Every day on the job brings something new for comms practitioners. News, trends, priorities, budgets, decisions, new tools and opportunities for the brands we work on are just a few occurrences that can trigger the need for a response, a challenge, or a pivot. It’s easy to get distracted and ‘lose the plot,’ as I often caution. Staying focused takes discipline, but the rewards of consistency are well worth it, a topic I covered with Amrita Sarna who is leading the integrated communications mandate for Unilever International, the company’s whitespace partner and global business unit.
“Consistency is at the top of the list for me,” said Amrita. “It is so important because it helps ensure our whole equals, and delivers more than, the sum of the parts including the clear and honest messages we communicate to our stakeholders, the insights we’ve unlocked that enable those messages to resonate, and the activities we execute that bring them to life.”
We talked about the role of consistency as the foundation of building brand recognition and its role in reputation. For example, when a brand presents a consistent message that is authentic to its core and communicates it with a consistent tone across the company and across platforms, it becomes familiar and easier for external and internal stakeholders to recognise and identify with it.
Viewed through the reputation lens, being consistent establishes trust, which Amrita underscored is the cornerstone of every business. Accordingly, she brings consistency to her work supporting legacy brands including Dove and Vaseline as well as new ones in a diversifying portfolio.
“The trust that results from consistency is especially important in CPG,” explains Amrita. “This is because we need to create comms that make our brands tangible for everyone, wherever they are in the world. We’re creating moments and experiences for increasingly multi-dimensional consumers that are very conscious buyers. So, when our comms are consistent, people trust us, know what to expect and then they engage with our brands with confidence.”
What’s more, consistency ensures that every touchpoint we create with stakeholders — whether customer, KOL, advocacy or organisation partner, the media or employee — works in harmony to convey and support a cohesive story, in Amrita’s case, Unilever’s core purpose, “Brighten everyday life for all”
Being inconsistent, on the other hand, can be confusing. And confusion can erode trust.
What can comms leaders to stay on course?
Clarity. Know your company’s core purpose and how that manifests for the product brands and with internal and external stakeholders.
Universal truths. When working globally, identify universal truths that apply across regions while being mindful of differences in customer behaviors, local customs, and market dynamics. There can be various approaches to highlighting a single purpose.
A strong narrative. A well-considered narrative should enable repetition through compelling story telling as well as creative activations. The narrative needs to resonate with stakeholders of today and tomorrow—key to future-proofing. Repetition reinforces the intended message and helps customers remember and associate it with the brand.
Think multi-channel. Being consistent in purpose, values and messaging opens up the inventiveness with which you can bring them to life. Amrita talked about the various ways she is engaging with her stakeholders including using digital platforms for more personalised touchpoints and influencer collaborations for resonance.
Maximise Impact. Consistency and coordination yield synergy and cohesiveness. When stakeholders see, hear about and experience consistent messaging from a brand on multiple platforms, it enhances the brand’s visibility and strengthens the overall impact of the effort. Consistency also delivers valuable data and insights that can be shared across brand teams at HQ and in different geographies.
While the benefits of a cohesive and consistent approach to communications are clear, in a world overflowing with news, noise and uncertainty on one hand, and on the other, tempting shiny tools, out-of-the-box ideas and offerings, it’s easy to go “off piste.” Finding the balance is key. As an early adopter of the new myself, and perennially curious, I know it takes discipline to ensure we are helping our clients deliver consistency and a cohesive, unified brand that will create a long-lasting impression.
“So much of what we do in comms today has the long-view in-mind – cultivating long-lasting, trusted relationships, and consistency plays a huge role here,” said Amrita. “Ultimately, it’s not perfection that we’re chasing, but we go for the crown every time.”
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Sandra Stahl has created and led communications solutions for many of the world’s leading pharma, biotech, diagnostic, device and consumer healthcare brands over a 30+ year career. Her skills as a strategist and developer of compelling narratives have enabled organizational-and market- readiness, powered investment, enhanced profiles, amplified landmark data, built reputations and influenced opinion. She is a recognized thought leader regularly published in industry, national and international media, and author of the award-winning book, The Art & Craft of PR (LID 2018). Additionally, Sandra is founding faculty in the PR track in the Branding + Integrated Communications master’s degree program at The City College of New York, now in its 10th year, has delivered lectures at university communications programs around the world including Columbia University in New York and Xavier Institute of Communications in Mumbai, India.
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