Question

Topic: Branding

Brand Hierarchy For Service Organisations

Posted by Anonymous on 9/28/2011 at 10:09 PM ET 250 Points
How does a service (providing training courses) that contracts to a bigger organisation get brand exposure in the communications of that organisation? Best ways?
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RESPONSES

  • Posted on 9/29/2011 at 6:45 AM Accepted
    Why do you want brand exposure? Who is the target audience, and how would you monetize the brand exposure? Are you thinking of competing with the bigger organization and stealing their client? If so, that's not terribly ethical, is it? Or do I not understand the situation fully?
  • Posted on 9/29/2011 at 8:47 PM Author
    The service organisation wants brand exposure for their training programme. The bigger organisation deals more with operational things but needs this smaller organisation to provide the training... .shouldn''t the end customer be able to see who is behind the training?
  • Posted on 9/30/2011 at 7:31 AM Moderator
    If I were the "bigger organization" and you made an overt effort to establish a [separate] brand identity with MY client, I would fire you on the spot and talk with my attorney about taking you to court for breaching our contract/agreement. (Even if you don't have a formal contract, there are certain verbal or implicit elements in a sub-contractor arrangement that probably would apply.)

    I am not an attorney and this is not legal advice. It's as much a reflection of the strength of my convictions on this as it is a specific comment on your rights and those of the "bigger organization." And I'm certainly not familiar with the laws of New Zealand.

    And, FWIW, the end-customer does NOT have a formal relationship with you as the service provider. They have no inherent right to know "who is behind the training." They've contracted with the "bigger organization" for services, and you may run a legal risk (and certainly an ethical one) if you interfere with that contract.
  • Posted on 10/2/2011 at 9:05 PM Author
    Thanks very much for your comments and useful replies.
  • Posted on 10/5/2011 at 3:57 PM Accepted
    The simple answer is give the bigger organization a reason to tout that they are using your service for the training. If telling the end user that your company is responsible for the training provides no benefit to the bigger organization, then they will not do it. If your service organization has a reputation outside of the relationship with your client and it makes the bigger organization appear better in some way, e.g., committed to their employees, compliant with government regulations, partnered with the leading provider, etc., then you have a shot.
  • Posted on 10/5/2011 at 4:22 PM Author
    Thanks Philip, I agree. If both companies are focused on the customer , and can see that the customers' experience of the training is great - then it is in the interests of the bigger organisation to give exposure to the trainer.
    It's all about customer focus!
  • Posted on 10/12/2011 at 11:06 AM Member
    So to answer your original question...you have to demonstrate to the bigger organization that promoting your firm as the purveyor of their training makes them more money. You can do this with market research.

    Hire a third-party firm to conduct the research. This lends credibility to the results. The sample frame for the research project is the larger firm's potential customers. Split the sample and measure perceived value and willingness to purchase for the larger firm's offering. The control group gets a description of the larger firm's offer without mentioning your role as the provider of the training and the test group gets an identical description except that your firm is mentioned as the provider of the training. If the test group has a higher perceived value and willingness to purchase, then you have scientific evidence to support your case.

    Good luck.
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