Brand Audit Toolkit: How to Conduct a Brand Audit

July 2017
What Is Brand Strategy?
Brand Audit is the first step in Brand Strategy Development. It identifies brand
insights and draw implications that underlie the strategy.

Brand Brand
Brand
Strategy
Strategy Architecture Brand
Expression
Expression Brand
Activation
Activation Measurement
Architecture Measurement

Audit/Discovery Portfolio Structure Message Map Experience Design Brand Value

Assessment
Brand Vision & Naming Ground Brand Expression Communication
Narrative Rules Guidelines Planning & Execution Brand Health
& Conventions Assessment
Audience-specific Creative Brief
Positionings
Tracking
What is a Brand Audit?
A brand audit lays the foundation for identifying brand strengths and opportunities.
It systematically addresses questions about the overall category, the company
and its offerings, competitors and customers.

Market Insights
Company Insights Competitor Insights Customer Insights
• What are the
• What is the product • Who are the key • Who is the customer?
opportunities to better
meet customer needs?
profile? competitors? • What is the buying
• What are our key brand • What do we know process?
• What is the business
assets and risks? about their strategy?
environment and trends?

Category definition, size Business performance, Competitive landscape. Key Category customer profile,
and growth. Trends that brand positioning, company competitors’ business segmentation (demographic,
can be opportunities or and brand strengths and performance, positioning, psychographic, behavioral,
threats weaknesses apparent strategy, strengths needs-based), brand choice
and weaknesses criteria, drivers, preferences,
perceptions
Brand Audit / Discovery
Much of the information for a brand audit exists outside of marketing.

Corporate Information Industry Information Marketing Information

• Company mission, vision and • Third party research about the • Current and past advertising
values statements competitors (e.g., financial and promotional collateral for
• Business plans, financial analysts, syndicated market your brand and competitors
performance and trends (e.g., research, government agencies, (within and beyond your
revenue, profits, margins) industry associations) specific category)
• Customer service records • Your company’s own customer • Social media reports and
• Patents and other intellectual research (e.g., tracking conversation analyses
property, awards/areas of research, focus groups)
distinction
Key Brand Audit Frameworks

These frameworks are useful in developing the insights and direction for a
compelling brand platform.

✓ SWOT Analysis
✓ 3-Circle Analysis
✓ Brand Strategy Palette
✓ Competitive Landscape Map
✓ Competitive Assessment Framework
✓ Customer Insights Check List
✓ Brand Conversion Funnel
✓ Market Funnel
✓ Customer Profiles and Personas
✓ Customer Segmentation
SWOT Analysis
This is a classic way to summarize key information on one page. It highlights
insights and points to ways to strengthen the brand.

Strengths Weaknesses

Assets where we are at a

Existing or potential assets
Internal competitive disadvantage
that provide leverageable
and could choose to invest
competitive advantage
in overcoming or mitigating

Opportunities Threats

Existing or potential market Existing or potential market

External
forces that could provide forces that could inhibit the
competitive advantage if a company from maintaining
company capitalizes on or attaining competitive
them advantage
3-Circle Analysis
This analysis complements the SWOT by highlighting the specific insights
needed to create and sustain differentiation.
Consumer
Potential Brand
Wants & Needs
Differences •
• •
• Potential •
• Differentiators •
• Consumer •
•
• Brand Strengths Needs •
• Tablestakes

Our
Vulnerabilities

Competitive
Points of Parity Competitor Brand
(Category Differences
Benefits) Strengths •
• •
• •
• •
•
•
The Brand Strategy Palette
The Strategy Palette describes the type of business environments brands face and
helps describe what it will take to succeed in each.

Strategy Palette Framework Strategy Archetype Descriptions & Success Factors

Key
Classical Adaptive Visionary Shaping Renewal
Elements
Dimensions • Predictable • Unpredictable • Predictable • Unpredictable • Harsh
• Non- • Non-malleable • Malleable • Malleable
malleable
Growth & • Low growth • Volatile growth • High growth • No dominant • Low/negative
Maturity • Mature • Young industry potential player growth,
industry • Technological • White space, platform • Restricted
change no direct financing
competition • Negative cash
flows
ENVIRONMENTAL DIMENSIONS:
• Predictability = You can forecast it Concentration • High • Limited • Fragmented
confidently Regulation • Stable • Limited • Shapable
• Malleability = Alone or together with
others, you can shape it Success • Scale • Cycle time • First to market • Ecosystem • Cost savings
• Harshness = It’s tough but you can Measures • Market • New product • New user growth and • Cash flow
survive it share vitality index satisfaction profitability
(NPVI) • NPVI
Core Idea • Be big • Be fast • Be first • Be the • Be viable
Source: https://www.bcgperspectives.com/yourstrategyneedsastrategy
orchestrator
Strategy Palette Archetypes & Positioning
Brand strategy archetypes are helpful in understanding the nature of the
brand’s positioning challenge.
Strategy Palette Archetypes: Positioning Implications

Key Elements Classical Adaptive Visionary Shaping Renewal

Core Idea Be big Be fast Be first Be the orchestrator Be viable

Positioning Goal Convince Assure customers we Introduce Convince Convince

customers of clear can anticipate their customers to a new customers that customers the
and credible needs and respond category that together, we and brand offers an
superiority on the fastest to emerging addresses an our partners deliver innovative solution
key benefit trends unmet need more value than to address their
any other solution need(s)
How Proof of a • Understanding of • Creation of a Partnerships with Reinvention of the
Differentiation Is performance changing customer whole new frame other eco-system brand around a
Achieved advantage needs of reference – a players to rewrite relevant key benefit
• Ability to respond ‘category of one’ rules and achieve a
quickly • Understanding network effect
the unmet needs through
of customers collaboration
Brand Asset Inventory
This framework captures and assesses the leveragability of each brand asset,
including what makes it distinctive.
Brand Asset Inventory Framework
Assessment
Asset Description (Distinctive? Memorable?
Likable? Relevant?)
Names/Identifiers
Awareness
Brand Perceptions
Key Partnerships
Branded Programs
Intellectual Properties
Endorsements
Competitive Assessment
We use this assessment to highlight which competitors pose the greatest threat to
a brand’s growth.

Competitive Assessment Framework Key Inputs

✓ Company & product
Degree of Threat Rationale ✓ Offering
Profile Highlights
✓ Growth strategy
✓ Reputation & reviews
Key Competitor #1 Strengths, What poses the greatest
High / Med / Low ✓ Key partners
strategies and key messages threat to our brand?
✓ Market share trends
✓ Revenue
✓ Units
Key Competitor #2 Strengths, High / Med / Low
What poses the greatest ✓ Customers
strategies and key messages threat to our brand? ✓ Messaging & marketing mix
✓ Target audience
✓ Key benefits/support
Key Competitor #3 Strengths, What poses the greatest ✓ Points of difference
strategies and key messages
High / Med / Low
threat to our brand? ✓ Likely scenarios
✓ Product changes &
enhancements
✓ New categories
✓ New geographies
Competitive Landscape
This map shows where a brand is perceived relative to its competition along key
dimensions, and how those perceptions may evolve over time.

Competitive Landscape Map

3-Step Process
Competitive Brand 3
1. Identify the dimensions each
Competitive Brand 2 competitor uses to create
greater differentiation and
Brand Now anticipate their strategies
Dimension B
2. Place brands where they are
today and indicate their
Competitive Brand 1
strategy to evolve
3. Distill the brand implications

Dimension A
Identifying Customer Insights
Many of the most powerful insights are not brand specific, and come from a deep
understanding of category needs and customer choice drivers.

Profile Path to Purchase Brand Drivers

✓ Customer Needs ✓ Situational variables ✓ Choice Drivers

✓ Values ✓ Usage occasions ✓ Criteria/reasons for choice
✓ Motivations ✓ Purchase occasions ✓ Importance ratings

✓ Customer Profiles ✓ Purchase Attitudes ✓ User Experience

✓ Demographics ✓ Desired product and usage ✓ When/Where
✓ Personas
experience ✓ Satisfaction
✓ Beliefs and associations
influencing behavior ✓ Conversion/Repurchase
✓ Decision-makers
✓ Retention/renewal
✓ Who decides
✓ Who else is involved ✓ Purchase Behavior
✓ Buying process
Brand Conversion Funnel
The Brand Conversion Funnel mirrors the customer buying process. It shows
potential roadblocks to growth and suggests where marketing should focus to
overcome them.
Brand Conversion Funnel Framework

%X

All Category Purchasers

%X

Brand Aware

%X

Brand Purchasers
(ever)
%X
Brand “Users”
(e.g., Past year,
Repeat, Heavy,
etc.)
Market Funnel
The Market Funnel is useful for sizing opportunities to grow share and for
identifying leverage points.

Market Funnel Framework

Customers Revenue ($ Millions)

(in thousands)

? Market Size $

? Brand Awareness NA

? Trial $

? Repeat $

? Regular Use $
Customer Profiles & Personas
A deep understanding of the customer provides direction for positioning and messaging.
Category Penetration Category Purchase Behavior Category Demographics
Illustrative
Mean # % that shop at Gender
# xx% Male 48%
Purchased/Year channel type
Female 52%
% Buying X+ per % that purchased
Purchasers % xx% Age
(%) year at channel type
21-34 22%
Non- % Using as XXX
Purchasers % 35-44 18%
(%) 45-54 21%
55+ 39%
HH Income
$40,000 - $74,999 31%
$75,000 - $99,999 33%
Category Personas - illustrative $100,000 - $149,999 26%
$150,000 or more 10%
Ethnicity
White, not of Hispanic origin 82%
Other 18%
Household Size
1-2 44%
3-4 41%
5+ 14%
Presence of Children
Children age 0-5 17%
Children age 6-12 28%
Children age 12-18 24%
None 54%
Customer What
Segmentation
are the frameworks? Best practices?

Customer segmentation ensures positionings and acquisition efforts are

targeted to the most promising audiences.

Strategic Segmentation Framework 3-Step Process

1. Identify key stakeholder characteristics

Segment 1 Segment 2 Segment 3 that lead to different behaviors relative to
the category. Focus on those that are:

Characteristic 1 A B • Actionable – easy to act on

• Meaningful – lead to observable
Characteristic 2 C D differences in behavior
2. Divide the market into distinct groups of
Characteristic 3 customers (segments) and evaluate their
attractiveness (% of market, heaviness of
purchase, etc.).
Other …
3. Collapse segments that behave similarly
to increase marketing efficiency.
 About Us Contact Us
✓ Partners in insights-based brand
strategy consulting firm, Brand
Amplitude
✓ Work with range of B2B and B2C
clients to strengthen and develop
their brand assets
✓ Teach MBA and undergraduate
courses in Brand Strategy at
leading Business Schools and
develop and conduct marketing
training curricula for leading US
corporations Carol Phillips Judy Hopelain
@carol_phillips @judyhopelain
carol@brandamplitude.com judy@brandamplitude.com