Finding Your Marketplace Identity (Jim Karrh On Marketing)

“You know who you are but not how to talk about it.”

That attention-grabbing statement came from a branding firm that had been hired by Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. The firm was presenting its recommendations after months of interviews, focus groups and competitive data analysis. I was one of about 40 members of the Fuqua Alumni Council who were hearing the findings.

It wasn’t as if the school had nothing to talk about. In 2014, for the first time ever, Fuqua was ranked best among daytime MBA programs by Bloomberg BusinessWeek. Yet it seemed that the potential messengers — admissions staff, faculty, alumni and others — are still unsure about the messages to share with prospective students, and how to do so consistently. How are we to convey our value and share the right stories now that we are competing directly against the most established players, such as Harvard, Stanford, Chicago and Wharton?

As is no doubt the case with your business, the stakes are high when it comes to having the right marketplace identity. I use the term “identity” rather than “brand” or “positioning” in this case. Brand is generally something that exists at a more corporate or institutional level, and positioning is a part of competitive strategy. Identity relates to how people view themselves professionally, and by extension how they convey their value to others. It is personal.

Real estate — closely related to the “spotlight” topic of this particular issue of Arkansas Business, which is construction — is an industry where identity is especially important. The decisions involved in buying or selling the places where we live or work can be tightly wrapped in aspirations, hopes and anxiety. Such decisions are often a response to life changes as well as a cause of even more changes. The firms and agents involved in this process need a secure footing in their marketplace identities. I suspect that many of their conversations strike a personal chord.

Whether your work is in real estate, higher education or something else, I noted several elements in the Fuqua School’s process that might help you articulate your identity to the outside world:

• The leadership sought outside perspectives. Even though Duke’s MBA marketing faculty is rated best in the world for research output, faculty members had no role in the research or conclusions. As the saying goes, it’s impossible to read the label from inside the jar.
• The process involved a broad range of people with a stake in the outcome. This wasn’t an initiative for “the admissions people” or “the development people,” but rather for everyone; current students, alumni, staff members and even representatives from companies that hire Fuqua School graduates were included in the discovery work.
• The process was designed with adoption in mind. The leadership is socializing the new messages, taking the pulse of people (like the Alumni Council) to make sure most ultimately find the results an authentic reflection of our collective identity.
• The process happened from a position of confidence and strength, rather than as an attempt to “fix” something.

How do you want to be seen? How do the people close to your organization see themselves, and do they know how to talk about it?

Even those businesses that are at the top of their games often need to get their stories straight.

Jim Karrh of Little Rock is a consultant, coach and professional speaker as well as a consulting principal with DSG. Visit JimKarrh.com, email him at Jim@JimKarrh.com and follow him on Twitter @JimKarrh.