How to give your brand cut-through
Complex organisations with multiple stakeholders like universities, faculties, innovation hubs and spin-outs, can lead to equally complicated narratives.
But creating a simple narrative that captures the essence of your Purpose, Mission and Vision is integral to expressing your Brand Idea, getting cut-through and engaging your audience.
Think of it as your story.
Ultimately this will drive your communications internally and externally, fostering engagement and building your brand over time.
Understandably, universities are awash with multiple initiatives, acronyms and departments, and consequently, much of their energy goes into organising and rationalising this complex setup. It may sometimes appear impossible to achieve, but it’s important not to get lost in the detail.
A common theme with many organisations is that they find themselves spending too much time working through the minutiae of their initiatives – gravitating towards the detail to use it as a way of proving efficacy. But finding the most interesting way to tell a powerful story will be more fruitful.
These breakthroughs usually occur when an ‘outsider perspective’ is brought in.
This independent voice helps the organisation to step back and look at the higher purpose of all of the groups, not their individual targets, and create an overarching narrative that binds them together.
In the words of David C Baker “You can’t see the label from inside the jar”
In each of the following examples, the overarching narrative has been extracted from the detail and developed into bigger, more insightful and compelling stories.
For instance, Quantum Frontier sits at the cutting-edge of global innovation and enterprise This collaboration, initiated by the University of Bristol, is shifting the perception of what’s possible at the extremes of commercial innovation. This incredibly complex narrative has been rationalised into a story – ‘Where business breaks boundaries’.
We worked with the SLT at Loughborough Business School to redefine their global positioning. Here, a new story has emerged of Progress With Purpose, which has engaged academics, students and corporates in the pursuit of doing business differently.
Interact is a Research Centre in UKRI Made Smarter Innovation. It brings together economic and social scientists, manufacturers, and digital-tech to address the diffusion of IDTs. But its story is now about ‘Pioneering human insight’.
Discribe is a group of social science academics in the Made Smarter Innovation network, who augment the complex world of cyber security with expertise in human behaviour – ‘Imagining Secure Digital Futures’.
Medi-tech spin-out Radii Devices has developed a truly innovative global solution for prosthetics – positively impacting clinicians and patients. The subject matter may be complex, but their story is simple – strongly rooted in ‘Obsession’.
Bristol Grid, the digital-first service from the University of Bristol, connects innovators with the support they need to turn their ideas into impact. A highly diversified service unified in its story – ‘Empowering Innovators’.
We know that cut-through will always be the challenge because few are listening ... and even fewer remember.
So the power and impact of your storytelling is critical.
Igniting your university or innovation hub identity can catalyse commercial opportunities. It can harness a sense of purpose, shared mission and energy that leads to greater entrepreneurialism, new sources of funding, new corporate partnerships new IP income, and an improved reputation – even fame.
To help a greater range of stakeholders to embrace this opportunity a simple change of language can help focus minds. Less corporate identity – more Impact Identity. It could increase the likelihood of maintaining a culture of innovation and ...
> intensify the clarity and focus of your purpose, mission and vision
> inspire emotional engagement
> invigorate internal stakeholders