Today I head west to the Bay Area where I will be delivering a presentation tomorrow at the 2011 Strategic Internal Communications Conference. The theme is How to Use Social Media & Traditional Communications to Engage Employees, Drive Performance & Add Value. That concept is right in my wheel house. No wonder I was invited to present.

The title of my session is Friending, Sharing, Tweeting and Building Community: A Social Media Approach to Internal Communications and Employee Engagement. Along with other presenters, I will be delivering a case study from one of my client projects. I will be demonstrating how to effectively engage employees in the brand development process through Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and blogs.

I look forward to learning from others and hopefully providing a few nuggets that attendees will be able to use in their respective organizations. Not a bad way to spend a few days. Talking about my favorite subject on one of my favorite areas of the globe.I hope to connect with many new brand champions. #intcomms

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

I started blogging here in October 2007. My goal was to provide opportunities to share experiences, tid-bits and recommendations for effective brand development, so that those who are new to the process can understand the value of recruiting and retaining brand champions. On Mondays and Fridays I have featured people and organization best practices who clearly demonstrate what it means to be a brand champion. I call this feature Brand Champion of the Day.

On or about the anniversary of the blog I give a nod to one Brand Champion of the Day who received the most hits while being featured, the person or organization who has generated the greatest conversation off line and someone who I have some personal connection. In 2008 I featured Brandon Coco Curtis and Red Bull. In 2009 it was Paula Berg from Southwest Airlines, and last year Kit Yarrow from Golden Gate University. This year I am pleased to announce that the 2011 Brand Champion of the Year is author, consultant, keynote speaker and brand champion, Joseph A. Michelli.

Just a couple of weeks ago I featured Joseph and his new book, The Zappos Experience. Many of you have read his previous insiders view of organizations including the Pike Place Fish Market, Starbucks and UCLA Medical Center. In each case Joseph provides the reader with a behind the scenes look at how the organization brings its mission and core values to life by engaging internal and external stakeholders. That is music to my ears. Follow Joseph's insights and analysis and your brand will have a greater chance for sustainability. Follow Joseph A. Michelli and you will be a better person.

Please join me in recognizing Joseph A. Michelli as the 2011 Brand Champion of the Year.Then go out or go online and get a copy of The Zappos Experience. I think you might be able to order online now and October 15 at your local bookstore. You will better understand how to recruit and retain brand champions via your core values.

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

More and more organizations are coming to the realization that branding is not a word or concept to replace terms like advertising, marketing and public relations. Advertisers, marketers and public relations professionals are also embracing the notion that branding is not just a campaign. Sure advertising, marketing and public relations should be a part of the brand development process.

But, the execution and the channels by which you reach out to connect with brand champions should be based on your brand strategy. For those of you who know me, you know that I define branding as the process of aligning your internal culture with your external reputation. The best outcomes result by engaging those stakeholders in that process.

Everyone today expects that an organization stand for something. They also want the organization that they work for or buy from to be transparent and bring to life their mission and core values. By so doing, you will be able to effectively recruit and retain your brand champions. Although politicians and their advisers might beg to differ, branding is not a campaign. And despite the fact that we elect our officials every few years, and your organization has its sales cycles, branding is not a campaign.

A brand is sustainable when you think in terms of a forever linear process, not a circle.

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

I think more and more organizations are understanding the need, and actually now do engage their stakeholders in the brand development process. It seems almost a given these days to do so. In fact our stakeholders expect it. Unfortunately most organizations have not done so in the past. As a result they need to build systems and processes to do so.

My organization helps others develop sustainable brand strategies based on mission, core values and stakeholder engagement. Right from the get-go our clients understand the value of their stakeholders providing information about their perceptions of the brand. In all cases aha moments happen in terms of how closely aligned the organization's internal culture is with its external reputation. In many cases the challenge to overcome is internal.

Let us face it, organizations have not been as effective as they could have because they have not done a very good job of orienting their employees about the brand that they are going to work for. If you do nothing else, ask your employees what they think about your brand. Then establish a thorough employee orientation system. Your chances for sustainability will be much greater. You might just be able to recruit and retain your brand champions.

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

This coming Sunday is the day our city plays host to the annual Race for the Cure. For the past few weeks and the days leading up to the event, everything is pink in Denver. As it should be. Why would you not like the pink brand Susan G. Komen for the Cure?

Susan G. Komen for the Cure is arguably one of the most socially responsible brands on the planet. Education, advocacy, research, fund-raising for beating breast cancer are all reasons to believe in the brand. I anticipate there are as many brand champions for Susan G. Komen for the Cure as any brand we know.

This week, let us all sport some pink and recognize the importance of recruiting and retaining brand champions for Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

Last week I received an advanced copy of The Zappos Experience. I look forward to cracking open the book today and reading about one of my favorite brands, Zappos, written by one of my favorite authors, fellow brand strategist and mentor, Joseph A. Michelli, Ph. D. The book will be available soon for you and without yet reading it myself, I feel confident in recommending it to you.

I was first introduced to Dr. Michelli reading one of his earlier works, The Starbucks Experience. I recall distinctly digesting as much as I could, at a Starbucks in San Antonio. I was in Texas working with a client on a P-12 education brand project and could not wait to share with my client how I thought the Starbucks brand development process could be applied to a school system. I had felt strongly about this application before, but now Michelli was confirming it for me. Later the book became required reading for the client's senior leadership team.

Since then I have had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Michelli and appreciate his time and mentor-ship. I have enjoyed reading his later works, The New Gold Standard, which provides an insider's view of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, and Prescription for Excellence, the story of the UCLA Health System brand and the amazing on-brand experiences employees and patients soak up every day.

Now comes The Zappos Experience. Those of you who follow this blog, have read my take on Zappos and the model for customer service provided by the Zappos brand. You have also read my previous accolades about the Joseph Michelli brand. This read should be quite a ride for us brand fanatics. If you are not already, I anticipate the read will turn you into a brand champion. Enjoy the trip!

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

Have you ever played putt-putt golf? Of course (no pun intended) you have, and chances are you played a course developed by Lomma Enterprises, the company founded by Ralph J. Lomma. One of the most innovative creations of the company was a prefabricated course that could be assembled in one day. For about $20,000 one could buy greens, equipment, scoring materials and of course the clown face on the 19th hole green. Add your name and the brand is yours.

There are not too many places in the United States where we do not find a minature golf course. Arguably they are a part of Americana. I am not sure that is what the nation brand wants to be known for, but hard not to make some type of association. I love the quote attributed to Lomma in the Wall Street Journal story about him. "Mini golf lets a child and his 94-year old grandpa play together."

I anticipate that whether we have known it or not, most of us have been brand champions of Ralph J. Lomma. Today he is the Brand Champion of the Day.

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

Tomorrow I have the privilege of presenting at the campus communicator's conference at the University of Colorado in Boulder. I will be talking about the importance of aligning university, department and individual brands. Included will be the process for developing a personal brand strategy and how to create more value for one's life and career. Then how to execute that strategy through social media.

A few weeks ago I had the chance to talk with a group of students and alumni at another university in our state on the importance of a personal brand strategy for students to help them guide their job search. Tomorrow I will be speaking with professionals and the benefits of personal branding for them. For any organization, whether it be a university brand or other business, mission and core values establish the essence of a brand. The same is true for us.

We need to understand who we are and what we stand for. When we are able to do so, we are much more effective in connecting with the right people and organizations to enhance our life and career. Only then can we effectively recruit and retain our brand champions.

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group

Today I am traveling across the United States for a meeting tomorrow with an east coast client. I look forward to engaging in a dialogue about implementing a recently adopted brand strategy. I am also excited about cracking open my copy of Brandwashed, the latest publication from my friend and fellow brand strategist, Martin LIndstrom. Martin has been a guest blogger on this site and I often cite his works.

Many of you who frequent this space or know me are familiar with Martin's previous works, including buyology, Brand Sense, Brand Child and others. He has a ton of brand champions. I had the opportunity to meet Martin during a symposium he was facilitating several years ago in Berlin. I was a fan then and a bigger one now. Even though he is younger than me, I consider him a mentor. I have learned a great deal from Martin and have applied many of his findings and teachings to my client projects.

Today I get to fly one of my favorite brands, Southwest Airlines and read more from one of my favorite brand champions. Upon learning new gems while reading the book and certainly upon completion, I will share some of perspectives and look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Rex Whisman

BrandED Consultants Group