How to Do Brand Architecture
Brand Architecture projects can be one of the most complex branding assignments undertaken by companies, often because many don’t understand what it is or how to make decisions around it. That’s not to be critical; it’s just not a common discipline that exists within companies. Also, some in the industry use the term “brand architecture” differently to mean a brand’s foundational positioning. In this case, we are talking about how a brand segments its brands and product lines and the associated branding (e.g., master brand, sub-brand) and nomenclature structure (or naming system) that supports it. FedEx provides a good, easy-to-understand example of what we mean by Brand Architecture. FedEx has its corporate brand and also has a range of offerings from FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, and FedEx Office, for example. The company segmented and organized its product offerings around these different services and value propositions and has a branding and naming system with a Master Brand (FedEx) and descriptors (e.g., Express, Ground, Office) to differentiate one from the other.
(The opening definition on Wikipedia provides a good reference, as well.)
To be clear on additional definitions, we believe architectures can operate on different levels covering three areas:
Portfolio Architecture operates at the company level if a company has multiple brands or product offerings. For a company that only has one Master Brand, Portfolio and Brand Architecture can be one in the same.
Brand Architecture operates at a single-brand level and is relevant if a company has a “house of brands.” The company is likely to have a Portfolio Architecture, and a brand within the portfolio has a Brand Architecture. For example, think of P&G and its individual brands like Tide or Crest.
Design Architecture operates within a brand, specifying design elements within the visual identity system to support development of brand equity and to aid product selection.
Not only do architectures operate on these different levels, they also interact with each other, which we’ll get into more below.
When might you consider a Brand Architecture project?
You feel like you have lost control of branding and naming across a brand and its product lines.
Your packaging and communication hierarchy have grown too complex across your product offerings.
You want to grow your brand and are seeking ways to expand a brand into new market opportunities.
You are launching new innovation and need guidance on how to brand the offerings.
You’ve acquired new brands and need to integrate them into your current portfolio.
You want to consolidate brands to create scale.
You believe you have equities and trademarks in your portfolio that can be better used to position new offerings.
You’re realizing you don’t have enough marketing budget to support and maintain all your sub-brands.
What to consider when taking on such an assignment.
Brand Architecture may seem like a simple exercise, but it is one that needs to align with a company’s overall strategy and needs to be thoughtfully considered. It is not a simple assignment and often presents difficult decisions to be made. It’s a strategic exercise, and consumer research or data alone won’t provide the answer.
Given the complexity of such assignments, we offer a few concepts to understand and consider when preparing for a Brand Architecture project:
1. Integrated systems. To our point above about architectures operating on different levels, if you are a house of brands (meaning you have multiple brands in your portfolio), Brand Architecture can interact with your Portfolio Architecture and strategy. Why? You may have several brands operating in the same category or complementary categories. You’ll want to consider the role of each of these brands in your portfolio and how these brands can stretch and grow to address market opportunities. You might find that a current brand doesn’t have permission to launch a product offering against a growth segment, in which case you’d need to consider either not going after the opportunity area or acquiring or creating a new brand or sub-brand to play in that space.
If your products have unique identities or physical packaging, a Brand Architecture needs to take into consideration possible Design Architecture and strategy, as well. For example, look up FedEx and you’ll find that color differentiation is one of the ways that the company differentiates its offerings. Design can often solve a communication need rather than needing to have naming do all the work. In this case, they are complementary.
All this to say that when taking on Brand Architecture one should consider the other systems within which a brand is operating (Portfolio) and the other tools (e.g., Design Strategy) available to communicate a value proposition.
2. Balanced requirements. One of the reasons brand architecture is complicated is that it requires weighing many factors in developing a solution. When considering segmentation models for a brand, one needs to balance creating:
the strongest, most meaningful consumer proposition for a product offering considering marketplace realities;
ease of shopability both in-store and online;
strong, enduring equities that can be sufficiently supported with marketing;
structure for management, yet flexibility for future growth; and
what is best for the overall business and brand to meet its goals.
For example, an innovation team might think that a coined, unique name might be the best way to market a new offer, yet that might conflict with the needs to have efficient marketing spend or that the Master Brand needs the positive halo from this brand extension.
3. Investment. Per one of the last points, when building a system, one needs to consider the business’s marketing budget and if there will be the funding required to build brand awareness in a sub-brand or if you’ll need to rely on halo from the master brand. Sub-brands shouldn’t exist unless the proposition is big enough to warrant consistent, dedicated investment. Otherwise, an architecture and nomenclature system that is more monolithic in approach and uses descriptor names for distinction should be explored.
4. Discipline. Brand Architecture projects can be difficult simply because it can require that we apply discipline when most of us have a natural inclination to create something new, unique, and fun. It’s not uncommon for people to want to create and build a new brand. Who wouldn’t? In addition, most organization’s reward systems don’t applaud making the safe, rational decision. Usually “splashes” are rewarded rather than the more financially prudent and brand-supporting decision.
It’s helpful when completing a Brand Architecture project to create tools and guidelines that can support the organization in making product portfolio and branding decisions. It will take away the guesswork but will still require senior leadership oversight that has an eye towards discipline.
5. Decision-making. Before embarking on a project, it is helpful to get alignment upfront with your leadership on how you’ll make decisions. Do you have budget to support conducting research to inform your strategy? Are you willing to base the decision on solid rationale and judgment alone? What factors will you prioritize in making your decision? Here are just a few suggestions:
What makes the most sense for consumer understanding of the product proposition?
What simplifies the shopping experience?
Should the brand align to market and category norms, or is there opportunity to breakout of those traditions?
Do we understand our core brand equities and how new offerings relate to those equities?
What may help strengthen or extend a brand’s equities?
Are we being thoughtful about protecting consumer-known and understood equities?
Do we have budget to support brand development and equity building for multiple brands?
Do we have growth opportunity areas that don’t align with any of our existing brand equities?
Are there any organizational considerations to be factored in?
Do we need flexibility?
Based on these concepts, here are suggested questions to answer and prepare when kicking off a Brand Architecture assignment:
Do you have a portfolio of brands? How does the brand you are architecting fit into your portfolio? What role does it need to play? What opportunities should this brand stretch into?
What segmentation and nomenclature will create the best communication of the consumer proposition? Are you clear on the other factors that are important in choosing your architecture solution? How will the visual manifestation of the brand or your website impact the segmentation you might choose?
Will you have marketing budget to invest behind a new master brand or sub-brand?
Are you making the best decision on nomenclature for the long-term health of the brand? Do you have guidance documents to help your teams make the best decisions?
Have you aligned to the decision criteria around which the organization will choose a solution?
While this article may sound like a cautionary tale, Brand Architecture work can be quite fun. Yes! It can unlock opportunities you might not have foreseen. It can take valuable brand assets and unlock more potential and growth, creating more value for the company. It can simplify business and brand management. But the projects themselves can become a painful exercise if you’re not properly prepared and not walking into it with your eyes wide open. Our intent in offering these tips is to guide you towards a successful outcome.
Seeking help in defining a Brand Architecture? Reach out to Kathy here at The Agency Oneto to discuss your opportunity.