Building Trust And A Trusted Reputation

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

2.5.1. The power brand

Everybody knows what is a brand and what branding means. Companies create brands, marketers study them speaking about their architecture and elasticity. But according to David A. Shore, the only question is: How much equity does it have in the market?

Every company owns some brand. But only some of them own so called �power brands�. According to TheFreeDictionary, a power brand is a brand of product that is a household name associated with a successful company. In turn, David A. Shore's definition is: a power brand is something customers are willing to pay more for, wait longer for, travel farther for. A power brand dominates its market sector. Apple, Microsoft, Disney, Coca-Cola, and Volvo are all power brands. Power brands attract new customers easily and usually convert them into long-term, loyal �brand demanders.� They anticipate �share of mind� in the marketplace, and are able to capture and maintain �share of heart.� The products or services they offer are viewed by customers as excellent and distinctive.

The magic of a power brand is that it has a very positive effect on entire organization. A company with a power brand attracts the best employees; who would not want to work for a trusted and well-known name? It also works as a protective firewall in case of adversity. [2,�92,�93]

Power brands in healthcare

Unfortunately, only few companies in healthcare sector understand what goes into creating a power brand. They advertise their quality and focus mainly on it, as if quality were more than just an entry ticket to the marketplace. Healthcare providers say they are accredited, that their physicians are board certified, that you can choose your own physician. Pharmaceutical producers tell us that their pills will cure our ills. But are they somehow unique or distinctive? Is there anything that meets people�s need to patronize a company they trust and believe in? Usually the answer is no. Few organizations in health sector have any idea of what business they might really be in. They believe that they occupy some niche in the industry, and they never think of what they might have to offer the world that could set them apart from the competition. [2]

Let me call some story. Once upon a time, there was a shoe company in London. As its business matured at home, the president of the company decided to explore new markets. So he sent two of his salespeople to a remote region of Asia to assess the potential there.

After trekking from village to village, one salesman wired back to his boss: "Not much opportunity here. Nobody wears shoes."

The other salesperson, visiting the same villages, sent a different dispatch: "Huge opportunity here. Nobody wears shoes."

Two people can see exactly the same conditions, but reach completely different conclusions. The absence of power brands in healthcare means that this is wide open marketplace and that there is a huge opportunity for companies that want to learn those lesson. [2,�94]

2.5.2. Understanding branding

As mentioned by David A. Shore: �A good organization produces excellent programs, products, and services. A great one - a power brand - is trusted to consistently deliver excellent programs, products, and services that are perceived by consumers to be both relevant and distinctive�. [95] Many people in health sector work precisely because they did not want to go into business. They feel awkward with words such as customers and marketing. Branding may be one of the least popular terms among healthcare professionals. Many of them say: �We will do good work and create an excellent organization. We will devote our resources to serving patients, not to advertising. People will find us because of our solid reputation�. [2]

Unluckily, to think this way is to misunderstand what brand really is and to miss out on a chance to serve more customers even more effectively. At this point three points are critical:

First, every company already has a brand: explicit or implicit, powerful or weak, nurtured or ignored. Unless an organization is completely unknown - it is always perceived as good, bad, or neutral (or some combination of them) by those whom it is trying to serve. This fact has always some word-of-mouth evidences: �Cardiac Intensive Care Unit in Anin is the best in region,� or �Nobody would use their services if they had a choice.� The company's brand already exists and what its leaders do with it is up to them.

Second, branding is simply a way of locating the company in the marketplace so that its leaders are what they choose to be - and so that that the marketplace thinks of their company that way. It is called positioning, and it is a key component of any successful organization�s strategy - it is essentially a process of organizational development. It means identifying the company�s mission, vision, and values. It also means establishing a reputation - a specific position in the market. Organizations with power brands ensure that everything they do is relevant to that reputation. Only when the position is established organizationally the company takes its message to the marketplace through advertising and the other marketing tools.

Third, establishing a brand based on trust is one of the most effective ways of appealing to the people the company wants to serve. A power brand sets the company apart, attracts customers, professionals, employees, donors, investors and business partners. It encourages referrals and loyalty. It lets an organization to pursue its mission and it serves as a protective firewall in case of adversity. With a power brand, when something goes wrong, a person is likely to give it a second chance, or better yet, completely forgive it. To ignore the power of a trusted brand is to ignore one of the strongest tools available for building an effective, durable organization. [2]

2.5.3. Positioning: the brand promise

Positioning refers to the way a product or organization is perceived by the target audience relative to other products or organizations and is a promise to the people the company wants to serve. It tells them the reasons for the brand�s existence. It also tells them how and why the company is different from everybody else. A position or brand promise is a landscape of the company's leader's choosing: with it, he becomes the architect of his own destiny. [2,�11]

What should the positioning � the company's brand promise - be? Unfortunately, it is not a question that allows a quick answer. It requires spending a substantial amount of effort determining exactly what an organization is supposed to be and then developing a branding strategy according to that mission and vision. Crafting the best positioning statement is frequently based on the result of concept testing through focus groups or in-depth interviews. However, although it is not a quick process, there are some criteria that any positioning statement has to meet. [2,�10]

First, it must offer a benefit. Biedronka promises everyday low prices and Volvo promises safety. Less crafty companies simply call themselves as �the best� or a similar phrase, leaving customers to wonder what that may mean to them. It should be noted that a benefit can be emotional as well as rational. Pepsi does not just say it will quench your thirst - it promises that you will be a part of the Pepsi Generation.

Second, the benefit must be relevant to the group it is aimed at. Johnson & Johnson�s baby shampoo carries its benefit even in its name: No More Tears. Every parent knows why that is so valuable.

Third, the promise must be credible. It must fit with the company.

Fourth, the promise must be scalable. It must be able to cover the ensemble of whatever is being branded.

Fifth, the promise must be durable. A positioning promise, a brand identity, never - or very rarely - changes. This feature is more important than any particular characteristic of the brand itself.

Finally, the promise must be distinctive. The focus is on what distinguishes a brand from its competitors, and attention has to be drawn to its most important characteristics. Eventually, it is the competition and not the customer that determines profitability and market share, because the options in the marketplace go a long way in determining where any individual fits. Specifically, competition has a superior influence on pricing. Yet many organizations seem to ignore the need to differentiate themselves, or are unsuccessful in doing so. [2,�96]

2.5.4. The brand hierarchy

Branding is a dynamic process by which a brand evolves or migrates, gaining value along the way. The mental position that a brand can occupy is usually progressive. However, the internal process of building a brand is fairly precise, and a future power brand will occupy the top rung of the ladder in customer's mind strategically during its design. A brand should be expected to progress through the rungs of the brand equity ladder from the perspective of the market, as a process of evolution (see Fig. 16). [2]

The lowest rung on the ladder is the meaningless or unattended brand, the one that is not nurtured or differentiated from the competition. Commodity products or services never get beyond this level.

The second rung is a brand that promises something. We can say it is the entry ticket to the higher rungs. Here, the question is what the brand promises and whether the customer eventually receives the benefit of that promise.

The lowest level of promise concentrates on the product�s or service�s features. For instance insurance policy offers world coverage. Too, many brands get stuck at this point: they leave us wondering why we should care about these features while we really need to know what value the brand will bring us.

So the next level of promise focuses on benefits to the customer. Marketing managers put it like this: I am not excessively interested in your grass seed, I am interested in my lawn. All I really want to know is whether my lawn will be healthy and as green as my neighbor�s. No organization that takes its brand seriously ignores the importance of showing the benefits to the customer. Pampers do not promote its product�s absorbency capacities; it promote the benefits of a dry baby.

In turn, the upper rungs of the brand ladder are reserved for the owners of power brands. For the fact is, a kind of transformation occurs when a brand migrates from feature-benefits duo to consequences-values duo. While the lower rungs concern reason and logic (here are the facts and the expected benefits) - the upper rungs involve emotions. Moving up to the top rungs of the brand hierarchy entails creating an emotional bond with the customer that is far stronger than any rational attachment can ever be. [2]

A brand which is based on that emotional connection has some meaning in a person�s life; it turns him from a soft target, someone who can easily be taken over by a competition, to a hard target, someone who remains loyal to the brand. Moving up the ladder entails moving from

facts � feelings

mind share � heart share

undifferentiated � differentiated

required � desired

softer targets � harder targets

merchandising � image advertising

commodity � uniqueness [2]

In effect, an organization begins to own some mental real estate in the marketplace; it builds a reputation and provides people with reasons to trust in it. Its brand moves from an ordinary brand to a power brand, a brand in which people spot quality and for which they are willing to pay more simply because they trust it. [2]

2.5.5. The situation in healthcare

Some of the corporations that supply products to the healthcare sector - pharmaceutical manufacturers, medical equipment companies, and so on - are themselves power brands. Marketers at Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and GE Medical Systems do not need lessons in marketing. But how different the situation is when it comes to hospitals, medical practices, and all the other organizations that are involved in direct care. In this part of the industry there are only a couple of power brands, such as the Mayo Clinic in the USA. Mayo provides excellent service that is distinctive from other healthcare providers. They transcend mere products and services that�its competitors cannot�duplicate. There are only a few brands that nurture their status with strategic planning by a brand management committee, which seems to be a necessity for power brands and aspiring brands. [2,�95]

As a result, most brands in healthcare industry are at the commodity level of the brand ladder. Customers cannot differentiate one provider from another. They will make their choices on the basis of recommendation from a friend or a convenience. Without branding, healthcare becomes nothing more than a retail industry, and in retail one the most important factors is location. [2,�95]

This commodity strategy worked decently as long as demand for healthcare outstripped supply and as long as customers went along with whatever their doctor recommended. Today�s environment is quite different. There is no longer room in the marketplace for all of the organizations (closing of public hospitals in many Polish towns). Customers are no longer necessarily willing to accept whatever their physician recommends. Nowadays, they have access to all sorts of information about competing healthcare providers, and they are migrating when they perceive situations to be more beneficial. They will head for organizations that occupy a specific position in their minds - that develop a meaningful brand - a power brand. Developing such a brand�will take�healthcare providers out of playing the commodity game. [2,�95]

Developing such a brand requires taking a journey into the heart of an organization and following a series of sequential steps. Each step requires a considerable commitment of resources, including the time of members of the Supervisory Board. It is important to realize that branding is not just marketing. It is the position adopted by the company. Positioning in this sense requires attention from everybody. The following chapters will describe how to create an organization that makes good on its promises. [2]

2.5.5.1. Building a brand for a medical facility � focus on identity

The most important challenge facing healthcare marketing managers is seeking ways to differentiate from competitors. It is an absolutely necessary condition for the existence in the market and building customer loyalty. After all, the brand equity is measured by the loyalty between patients and health care institution and its doctors. Thus, the primary goal of a company in terms of marketing is to build its own identity. The strategy in this area should be based on:

drawing patients attention to the services provided by the facility by signaling a new strategy,

consolidating and coordinating the implementation of the new identification,

the creation of superstructures associated with the conviction of the rightness of the implementation of a new identity and its importance amongst the staff and the environment,

determination what are the values created by the organization in order to better understand its advantage in the market by the staff and patients. [18]

The value of the brand and its image should exist in the minds of patients, physicians and payers as well as managers. The experiences of Western countries show that a lot of healthcare providers do not give much importance to the construction of their identities. Medical facilities in this regard usually apply a conservative informative strategy and stay with chosen aesthetic (logos, brochures, etc.). This strategy is certainly better than no strategy at all, but one can not compare its effects to the promotion of a new corporate identity. A brand becomes worthful only when the recipients perceive it not only as a logo, but also begin to associate its qualities, values, interests, personality, culture. The brand equity is the promise, that it gives the patient, so tempting that he or she is determined to use the services of this particular institution. The existence of a single, coherent identity brings benefits only when built image becomes very well known, stands out from the others, and demonstrates the value. Unfortunately, it does not happen without specifying a vision of the brand and brand tool kit. Consistent strategy of showing the logo is not enough. [18]

2.5.5.2. The importance of the image for the functioning of a healthcare facility

Changing patients preferences and their loyalty fading put healthcare facilities in a very difficult situation. Every healthcare provider wants to take a prominent place in the minds of patients and gain their trust, which can be achieved through the formation of a positive image, which became one of symbols of property or healthcare facilities. Shaping the image of healthcare facilities - building good relations between the institution and market participants, are the actions in the field of public relations.

The most commonly used activities in this matter include:

cooperation with media,

creation of corporate identity system,

organization and participation in events.

maintaining proper relationships between healthcare provider and its environment,

organization of �open days� in healthcare facilities,

conferences and seminars. [4]

The image of healthcare facilities is a term that has several different definitions. Some of them define the image of the healthcare institution as a form of its perception in the external environment, the other as a "portrait" in the consciousness of the patient's mind. Some others add to this definition facility assessment, feelings and attitude towards it. All agree, however, that the image of the healthcare facility in the minds of different people who are dealing with it is never perceived in the same way [4].

The creation of the image is affected by the following factors:

service,

history,

people,

symbols,

organization. [20]

Medical service, because of its subject - health, illness, life-threatening conditions, and death, is subject to particularly careful observation of a society. Relevant here is not only the quality offered to individual patients and their families, but also the reliable evidences of quality that can affect a wide audience (even those who currently do not require medical care). These may include: diplomas of recognition, ISO certificates, exhibits, charts related to medical topics and documents confirming a positive accreditation [20].

Another important aspect is the history of the facility, including the time of its operation, as well as all the positive events, namely: the treatments performed in the center, scientific discoveries, the number of cured patients, introduced new diagnostic and therapeutic technologies. Often, for the patient, the sufficient basis for the facility's credibility is its long-term functioning in the market. New healthcare facilities that do not yet have a long history, still have many ways to build patient trust. This can be achieved for instance by describing earlier experience gained by the staff, in particular in terms of the history of treatments that are carried out in the facility [20].

Another useful tool in building the image is a personification. The perception of a personified medical brand is affected by the contact with people associated with the facility, and in case of big centers also by the recognition and reputation of their managers. This applies not only to staff, but also to well-known people: the founder of the hospital, the doctor known for his scientific discoveries or spectacular surgeries. An example of the facility, which has built its image on one well-known person, is the Institute of Cardiology in Warsaw, using the achievements of prof. Religa (1933�2009). This kind of image building is nothing more than a personification of the brand, which sometimes can be dangerous. The main threat is a negative change of someone's image (eg in case of corruption), which results in loss of positive associations and their transformation into negative ones. Another threat is the situation, when a well-known person leaves the facility, which could lead to the emergence of competition. A natural threat is also his or her death. Although in this case, a good solution is to give the institution the name of the deceased, which will contribute to strengthening of the positive reception and public commitment. This model also features: competence, sincerity, excitement and sophistication. It is credited with defining the characteristics of the brand as: a competent and reliable, successful and safe, honest and vital, cheerful, friendly, exciting and brave. [20]

Another tool in building the image is the use of symbols. Verbal symbolism includes items such as name, company slogan, and style of expression, for example in the media (press, radio, internet). The sound of the name of the facility is particularly important. In accordance with the principles of marketing it should be associated with the services provided, and be easy to remember for the average patient. A medical facility, building its own brand, often uses the procedure of appeal to authority. It can be done by adding a morph: prof. or dr. to the name (Instytut Medycyny Pracy im. prof. dr. J. Nofera), as well as by basing on educational institutions names (Klinika Neurologii Uniwersytetu Medycznego). [20]

Another way is to use a specialized, difficult words (Klinika Torakochirurgii), or indicating the professionalism and modernity (CPP � Centrum Pomocy Profesjonalnej). It is helpful to refer to the European level of treatment, suggesting world top standard (Europejska Klinika Rehabilitacji). Another good way is to use the image of well-known and respected people (Instytut Kardiologii im. Prymasa Tysi�clecia Stefana Kardyna�a Wyszy�skiego). Fairly common in building the name is the usage of a morph: med, eg. Luxmed, Medicover. This method makes it easy to associate the brand name with the type of service offered. A good name is an important part of building the image of the institution.

Another aspect of verbal symbolism is the style of expression. The official words spoken in the media by authorized individuals aim to reach the large audience. Medical terminology helpful in building a professional image, for an individual patient can be strange and incomprehensible. Therefore, healthcare providers should use words that explain the content of the message transmitted. [20]

In turn, graphical use of symbols uses the symbolism of colors, graphic elements and typography. The most important element is the color, which may be specific to chosen industry. In healthcare, blue and aquamarine are the most popular colors. [20]

As for graphic elements, in healthcare the most popular are: a human (as an entity that is in the spotlight and at the same time the recipient), aesculapius (dating back to ancient times, a sign of wisdom, healing, resurrection, life), flower (as a symbol of freshness and health), and the cross. Currently, the most commonly used symbol is the cross, which for centuries has a very wide meaning, referring not only to religion but also to the four corners of the world, and is a combination of opposites such as life and death, spirit and matter, heaven and earth, etc. Another symbol is a heart, which refers to love, care and is associated with energy and vitality.

Underrated, but important tool of the visual symbolism is typography - the selection of the right type of font. One should take into account: the size of the letters, their inclination and regularity. The size of the font shows determination and strength. In contrast to the case of straight letters, typically associated with stability and security, italics expresses dynamism and change, often adding a sense of elegance and lightness. [20]

The image of healthcare facilities created in the eyes of the patients is subjective, because it is caused by a direct contact with staff, information and offer, or is the result of deliberate action by an institution that uses a variety of instruments that creates a positive image in the public's mind. Public relations should be carefully planned, professionally managed and carried out after a thorough analysis of the market situation. The goal of creating the image of healthcare facilities is to produce the intended reactions among recipients. Using the criterion of "location", recipients can be divided into two groups - internal and external, which in turn allows you to distinguish between internal and external image, between which there is a feedback loop � the internal image influences the external, and vice versa. If there is no match between their components, the final effect may be far from intentional. [4]

The purpose of the image formation process is to induce in patients emotional relationship with healthcare provider. The process is twofold.

In case of �current� patients the goal is to maintain them, leading them to buy medical services more often, did not use medical services of competitive companies and strengthen their conviction of the rightness of their choice. In case of �new� patients, the goal is to convince them to take advantage of the offer for the first time [19].

Building and maintaining a good image requires a huge effort, but it can become a path that will bring healthcare facility many benefits, such as trust in them and permanent competitive edge over the competition. Positive image of a healthcare facility also makes it easier to recognize and provides a permanent identification among the patients. Healthcare providers attract patients because of a particular advantage over its competitors, which is impossible to obtain by offering medical services. The main motive behind a choice may be customer habit and loyalty, guaranteed by the positive image of a healthcare facility in their consciousness. [4]

2.5.6. Developing a brand around trust

In the first step of developing a brand around trust, an organization's leader has to take that voyage into the heart of the organization and come up with a mission, vision and values that indeed capture what it is and should be. If the organization's mission, vision, and set of values are based trust, its leader must then test the organization�s trust capacity. A power brand based on trust is not just a marketing statement; it is a statement about the entire company, about who its leader is and what he or she does. Just as Volvo invests millions of dollars and employee hours to improving its cars� safety performance, it is essential to devote resources to improving the organization�s trust performance. If the company cannot be trusted, building a reputation based on trust is impossible. [2]

The second step is about becoming known for trust, establishing a position in the market around trust, and building a reputation based on trust. This stage involves looking outward rather than inward, viewing things from the customer�s perspective rather than that of the organization. It entails creating a sustainable position in the marketplace, a position that differentiates a company from anybody else. [2]

2.5.7. What reputation is and why it matters?

Organizations occupy complex positions in customers� minds and induce a certain amount of positive or negative feeling. Reputation can be defined as a consensus of perceptions about how an organization will behave based on what people already know or think they know about that organization [2].

Reputation has always been essential in the business world, and of course in healthcare as well. People do business with a company that has a good reputation because they believe they can trust it to do what it says it will do. Patients visit doctors and hospitals with good reputations because they believe they can safely entrust their health to them. But it is important to note a critical difference here. When customers go to the supermarket, they can assess the quality and prices of what they are buying with their own eyes. They may visit a store for the first time because it has a good reputation, but they visit it a second time mainly because they found that the quality and value were acceptable. They make our judgments based on tangible factors. When it comes to clothes, home appliances, cars, or computers, the reputation of the manufacturer matters. But it does not matter as much as the tangible value seen in the goods themselves. [2]

The service sector is different. In this case there is much that customers do not and cannot know about the transaction. Does the person or the organization have customers' best interests at heart? Are they competent enough to do what customers' expect them to do? Most of the people cannot easily assess the professional expertise of a service provider. In making a judgment about them, customers are completely dependent on their reputation. [2]

There is probably no market sector in which reputation is as important as it is in healthcare , mainly because the stakes for a patient are huge. What is more, patients can judge a doctor�s manner, but they can rarely estimate his or her professional competence. They can assess how clean a hospital�s bathrooms are, but they can rarely assess whether its equipment is modern and whether its procedures are state of the art. They can usually evaluate how a drug makes them feel, but they cannot evaluate if it was produced to the exact required specifications. In healthcare, costumers are completely dependent on the reputation of the healthcare provider in question. We can say, that reputation becomes a proxy for the quality that customers are unable to judge. [2]

That is why it can be reasonably said that reputation is the most important word in developing a brand in healthcare. Philosopher Publius Syrus in the first century B.C said that �A good reputation is more valuable than money�. Referring to healthcare, a good reputation will generate profits, but money alone cannot replace a good reputation. [2]

2.5.8. Establishing reputation

A campaign which aims to establish a reputation has two main objectives.

The first is to create a �mental location� in the minds of the people who make up the target market. The organization's leader wants its reputation to be known by a target group, to be part of its mental consideration set when its members are making decisions about healthcare.

The second is to build a reputation that carries a unique selling proposition. The objective is to differentiate the organization from the competition around something that target market values. That makes organization's location unique in the mind of the market. This specific position will stand for something in the marketplace�something that is different from its competitors.

In order to do it, at least three steps are involved: market research, research on the competition, and operational assessment. [2]

Market Research

Every organization has to answer a few questions: What does the market want? In which area is it underserved? Companies always have choices about what position they get going to occupy. Healthcare providers may promote their convenience or their high-quality customer service. They may position themselves as experts in certain kinds of illness. Of course, the range of options is limited by the nature of the marketplace. For instance, nobody is likely to want �bargain� healthcare. So the organization's managers must determine what their target market values. Always seeing the same physician? Private rooms with the Internet in the hospital? This is information worth knowing. [2]

Research on the Competition

For every company it is very important to know who are its competitors, what do they offer and what position they occupy in customers' minds? Gaining a competitive advantage is inherent with a unique selling proposition. One cannot differentiate himself in the mind of a customer with a me-too strategy. Sometimes it may happen, that a competitor occupies a space that the organization's leader wants to occupy. In that case, the leader's job is to elaborate the positioning more effectively, get his message out more widely, and live up to his positioning more deeply.

The company's competition may not be immediately obvious. In healthcare, the competition may be similar conventional providers or alternative providers. It may be a medical facility in the nearby town or a hospital in the next voivodeship. Possibly, the competition may be the act of choosing to do without. Many people in Poland do not trust in healthcare system; they put off using the healthcare services as long as they possibly can, and they engage in self-care. [2]

Operational Assessment

The mission, vision, and values that the organization's management has established represent a specific promise. Keeping that promise means building a company that lives its values and pursues its mission and vision. The organization thus has a particular set of capabilities. The position it declare to occupy, and the reputation it wants to establish, must mirror those capabilities. For instance, Wal-Mart cannot promise �everyday low prices� and then be unable to beat competitors� prices. [2]

Of course, all of operational assessments must be made looking to the future as well as to the present - every market sector is dynamic. How the marketplace is expected to change? Are new competitors expected to show up? Is maintaining the organization's operational capabilities over time possible? [2]

2.5.9. A reputation based on trust

To build a reputation based on trust, an organization's leader has to understand the fundamentals of positioning, reputation building and specifics of trust itself. Trust is probably the most powerful basis for a reputation. [2]

In health sector, trust is essential. It is the number one predictor of patient loyalty to a healthcare provider. In fact, if a customer does not have a high degree of trust in healthcare organization to begin with, he or she may never get in touch with it in the first place. According to David A. Shore, in a survey by a faith-based health system, customers were asked, �What influenced you most to use this service?� reputation and location took together the first place with 25 percent of responses, while physician referral was behind them with 24 percent. In a similar survey conducted by a children�s hospital, reputation was the main reason for choosing the hospital. In fact, trusted reputation is so powerful, that it sometimes leads to absurd survey results. For instance, Massachusetts General Hospital was once ranked as having one of the top ophthalmology programs in the USA, even though it has no ophthalmology branch; Cleveland Clinic was ranked as best in the region for obstetric services, even though it does not offer obstetrics care. [2]

The initial step in the process of building a reputation based on trust is to prepare a positioning promise which will be focused on trust. This does not mean simply coming up with a statement such as, �Medical center you can trust.� Rather, it means giving people a reason to trust in the center. For instance, in case of a faithbased organization, its leader can play up the importance of its values and ethics. Or, if a company has invested heavily in training a world-class nursing staff can offer a level of nursing care that patients cannot find elsewhere. Maybe an organization offers its customers more comprehensive care than its competitors, thanks to well-developed relationships with other providers. Any competitive advantage can be the basis for a trust-based position. The point is to draw the linkage in the minds of customers: �You can trust us because��. [2]

2.5.10. The brand tool kit

A positioning promise is part of what may be called a �brand tool kit� - a set of practices that allow an organization to develop and manage its positioning and its brand. These are the means that create the organization's identification in the marketplace it wants to occupy. At a minimum they include the copy platform, the elevator speech and slogan, and the positioning guide and graphical standards manual. [2]

Copy platform

The copy platform describes what the company wants to sell to its marketplace. In healthcare, identifying a copy platform can be a bit of a challenge. For instance, it is not sufficient for a medical facility to say that it has full accreditation, that its physicians are certified, and that it has the cutting-edge technology. These features are not exceptional and are usually regarded as simply tickets to entry by customers. [2]

The key for an organization's leader is to ask himself or herself why people should trust his or her organization and to build a copy platform around the language that describes the company's advantages. It might be staff �s experience or training. It might be the friendliest people or the fact that service operations are built around customer convenience. It might be an unusual amount of home-based care, or simply an emphasis on consistency of experience. A copy platform lists these competitive advantages and relates them to the position based on trust. [2]

Elevator Speech and Slogan

The �elevator speech� is a short (usually 30-second) description of the organization�s positioning and it derives from the copy platform. It is used to quickly define organization and its value proposition. It's one of the most effective methods available to reach new buyers and customers with a winning message.

The slogan is what appears on an advertisement, on the wall of a lobby, or on every piece of paper and electronic transmission that leaves the company. All of these elements require absolute coherence so that they reinforce the positioning and, in turn, reinforce each other. [2, 33]

Positioning Guide and Graphical Standards Manual

Positioning guide and graphical standards manual are the brand�s �workshop manuals� that spell out language to be used (and words/statements to be avoided) in marketing, logos, colors, and more. It is important to note, that the positioning guide and the graphical standards are not the positioning and the brand, they follow the positioning and the brand. A brand identity is built around something important to the customer, such as trust. It is not built around a specific logo, color scheme, or slogan. These come last and are chosen to present an organization's mission, vision, values and positioning (MV2P). [2]