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There’s a lot to do in July and August, not the least of which is creating a better brand strategy. “But how?” you ask. “None of us are ever here at the same time in the summer! Someone is always on vacation!”

Fair enough! But that doesn’t mean working towards a better brand has to wait for the return to business as usual. Here are six suggestions for keeping the momentum going in between trips to the beach and family vacations.

Remember to enjoy your summer! All work and no play, as they say, makes for a dull EVERYTHING, including your brand.

Six Summer Suggestions
  1. Schedule a Better Brand Strategy Summit now! Take advantage of the fact that people’s September and October calendars are, by and large, empty right now. Schedule a meeting now to review your brand strategy and opportunities to improve it. Position the meeting as a routine, annual event that helps ensure your brand stays relevant. Set an agenda that includes reviewing the other items on this list as well as any other branding ideas you may have.
  2. Research. Since productivity often slows during July and August while people await the return of decision makers, use it to do some research on topics that impact creating a better brand:
    • Competitors. What is the general state of competitors’ brands? Have there been changes? What is their overall brand marketing strategy? What is their overall brand positioning and how does yours compare?
    • Adjacent Vendors. Review the brands of other vendors who do not compete with you but serve the same customer base. Can you learn from anything they’re doing?
    • Clients. What are they saying? Check out their content marketing to see what’s important to them as well as look at what they’re saying about you.
    • Trends. What trends are developing in your industry? How can your brand address them differently and sooner than everyone else?
  3. Audit. When is the last time you did a content audit? Off-brand content, verbal and visual, can show up in even if you have the best brand guidelines possible. Take advantage of this time of year to look for it within yours.
  4. Divide and conquer. There’s a lot on this list! So, divide and conquer. Give everyone invited to your Better Brand Summit something on this list to own (or delegate). That way they’re invested in the process and will make more meaningful contributions to the Summit when it happens.
  5. Bring in an outside expert. Having a guest brand strategist or brand consultant come in and talk to you and your colleagues about best practices in brand management is a great way to bring legitimacy to your Better Brand Summit, as well as provide you with helpful insight going forward. (We just might know of some—wink, wink.)
  6. Drum up excitement. Although your Better Brand Summit is months or weeks away, send periodic updates to your colleagues (via whatever technology your company uses most) to get people excited about the work you can do together in the fall.

And, one more: Remember to enjoy your summer! All work and no play, as they say, makes for a dull EVERYTHING, including your brand.

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