The effective development of brand positioning for any brand will aid in getting your desired message across and make an impression that lasts. Positioning is the way in which you want the consumer to think about your business (products and services) relative to competing brands. It is the most basic of all strategic statements, provides the blueprint for the marketing and development of the brand, and focuses the efforts of all those involved in brand activities.

Without a concise brand positioning statement with a competitive “point of difference” and complete management alignment behind this positioning, it will be difficult to communicate a clear and meaningful message about your brand. A brand must make a strong impression that lasts and translates into profitable sales and long-term growth.

You don’t have to embark on a lengthy and expensive consumer research study to find out. Just try this quick and easy exercise. You may be surprised by what you learn.

Ask each of your direct reports, each member of your marketing organization, and key external strategic and creative resources (including key consultants and all ad agency team members) to answer the following three questions:

1. What business is your brand in? Your “frame of reference”.
2. What is the “target market” for your brand?
3. What are the “points of difference” for your brand? Note: List no more than three.

Analyze your results (or have the submissions sent to me and I will analyze them for you). If you observe either or both of the following, your brand positioning can most definitely be strengthened:

• Significant inconsistency in the answers to most if not all of the above three questions.
• “Points of difference” that are really “points of similarity” to your competition or simply “points of entry” in your business – and not pre-emptive, ownable and defendable attributes that are important to your target market.

I understand that you and your team know your business better than any outside consultant, marketing or advertising company does. Where I can assist you is by starting with my proprietary one-day positioning methodology, working directly with you and members of your team, to clearly state and communicate the core elements of a successful positioning for your brand. The end result will be the development of a concise positioning statement, agreed upon by your core management team that reflects the following three elements:

• Target market (the customers you are marketing your products/services to)
• Frame of Reference/Competitive set (what business you are in)
• Point(s) of difference (the specific consumer benefit that is preemptive, ownable and defendable that you want consumers to associate most readily with your products/services).

The positioning statement will be summarized into the following format:

To _______________ (Market Target), Brand X is the brand of  _________________ (Frame of Reference) that is/that offers ________________ (Point of Difference).

Your brand will be in good company. I’ve used this approach to successfully position hundreds of well-known brands for a diverse group of companies, from Fortune 500’s to start-ups and turnarounds. Our positioning work includes international, national, regional and local brands across many industries.

You can also hear me speak more about “The Three Critical Steps to Positioning Your Franchise or Restaurant Into a World-Class Brand” at the upcoming International Franchise Association (IFA) Convention in Orlando, FL on February 13th and at the National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show in Chicago, IL on May 7th.

For more information on how to quickly and affordably properly position your brand to compete successfully in today’s competitive marketplace visit www.ellishmarketing.com, or reach Warren directly at 303-762-0360 or warren.ellish@ellishmarketing.com.

F. Warren Ellish is the Founder, President and CEO of Ellish Marketing Group, a leading authority on brand positioning and marketing consulting to restaurants, dental practices, retailers and consumer products companies. He is a senior marketing executive with over 30 years of client and consulting experience. Ellish is a renowned practitioner, lecturer and speaker on brand positioning and is a member of the marketing faculty at Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management. Ellish was named to the Advertising Age ”Marketing 100 – the superstars of US marketing”.

When I look at the economy and what many businesses are faced with today, HR Executives should be:

1. Aligning measurable objectives to the Company objectives – Each person in the Company should understand how they contribute to the success of the company. Align all jobs with specific measurable results and tie them to the goals of the organization. HR wanted a seat at the table and here is one way they can contribute.

2. Ensuring employees are not just satisfied, but also truly engaged – All Companies should be measuring this and implementing strategies and tactics to increase the retention of top performers. There are easy to use tools out there so this doesn’t have to be a huge expense either.

3. Teaching leaders how to lead effectively – Developing leaders takes time – we don’t have time. So what do you do? Take the time and it doesn’t always cost a lot. It is great to send someone for an Executive MBA, but there are other resources that are very effective in developing leadership traits, they can even be FREE! First you have to identify his/her strengths and weaknesses (360 or other assessment). Then create a plan and follow through.

Human Resource Management is complex and has many moving parts and doing more with less isn’t going away, but if you focus on results and developing a team of highly effective and productive employees you will increase your chances of winning the race in 2012.

No wonder so many organizations are in chaos and so many leaders wonder why their brilliant strategies are not taking hold with their frontline mangers and employees more quickly. Part of the problem lies in what qualifies as strategy in today’s frenzied, A.D.D. world, with a series of tactics too often masquerading as ‘strategy’ in many companies.

But even where solid strategies for growth or turnaround have been developed, translating these into results is nearly impossible without consistent and well-planned communications. Effective communications is needed if unit-level teams are to understand where the brand is going, what the priorities are and how their daily work connects with the main objectives. Ongoing dialogue with stakeholders at all levels is critical if you expect primary messages to make it from the executive suite all the way to the field.

Without this, confusion reigns and unit managers and their teams will simply revert to how they’ve always done things. In other words, change will be impossible.

So what does it mean to communicate strategically? There are a few primary components worth mentioning here:

Messaging – Once a turnaround or growth strategy has been determined, the next step is to develop core messaging that will consistently be utilized. Keep core messages simple and limited to a few key themes – three to five is optimal – that all the various action plans and tactics can be tied to.

Consistency- Stick to your messages and don’t be afraid to repeat yourself. Most people need to hear the same thing multiple times before it really registers. Just like a politician, you must stay on message to be successful.

It usually takes many months for meaningful change to take hold, but if the story keeps changing, it won’t.

Frequency- It’s better to over-communicate than assume that everyone gets it, or worse, to assume that middle management will carry the right messages all the way to the teams on the front line. Far too many times communication breaks down through trying to cascade information down through various channels from the top. It’s like the old game of telephone. By the time the people who matter most – the ones interacting with guests – receive information it is likely to be vastly different.

Consider the Audience- Don’t fall into the trap of trying to say different things to different audiences. It’s important to anticipate what is on the minds of various groups and consider what is most important to them. Keeping it simple without using acronyms or corporate speak is also valuable. But the central message must be the same, whether you’re speaking with a reporter or a team of employees. In a world of constant online communication, anything you say to one audience will easily be seen or heard by another audience.

There are many other aspects of strategic vs. ad hoc communications, but it all begins with making effective communications a priority. Communications that moves the change needle doesn’t happen by accident. It requires resources and a commitment to thoughtful planning, message development, training and execution. If communications is only something addressed within your organization at the last minute or in times of crisis, successful growth or change will be hard to achieve.

Rick Van Warner is Senior Partner & Principal of Parquet Public Affairs, a national communications, issue management & reputation assurance firm specializing in the service industries.

The newer tablet PC’s will take over from the “netbook” mania of the past few years. Tablets are now running the industry-standard Windows 7 operating platform (soon to offer Windows 8 ) and therefor can run most industry-specific applications. While the iPad/Apple and Android/Google operating platforms are popular with consumers, my prediction is that the amount of alternatives available at lower price points and more flexibility to run business applications will not make Apple or Google a choice of the mass foodservice marketplace on the business side of things. And while Google and its Android platform are clearly taking a run at replacing both Windows as well as the Exchange/Office applications, they, like Apple, will not offer the flexibility to run the industry standard applications that were developed on, and for Windows.

Cloud Computing is a quickly becoming a “trend” and will not be a “fad” to avoid. In this arena almost all data storage for general and industry applications will be hosted in “the cloud” which will lower operating costs, help to ensure better data security and provide both operators and their guests access, wherever, whenever and on whatever devices and platforms they choose from PC’s to Phones, Netbooks to Tablets and on all other sorts of devices which can access the internet.

Online services for both the employees and guests will continue to grow. On the guest side, marketing coupled with the ability to make a purchase is the way of the future. In the coming year we will continue to see applications developed in this arena as well as a move towards offering guest the opportunity to gain information and make purchases and orders when actually in the foodservice establishment. Foodservice operators will also look to adding additional products and services to sell through “digital menu items” which will enhance the guest experience as they connect before, during and after the dining period. In any event, at some point in the not-too-distant future guests will order on their own devices starting at quick-service and fast-casual segments and then moving to casual establishments.

And last but certainly not least is the revolution taking place with digital social and networking media that will help to tie everything together. This will serve as the connection point on all sides of the foodservice operation. We already see training programs on YouTube, ads and promotions on Facebook and Foursquare as well as job postings, blogs and idea sharing and other networking on LinkedIn and Plaxo. And these are just the tip of the iceberg as more and more of these networks develop and connect with one another.

There are probably at least 12 key and hot technologies for 2012 – but these make up my top 4 and I believe will have the greatest impact on the industry, operations and our guests. There is a lot to look forward to – Happy New Year!

How do we know when we’ve found a great leader? What differentiates the effective leader from the high performer, the effective manager, the superb executor? The great leader is the proverbial needle in the haystack. But when you know what sets them apart, they can be identified with confidence.

What defines a great leader? The answer is surprisingly simple: followers. There is great wisdom in that observation. Leaders engage in five consistent and specific behaviors that create followership, transformation and value:

1. Leaders define a compelling vision: one that naturally pulls their team to follow them. A vision that fires passion in the heart, inspires the mind to break through boundaries, and motivates aligned action. Followers who can see the dream will follow their leader and give everything they’ve got to make it happen.
2. Leaders know where they are. They have a deep and complete understanding of their current situation. They insist on knowing exactly where they are—because that’s the only way they can plot the course to where they are going.
3. Leaders measure results. The great leader defines the results they are after with metrics that tell them if they are on track, use those metrics to course correct and put the pedal down when the course is straight and true.
4. Leaders build trust with all of their stakeholders: workforce, customers, suppliers, investors and more. They build a balanced connection with all stakeholders and from that connection grows trust and loyalty. They put the needs of their stakeholders FIRST: before their own personal needs because they know that will generate the best results and the most value. It’s not about ME….it’s about WE.
5. Great leaders are self- aware: They confidently own both their strengths and weaknesses without hesitation. Because great leaders are self-aware, they can use themselves like a tool, leveraging their strengths and purposefully hiring talent to complement their weaknesses.

It takes a well-tuned ear to find leaders who transform business performance and value. We listen for what is said-and for what isn’t said. We listen for what they care about, who they care about and what they ask about—and what they don’t.

We explore our candidates’ leadership histories and listen carefully to the details of exactly what the candidate did and why they did it. Did they define where they were going up front, before they started? Did they set defined results? Who helped them in their journey? How did they build that connection? Did they put their personal agenda first—or the needs of their business and stakeholders?

We look for a willingness to say, “I’m great at X” and “I’m not as effective at Y” and what they did to leverage those strengths and make sure their weaknesses were addressed by others. “I have a problem taking on too much” doesn’t count as a weakness! Without personal candor, no leader can be truly great: because they aren’t even leading themselves.

When you know exactly what you are looking for, great leaders sparkle like diamonds. We know where to mine them and when we’ve found a great one for our clients.