A 3-step course of to launch and maintain your merged model

I’ve seen the identical story play out again and again. Forward of an organization merger, advertising and marketing and communications groups work across the clock to merge two manufacturers and put together them for launch on day one. Then, two years later, the mixed model underwent a rebrand.

However why?

The reply is easy. Nobody is aware of what life is like on the opposite facet of the door till they stroll by it. And but, time and time once more, groups provide you with model technique earlier than the companies have had any expertise working collectively — they don’t truthfully know who brings what and the place the benefits lie but. You may anticipate your synergies and the way merging as one entity builds success in current markets or may open the door to new markets. Nonetheless, it could assist for those who labored collectively earlier than you can perceive it nicely sufficient to model it. There’s a lot work to do first.

Editor’s observe: That is half two of a two half sequence from David Martin. Learn half one right here.

Step 1: Handle viewers expectations

When corporations merge, staff and clients surprise, “How will this impression me? Will I lose my job? Will the merchandise I do know and love be taken away?”

There’s virtually at all times vital trepidation, so your first job have to be to supply your stakeholders peace of thoughts. And the one means to do that is by following the primary rule: All the time don’t hurt. We should perceive what they need and what’s vital to them after which use this understanding to information our collective conduct as soon as the businesses come collectively.

Initially, this requires ensuring that selections which may contribute to insecurities and fears aren’t made and executed. Keep in mind, your aim is to reassure your goal audiences that they received’t lose something vital to them and that you simply’re not making any adjustments till they’ve had an opportunity to supply enter and insights on the place alternatives may lie. You may additional talk this dedication by giving them an lively voice through buyer, investor, and worker advisory boards.

This course of can final all through most of that preliminary 12 months, because it’s solely as soon as your goal audiences really feel reassured you could begin to have forward-looking conversations. Usually, clients are purchasers of each companies, which implies they’re completely poised to inform you the place synergies lie, in addition to the place they’d use one firm and the place they’d use the opposite. Consider it as a Venn diagram, which helps you perceive the place the factors of intersection and divergence exist.