Brand Transformation & Communications

Clearly defining the purpose and values of a brand and communicating them to specific target groups

To differentiate a brand from the competition and position it for the target group clearly, it is crucial to define its core as part of strategic brand management. What is its purpose? What values does it stand for? What measures are necessary to turn customers into fans and cultivate love?

To position a brand with a sustainable purpose, it must be sustainably embedded in the business strategy and act as a guideline for actions within the company. The goal is to reach selected target group segments at the right time with the right, personalised message through strategic marketing and measures to convey its purpose and values.

As well as brand identity, consumers want to be involved in an authentic dialog at eye level and believe that it plays a meaningful and sustainable role for them and the environment in times of crisis.

Multi-platform strategies to ensure efficient cross-channel communication

Loyalty to individual platforms is declining; users typically consume content via various media (sometimes simultaneously). Second-screen consumption is becoming multi-screen consumption. A tonality and communication strategy must also adapt to this new media consumption. This development also changes the customer journey, including touchpoints that make strategic planning necessary.

The motives for using social media are changing. In 2021, the focus was no longer only on exchanges with friends; the younger target group especially expects social media to entertain them.

Developing an authentic employer identity through employer branding

The employer must provide orientation for employees and potential applicants, clearly distinguish itself from other employers, and make clear the values for which it stands. Currently, the German labour market is dominated by baby boomers and employees from generations X, Y, and Z. Each generation has its own specific needs and desires. Each generation has particular needs and wishes concerning the labour market. It is the task of employers to meet these expectations and address them in a differentiated manner. Today, employees choose their preferred employers – not vice versa. #WarofTalents

A company’s employees also play a decisive role in perception and represent an effective communication channel: Keyword Employee Advocacy. They can convey an authentic image of the company – because a lived brand identity is one of the most critical success factors of a company. Have you already tapped the potential of your employees' voices?

Challenge & Situation

The client faced the challenge of implementing a Salesforce taxonomy and, at the same time, enabling all employees to implement and use it correctly. With the help of a holistic communication strategy and accompanying incentives, all relevant employees’ use of the taxonomy was successfully ensured. Our task was to create a communication strategy including the appropriate tools and enable the employees through upskilling sessions.

PwC approach

• Focus on internal messaging as part of the communications strategy during the early stages of the project
• Identification of relevant target groups within the agency
• Advice on how to win over every employee as well as the management for the high relevance of the project in the long term
• Creation of decision-making bases through handouts on inclusive language and linguistic gender use as well as on the organisation of multilingual communication in the corporate context

Result and impact

• Successful implementation of the taxonomy
• Ensuring strategic storytelling across all channels
• Motivating employees to implement and use the tool for optimal evaluation results

Challenge & Situation

Due to the ongoing pandemic, traditional trade shows are constrained, causing our client to rethink their products and adapt their operating model. The shift to digital products allowed entry into new markets and opportunities. In marketing campaigns, the client lacked visibility into how certain input KPIs related to output KPIs. There was little effective or efficient tracking of marketing campaigns, resulting in suboptimal ROMI.

PwC approach

• In-depth as-is analysis to gain a deep understanding of the existing marketing landscape, processes, organisational structure, and tracking capabilities
• Maturity analysis enabled us to identify challenges, determine the maturity level of the marketing department, and derive optimisation measures from it
• Based on the as-is and maturity analysis, we derived an operating model for the marketing objective, including a roadmap and use cases

Result and impact

• The client was ready to expand its product portfolio to include digital products such as virtual trade shows
• Improved marketing processes to increase effectiveness and transparency of input and output factors
• The design of a technical infrastructure needed to track marketing campaigns efficiently serves as the main pillar for the future state of the marketing department

Challenge & Situation

Our client saw the urgency to strengthen its supply chain, which was impacted by disruptions. In a holistic project, we jointly developed a supplier diversity program. By strengthening existing suppliers with a more diverse culture and actively seeking out new, diverse suppliers, we identified a lever to ensure long-term success and supported our client's goal of becoming  fairer and more inclusive. To ensure the success and impact of the program and position the brand in line it, the client engaged us to develop a comprehensive communications strategy, conceptualise positioning messages, and develop an operational action plan.

PwC approach

• Development of a holistic communications strategy in the context of setting up two pilot projects of the Supplier Diversity Program
• Comprehensive stakeholder analysis for target group and channel mapping
• Derivation of appropriate communication objectives for internal and external target groups
• Creation of a communication plan with messages tailored to the channels and target groups

Result and impact

• Ensuring project success during the implementation phase of the two pilots based on the elicited strategy through communicative and visual support of selected assets
• Successful brand positioning thanks to our sensitive internal change communication guidance and targeted external campaigns
• Strengthened the reputation of the overall DE&I strategy across the company

Challenge & Situation

We supported our client in a holistic DEI transformation, helping the agency unlock its potential by promoting awareness of the benefits of greater diversity and building inclusive behaviours. Since implementing DEI into the company's strategy also meant a major change process, we developed a custom-fit communication strategy for our client and supported the specific communication measures.

PwC approach

• Focus on internal communications as part of the communications strategy during the early stages of the project
• Identification of relevant target groups within the agency
• Advice on how to address DEI adequately to win over all employees as well as the management for the high relevance of the project in the long term
• Creation of decision-making bases using handouts on inclusive language and linguistic gender use as well as on the organisation of multilingual communication in the corporate context

Result and impact

• Reduction of reservations on all hierarchical levels through full communication support of the change project and gaining internal project advocates
• Identifying quick wins for the entire DEI project with the help of the guidelines and best practices we provided on the mechanisms of action between language and diversity

Every (re-)branding starts with one's own position: Which values does my company represent? Which range of services best reflects them? A comprehensive overview and good flexibility are indispensable. We support you in defining your brand and show you how to differentiate yourself from the competition. With our strategic development workshops, you make a difference with 360° omnichannel communications directly from your customers’ point of view.

How do I map my workflows in a marketing automation system? Which tools are suitable for this? How do I get the data I need for targeted digital marketing? Which marketing cloud is best suited for my objectives? Which customer-friendly innovation will help me differentiate my brand from the competition? Together, we'll find out what is best for your Brand Transformation & Communication.

In communication, every lead can make all the difference. Processes optimised from the customer's point of view make a decisive contribution to this. We show you where automated processes fit into your corporate landscape, what smart data and big data contribute to the customer experience, which marketing automation tools increase customer satisfaction, and how you can anchor the digital transformation in the mindset of your staff.

Authenticity is your brand’s currency – the key is a common voice on every channel. The more complex its strategy, the more challenging it becomes to maintain a cohesive corporate identity. We support you in setting clear guidelines for brand identity and language. This way, you remain authentic across all channels and increase customer loyalty.

A customer-friendly brand accompanies each customer at every stop on their journey. Together, we develop clear customer journey maps of your user base. For more customer satisfaction – and valuable insights for your sales funnel.