Small, but also large and international companies are once again increasingly focusing on local brand management. Find out what is important at regional level here.
Local brand management: What is important at regional level
The economy, sales and corporate structures have changed significantly in recent decades. Where there were still many small retail stores and local producers and suppliers 50 years ago, globalization brought more and more large and international brands into play. Some mergers and the rise of the Internet also meant that smaller local providers have disappeared from the cityscape. In recent years, However, local brand management in particular has been expanded again and many large and international companies are increasingly relying on local stores and local contacts.
What is local brand management?
The economy, sales and corporate structures have changed significantly in recent decades. Where there were still many small retail stores and local producers and suppliers 50 years ago, globalization brought more and more large and international brands into play. Some mergers and the rise of the Internet also meant that smaller local providers have disappeared from the cityscape. In recent years, there has been a particular However, local brand management has been expanded again and many large and international companies are increasingly relying on local stores and local contacts.
What are the challenges of local branding?
The biggest challenge in this type of brand management is to have many individual communicators who, although individually, should work together on the strategy of the brands. To ensure this, a very large amount of communication and coordination effort is required between the head office and the sales partner, but also between the individual sales partners. The following applies here to connect two large areasby, on the one hand, the Sales partners are integrated into the brand strategy and give them enough leeway for their own local customers. On the other hand, the Marketing strategy, however, planned centrally and controlled and controlled by the marketing department of the entire company. The sales partners are the direct, most familiar contact for the target group and thus the link between customer and brand. This applies in particular to the to make various marketing channels accessible to sales partners and to enable local multi-channel marketing, as new, digital and technologized marketing strategies in local marketing are now also the order of the day. It is particularly important to support sales partners and not only to provide templates, but also to provide advice and training. If you manage these challenges correctly, marketing can be customer-focused and on-site.
- Communication between headquarters and sales or sales partners
- Balancing local focus and central brand strategy
- Assistance with multi-channel marketing
Which values are particularly important?
vicinity
Local sales partners form the link between brand and customer and are therefore a direct touchpoint to the desired target group. Thanks to the regional orientation, local customers can be ideally addressed online and offline.
Safety through agility
Local customers can communicate securely with distribution partners thanks to the necessary transparency. However, they should not rest on the company's image, but react flexibly to changes and challenges.
trust
In order to gain the trust of local customers, it is important to know the needs and meet the required expectations. Through local proximity, these aspects can be observed and trust can be strengthened through action.
Use data
Local brand management also requires relying not only on personal experience, but also on collected data. Digitalization allows new opportunities to be used to appear as professional and friendly as possible.
Increase efficiency
Standardised and automated processes lead to an efficient working environment in local branding. This means that fewer consultations need to take place and all marketing activities can be analyzed and optimized in the future.
individuality
Local branding involves supporting local sales partners and addressing regional target groups as individually as possible. For this purpose, new, innovative channels can be integrated in the same way as tried and tested ones.
What are the benefits of successful local brand management?
For the brand
- Strict corporate design for all marketing activities
- Clear coordination processes between head office and sales partner
- Transparent and easy allocation of advertising subsidies for individual sales partners
- Strengthen ties between sales partners and headquarters
- Synchronization of regional and national strategies
- Strengthen and expand the image and value of the brand
- Internal interfaces and processes optimize central administration and transfer of data and digital assets
For distribution partners
- Individualized options for local marketing
- Create professional marketing material cheaply and quickly
- Access to a broad portfolio of measures for online and offline marketing
- Support in the entire marketing process (strategy, creation, production)
- Use brand image and recognition locally
- Support with questions and ideas
- Financial aid through bonuses and advertising grants
What software support is available?
In order to defy the challenges and take advantage of as many of the mentioned advantages as possible for the brand and sales partners, it is advisable to implement support in the form of software. These systems can simplify work steps and bundle marketing-relevant coordination, communication and processing on one platform.
marketing portal
that All-round carefree package offers a marketing portal here. Here will all relevant marketing activities are carried out centrally. In these portals, companies can provide their sales partners with templates for various marketing channels and make them editable. Thanks to the direct connection to service providers such as printing houses or media houses, the entire marketing process, from digital creation to production and publication, can be controlled via a portal. By controlling the head office, they have an overview of the individual sales partners and can therefore analyze and control their use and marketing activities. By awarding advertising subsidies internally, the company has the opportunity to focus on local marketing and establish a relationship with local sales partners.
Web to Print Software
Compared to the marketing portal, a Web to print software support in all printed advertising materials. This can also be used to create an individual form of marketing material using templates. These printed advertising materials range from business cards, flyers and brochures to mailings and posters. The digitally provided design is supplemented with local information and content and forwarded directly to the print shop. In this way, local advertising can be carried out efficiently and quickly in printed form.
Automated multi-channel marketing
Through systems that enable automated multi-channel marketing, Content is published on various marketing channels. As a result of automation, a significant time factor can be eliminated, which in turn leads to cost savings. By connecting various (mainly digital or online) platforms, you can advertise on new channels without much previous knowledge. Platforms such as social media or booking ads on the Internet in particular can be a challenge for laymen. Such software solutions can easily be published cost-effectively and directly.
The future of local brand management
In order to continue to be successful locally in the future, it is advisable to rely on software support which includes new digital offerings and acts in a future-oriented manner. It is also important to see the software, whether it is a marketing portal or multi-channel marketing software, not just as a technical supplement, but to look closely at the service and select it individually for your own company. Through consultations and test versions from providers, the right solution for the local branding of any company can be found, regardless of whether the company wants to specialize in print products, dialogue marketing, online marketing, out-of-home or physical offerings such as trade fairs.
