Your company is considering a merger or acquisition. You’ve explored the financial and legal ramifications. But do you know what your point of distinction will be post-merger?
Today, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are commonplace. They are strategic decisions grounded in geographic expansion, product and competency diversification, and brand leveraging. While businesses clearly address the associated legal and financial issues, they often overlook a critical component – brand management. Effective brand management goes well beyond the basic marketing tools. It requires an integrated approach to ensure consistency of your corporate message and identity throughout all aspects of your business. Without careful brand management, your M&A effort is vulnerable to failure.
Simply put, brand management helps to secure stability and brand loyalty for your company. You may consider discounting its importance to the M&A process, but be prepared for the possible outcomes:
Brands are managed inconsistently and brand equity suffers
Management and staff send mixed messages, creating confusion in the marketplace
Company image/brand loses value in the market
Employee morale decreases and turnover increases
Customers lose confidence and leave
Competitors steal your best customers
Shareholder price plummets
Why is brand management frequently overlooked in the M&A process?
Companies lack the experienced resources to focus on it.
Organizations don’t realize the need to address it until it’s too late.
Business leaders neglect it because they are concentrating on financial and legal issues.
Hiring an outside brand management strategist can bring dedicated resources and an independent perspective to the process. That’s why successful companies make brand management a cornerstone in their overall M&A strategy. By incorporating brand management in the early discussions around a merger or acquisition, your organization will come out stronger and more focused. Best of all, shareholders, clients, employees and the public will remain loyal to your brand.