3 Things a Brand Strategy Session Uncovers
By Levina Kusumadjaja
A strategy workshop is a time when you meet the brand's decision makers to outline who or what the brand is, who needs to know about the brand, and how we are going to bridge the gap between the two.
In previous years, Melinda has shared how she used to send questionnaires to her clients as a way to understand the client and project better. However, she switched to strategy workshops because she realized meeting and talking with the clients in-person are so much more effective. Giving questionnaires is like giving homework to clients. It’s a one-way thing. Meanwhile, a strategy workshop or session is a conversation. It gives you a chance to connect with your clients and understand your client’s heart behind the project.
If you’re still not convinced to ditch your questionnaires and move towards strategy sessions, let me share about my experience and why I bid questionnaires goodbye.
Here are three important things that you can uncover during your strategy sessions with your clients:
1) The brand itself
If a brand is a customer’s perception about that brand, what kind of perception would you like customers to have? This is where it begins for every client and every brand. Your client needs to understand:
What or who is the brand?
What does the brand believe in?
If we were to meet the brand on the street, what would the brand look like?
To communicate and connect well with the customers, the company needs to know what it is actually communicating. Great messaging begins with a message. So, what is company trying to say? A brand won’t be able to connect with customers without knowing what or who it actually is. Define the brand and identify what values the brand can bring to the customers.
2) What customers can expect from the brand
Many times clients know the product they are trying to sell, but they don’t know the perception they want to build around their product. They know they are selling ABC, but they never think about the value that their products are actually giving to the customers. In a strategy session, you have the chance to uncover the promises that your client’s brand can fulfill.
What kind of experience and value can customers expect from the brand?
What should customers think they are getting when they purchase from the brand?
Ultimately, the company always has the responsibility to uphold a promise. However, it is the role of a brand strategist to help uncover that promise, especially if the company isn’t even aware of the promises they are making to the customers. You can help the company articulate the promise and figure out what they want to be known for.
3) What a brand should do to fulfill customer’s expectations
Through strategy sessions, the company can understand that 2 things need to align: what customers think they will get and the values that the company are actually giving to customers. To satisfy customers and build a long-lasting relationship with the customer, the brand has to actually deliver what it promises to do.
This is your chance as a brand strategist to discuss with your clients what they need to do. So, after defining the brand and knowing what is expected from the brand, you and your client now have a better picture of how the company, the people, and the brand should behave towards customers. By this point, the company will know what to do because they know what customers expect from the brand.
—
What makes strategy sessions so powerful is that you have a chance to dig deeper. As a brand strategist, you can ensure that you are on the same page with your clients before jumping into the project. You have a chance to clarify your client’s answers and ask follow-up questions, something a questionnaire cannot do. We cannot know how to get to where we want to go if we don’t know where we want to go. Strategy only works when we have a goal. And that’s what strategy sessions can accomplish: defining where your client is at, where your client wants to go, and how you can help your client get there.
Cheers!
Levina
Get the Brand Strategy 101 FREE Mini Course
Tired of being an order-taker? Start getting paid to think. Subscribe now to receive helpful content, plus instant access to this free video course. 6 days. 6 videos. 10 minutes a day.
About the author:
Levina is a writer based in Indonesia. Because of Melinda Livsey, she recognized the power of brand strategy for every creative. She is sharing about her learnings as she goes to help creatives have fun in their growth and journey of building brands. Connect with her on LinkedIn and say hi!