As we’ll show, many companies have adapted this tool to their particular circumstances and used it to successfully define a corporate identity, align its elements, and harness its strengths. At its core is a tool called the corporate brand identity matrix. The approach we used to help Volvo achieve this turnaround is the product of 10 years of research and engagement with hundreds of senior executives in organizations around the world and across several sectors, including manufacturing, financial services, and nonprofits. That alignment resulted in greater corporate commitment to the brands, sharper positioning in the marketplace, a stronger sense of belonging to the group, and more-coherent marketing and communications. The key is for everyone to follow the same melody.”īut using a process we’ll detail in this article, Volvo was able to clarify its corporate identity and the roles and functions of its daughter brands. “In our company,” the CEO said, “we too have different voices and communicate through multiple channels, telling the world about our brand and what it stands for. His favorite song, “My Way,” he explained to us, had been performed by Frank Sinatra, the French star Claude François, Elvis Presley, Pavarotti, and even the punk rocker Sid Vicious, and though their voices, styles, and audiences all differed, the melody remained the same. The CEO of an international shipping corporation we know has compared a corporate brand to a work of music, emphasizing that its “melody” must be recognizable in all internal and external communications. All these varied forms of brand expression must harmonize. The expression of a brand also includes attitude or tone of voice (think of Geico’s gecko), a flagship product (such as Omega’s Seamaster watch), taglines (Nike’s “Just Do It”), and even signature audio clips (MGM’s trademarked lion’s roar). Express YourselfĪ visual identity-such as IBM’s iconic logo-is often considered the essence of a corporate brand’s expression, but to us this is a narrow interpretation.
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Because that identity wasn’t well defined, people in the group were uncertain about how they should strategically support the “daughter” brands, and people in the new brand units had trouble understanding how the group’s mission, values, and capabilities extended to them-and even how to describe their brands’ relationships with the Volvo Group in marketing and investor communications. After its new CEO decentralized the organization, turning its truck brands (Volvo Trucks, Mack Trucks, Renault Trucks, and UD Trucks) into separate units in 2016, questions about the parent company’s identity became pressing. Many firms, however, struggle to articulate and communicate their brand.Ĭonsider the €35 billion Volvo Group, which sells a broad portfolio of trucks, buses, construction equipment, and marine and industrial engines. It can also enhance the image of individual products, help firms recruit and retain employees, and provide protection against reputational damage in times of trouble. It serves as a north star, providing direction and purpose. What does the parent company’s name really stand for, and how is it perceived and leveraged in the marketplace and within the company itself?Ī clear, unified corporate identity can be critical to competitive strategy, as firms like Apple, Philips, and Unilever understand. But organizations are often less sure-footed when it comes to the corporate brand. Customers, employees, and other stakeholders know exactly what an iPhone is and means. Companies are extremely good at defining their product brands.
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