Branding from the Inside Out: The IziCwe Code on Internal Branding Secrets

"Companies are becoming painfully aware that sending the right message to their employees is just as important as making a good impression with customers, vendors and investors." This was the conclusion of a recent Wall Street Journal review of key management issues.

Says Trevor Lloyd-Jones, editor of Business Intelligence: "We spend days, sometimes weeks, developing our 'marketing message'. Examining and experimenting with taglines and logos. It's also not unlikely to spend hours of overtime determining our company or brand colours before we set out to launch. There is however an area that is almost always forgotten in the planning phase of a new company or the restructuring of an old company. That area is training staff to understand and reflect our message and brand."

Internal branding, aligning employee commitment with the brand promise of the organisation, has become central to brand leadership.

Dr Nikolaus Eberl and Herman Schoonbee, authors of 'Internal Branding: the IziCwe Code' (Academy Press 2006) recently expanded on a unique South African brand leadership model, called the IziCwe Code, at the Performance Management Summit, held in Johannesburg.

Based upon the innovation strategies of the legendary King Shaka, the IziCwe Code is about inspiring employees to question the tried and tested and search for new ways to deliver world-class service. Based on 12 years of global research, the IziCwe Code is about internal branding strategies, aimed at engaging the emotional drivers of employee commitment (coined EmotiVators by Dr Nikolaus) and building total commitment to delivering the brand promise.

In anticipation of the FIFA World Cup in 2010, large South African organisations (such as Eskom, the Development Bank of Southern Africa, Metropolitan Life) are calling upon the IziCwe Code to engage their employees in the Iklwa Innovation Programme (so called after the revolutionary new weapon introduced by King Shaka) and to align employee commitment to President Mbeki's promise of delivering "the best World Cup ever".

The IziCwe Code was recently critically reviewed by President Thabo Mbeki in his 'Letter from the President'. Using the analytical tools contained in the IziCwe Code, the President issued the challenge to government leaders to "generate the kind of commitment that will ensure that our government, at all levels, can be trusted to honour the brand promise".

Says Trevor Lloyd-Jones: "The basis of the IziCwe Code is that marketing starts from the inside out. Do your employees believe in your product and the services that you offer? Are they standing 100% behind you in the mission of your brand? Are they living your brand? It is important that your employees are informed and involved in new initiatives and strategies that are taking place within your company."

"If your staff are unable or unwilling to support your marketing efforts it can have detrimental results. How can you begin your internal branding campaign within your company? Issues for companies are how to synchronise your brand personality, values at the point of delivery and corporate culture?

Align your criteria for recruiting and rewarding employees with the criteria of the brand value. Look for the right skills and aptitudes that will represent your brand promise effectively. Use your internal communication to reinforce and explain the values and behaviours that reflect your brand promise. Continuously do this until they become second nature.

If you thought the process of involving your staff was not important, take into account that your employees meet, greet, and assist your customers in many different ways. They are the face of your brand. Engage your staff right from the start and encourage individual input. Use your staff as a focus group: after all who knows your clientele better than they do? By doing this you will not only get support from your staff but you will be given insight and ideas that you otherwise may not have considered."

On 22 June 2006, the IziCwe Code was first introduced to the international media at the Global Leaders Summit, held in Johannesburg at the Coca-Cola Dome, sharing the platform with global leadership gurus Tom Peters, Rudy Giuliani and Michael Porter.

Dr Nikolaus Eberl and Herman Schoonbee conducted extensive research deciphering the internal branding strategies of King Shaka and developing the Iklwa Innovation Programme for corporate brands.

Dr Nikolaus holds a PhD from the University of Berlin and is the author of 'The Seven Secrets of IziCwe: Conquer Life'. Herman Schoonbee is an international expert on the drivers of employee commitment and has conducted more than five years of research on the subject of internal branding. The IziCwe Academy, under Chairman Dr Nikolaus Eberl, is today the global leader in internal branding services.

IziCwe Academy is the global leader in Internal Branding™ Services. Based upon twelve years of global research, IziCwe Academy has assimilated best global practices in Internal Branding™ to assist corporate organisations to align employee commitment to their brand promise and motivate employees to engage in touch-point innovation™.

Dr Nikolaus Eberl
Chairman: IziCwe Academy
Internal Branding™ Division
Tel: 27 (0) 83 270 6009 / 10 / 11
Fax: 27 (0) 86 500 1800
Email: nikolaus@internal-branding.net
Web: www.internal-branding.net

This release was published on openPR.