Working with an NGO brand
Creating a shared brand understanding behind the Global Identity of Amnesty International
Regardless the service you offer or the business you operate in, a tangible identity and a strong brand is essential. It supports you in the process of building a sound and long-lasting relationship with your stakeholders and provides a solid basis for a successful business.
Compared to organisations in the private and public sector NGO’s face different challenges when working with brand building and marketing. Amnesty International launched a new brand and visual identity in 2009. For an NGO of that size a succesfull implementation of a unified global brand depends on the support from the individual sectors. They have to recognise the strength in acting as a global brand instead of isolated, local units.
As a part of the implementation phase of “Amnesty International’“s: http://www.amnesty.org/ new global brand we co-developed a two-day workshop in Berlin on March 10-11, facilitated by Pia Betton. Thirtyfive section managers participated and shared their experiences with implementing the new global brand.
As an introduction each section presented their individual communication material and their state of implementation. The section managers where then divided into groups to discuss opportunities and challenges with the first generation global identity, focusing on basic elements like colour scheme, typo, wording etc. Opportunities such as digital trends/social networking where discussed as well as the overall on-/offline presence.
Experiences, thoughts and ideas were discussed as well as challenges and opportunities for the further implementation. Each group had the task of coming up with three “must haves” (crucial elements) for the new global identity. The desired outcome was the development of a design brief for the next steps in the implementation. A guideline in the process of creating a shared brand understanding behind the Global Identity.
Fight the crunch!
We hear about the recession all the time. The strategies for dealing with it are very different, but when visiting different organisations, both private and public, there are similarities. Important changes are postponed, every new venture is analysed carefully and maybe even put on hold, staff costs cut and hiring stopped. All of which are potentially dangerous precautions for any organisation.
By changing the perspective, the crunch actually creates new opportunities for organisations who are willing to fight the norm.
One of them has already been proved by a small organisation, I admire; Middelfart Sparekasse (a Danish bank). Because or despite of the recession, just a few weeks ago they were awarded the title “The best workplace in Denmark”, by the Great Place to Work® Institute. For me, that is a great example of how putting people first will always be a winning strategy. Make sure you build up confidence and trust, both towards your employees, clients and other stakeholders. If you let them down, they will let you down.
In short, for many organisations the crunch can be a great wake-up call that allows you to focus your organisation on what REALLY makes a difference. Trust, clarity, reliability and true value.
More about the nomination in Berlingske Nyhedsmagasin (Danish)