Branding and Reputation Management for Education Sector
In the Current Scenario of Competition, various tricky strategies are required to make a proper balance in Brand Promotions and Reputation Management for any College, University or Higher Education Institute.
World of Higher Education has entered into a period of many changes wherein major universities mark out lots of phase changes, classrooms have been flipped, competency based learning is going mainstream, government at all levels is demanding measurable outcomes, traditional tuition increases that outpace inflation are coming under attack, non-traditional students have become the new tradition, and the continuing tight financial environment for higher education is forcing many institutions to reexamine their organization and mission. Under such conditions, it is interesting to consider the bases for Reputation and Brand in higher education, and how the changes we are seeing might impact the brand and reputation of different types of institutions. The concept of branding, as applied to higher education, is somewhat different from branding in the commercial sector. Branding in higher education is about who we are, and is not limited to what a particular product offers the marketplace. An educational brand is often equated to an institution’s academic reputation. But, that explanation is far too limiting.
Before the brand can be effectively promoted, the desired brand identity (how you want others to perceive the institution) must be defined. A brand rationale, brand attributes, and brand benefits should be clearly articulated and consistently reflect the institution’s values while aligning with constituent expectations. As previously suggested, the brand lives in the hearts and minds of those we serve. Consequently, the logical place to begin defining the brand identity is with an assessment of the existing brand image for various constituent groups valued by the institution. Though the assessment can take many forms, the desired outcome is to gain insight into the current reality.
The current reality is then compared against the institution’s vision for its brand identity to determine where gaps between the two exist. Recognized gaps enable marketers to target a brand strategy—increasing the probability of achieving related institutional objectives. A targeted brand strategy fosters effective positioning of a school’s brand among competitors along with the management of brand assets such as institutional image, brand equity, the brand message, and the promise inherent in the brand message. Too often, the brand strategy is devoid of any assessment data and thus, positioning and messaging are not grounded in the current reality or a gap analysis linked to institutional aspirations. The end result is typically a failed promotional campaign defined by empty or unfulfilled promises.
Brand tactics emanating from a sound brand strategy yield successful promotional campaigns infinitely more often than the fragmented “flavor of the month” or the panic-driven “let’s try anything” approaches common at many colleges and universities. For example, market segmentation inspired by a brand strategy focuses efforts on target populations who, if compelled to enroll, persist, advocate for, or financially support the institution, will impact strategic goals of the college more so than other potential segments. Likewise, a brand message spawn from a brand strategy is likely to have a laser focus that reflects the essence of the institution rather than the whims of a marketer or preferences of current students or administrators.
Brand is a “Customer-Centric” concept that focuses on what a product, service or company has promised to its customers and what that commitment means to them. Reputation is a “Company-Centric” concept that focuses on the credibility and respect that an organization has among a broad set of constituencies, including employees, investors, regulators, journalists and local communities — as well as customers. In other words, brand is about relevancy and differentiation (with respect to the customer), and reputation is about legitimacy (of the organization with respect to a wide range of stakeholder groups, including but not limited to customers).
Thus, brand and reputation obviously influence each other: some component of customer perception (brand) is influenced by the way the organization is viewed broadly (reputation), and the view of the broader set of stakeholders (Reputation) is based in part on how the customers view the institution (Brand).
