Hayes, Inc. · Director of Marketing · 2016 to 2017
Giving a technical company a personality
Hayes sold to health plans and health systems, and its marketing content was too technical to show the company at its best. A brand blueprint gave it a personality and one way to write.
Problem
The content was overly technical. It did not show Hayes in its best light, and the brand had no real personality.
Move
We brought in an outside firm to help shape the brand blueprint. The senior leadership team mapped out the brand personality together. I ran interviews across the company and several workshops so the blueprint reflected more than marketing's view.
I held us to three to five personality traits. Fewer than three and the brand is boring. More than five and nobody can keep it straight.
Then I turned the blueprint into a content marketing plan and rolled it out across the website, sales decks, ads, and content.
Result
Website traffic grew 34% in the first eight months after the relaunch. The content plan shares credit for 200% more leads in 2016 than in 2015. The bigger payoff was a shared way to write for the brand. It was also a fun project.
How many traits a brand can carry
How the blueprint was built
- Outside brand firmHelped shape the blueprint.
- Leadership workshopMapped three to five personality traits.
- Interviews and workshopsAcross many departments.
- Brand blueprintOne reference for how Hayes sounds.
- Content marketing planBuilt from the blueprint.
- RolloutWebsite, sales decks, ads, and content.