startups to swiftly pivot or reposition the brand to meet evolving market demands and consumer behaviors. This agility is a competitive advantage that allows for quick adaptation to feedback and trends, ensuring better product-market fit.
3. Embrace Risk Assessment in Repositioning Efforts: In the face of geopolitical risks or market changes, employ advanced tools and AI for scenario testing. This proactive approach helps in understanding potential impacts on the brand and devising strategies to mitigate risks.
4. Invest in Thought Leadership and Content Strategy: Especially on platforms like LinkedIn, elevate your brand's presence through thought leadership. Share insights, trends, and innovative ideas relevant to your industry. This not only enhances brand visibility but also establishes your brand as a forward-thinking leader.
5. Monitor and Adapt Marketing Strategies: Continuously evaluate the effectiveness of your marketing strategies and be ready to adapt them in response to market feedback and changing conditions. Investing in new technologies and platforms, like generative AI, can offer fresh ways to engage with your audience and maintain relevance.

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