The importance of team branding
Meet Donna Rachelson, CEO of specialist branding company
Branding & Marketing YOU, as we profile Africa’s leading marketers
and individuals who have made an impact on the profession around the
continent.
Rachelson is a seasoned specialist in the field and the author of the book Branding & Marketing YOU and the follow-up book Branding & Marketing YOU through TEAMS, which is being released in early October.
In Branding & Marketing You through TEAMS, Rachelson taps into the role that employees play as brand ambassadors for their organisations and the renewed focus on the attributes required by individuals to present themselves to optimum brand advantage.
As she wrote on the Marketing Update website in August: “Just as each company has a brand – the space it occupies in the minds of its customers, competitors and employees – so each team has a brand too. For example, your IT team might add huge value to the business, but unless it can communicate that value, the decision-makers may never know about it … Successful team brands evolve when your team becomes known for something positive. Consciously or unconsciously, employees and managers interact with your team every day and further cement your brand position. Your team is branded whether you like it or not, so you need to be proactive in influencing how it’s branded.”
Professor Nicola Kleyn from the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) says of the book: “Donna’s focus on branding at the team level makes a welcome contribution to an under-researched area.” The book confronts several myths and stereotypes surrounding teams and how people function within them. This is based on interviews with employees from six companies, including Microsoft and Sanlam.
The new book has also received praise from other high-profile personalities in South Africa’s marketing fraternity, including industry commentator Chris Moerdyk, brand and reputation advisor Thebe Ikalafeng, and branding and design expert Jeremy Sampson. Journalist Mandy Collins said: “Rachelson has achieved that rare thing – a business book that is useful, interesting and accessible to anyone who wants to learn more about marketing.”
Over and above her writing credentials, Rachelson has a solid marketing history and has held Marketing Director positions in several blue chip South African organisations, including fast-food group Nando’s and the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants. She was previously Marketing Manager at AECI, the JSE-listed chemicals group, and held a project management position at Standard Bank. She is currently a guest lecturer at GIBS, the University of Pretoria’s business school.
Rachelson’s company, Branding & Marketing YOU, was founded in 2007 with the intention of working to help individuals, teams or businesses develop branding and marketing strategies, execute those strategies, and market themselves in an innovative and impactful manner. Rachelson’s work has seen her train or coach individuals and groups across more than 20 top companies, among them Microsoft, Discovery, Deloitte, Standard Bank, Nedbank, Basil Read, Anglo American, McKinsey and SABMiller.
Rachelson’s specialist skills include personal branding and marketing, team branding and marketing, strategy development, values development, change management, marketing strategy development, marketing implementation, brand building, business development, strategic partnerships, cross-selling, customer partnerships, entrepreneurship and online marketing.
She is an alumnus of the University of the Witwatersrand and has also completed an MBA.
In Branding & Marketing You through TEAMS, Rachelson taps into the role that employees play as brand ambassadors for their organisations and the renewed focus on the attributes required by individuals to present themselves to optimum brand advantage.
As she wrote on the Marketing Update website in August: “Just as each company has a brand – the space it occupies in the minds of its customers, competitors and employees – so each team has a brand too. For example, your IT team might add huge value to the business, but unless it can communicate that value, the decision-makers may never know about it … Successful team brands evolve when your team becomes known for something positive. Consciously or unconsciously, employees and managers interact with your team every day and further cement your brand position. Your team is branded whether you like it or not, so you need to be proactive in influencing how it’s branded.”
Professor Nicola Kleyn from the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) says of the book: “Donna’s focus on branding at the team level makes a welcome contribution to an under-researched area.” The book confronts several myths and stereotypes surrounding teams and how people function within them. This is based on interviews with employees from six companies, including Microsoft and Sanlam.
The new book has also received praise from other high-profile personalities in South Africa’s marketing fraternity, including industry commentator Chris Moerdyk, brand and reputation advisor Thebe Ikalafeng, and branding and design expert Jeremy Sampson. Journalist Mandy Collins said: “Rachelson has achieved that rare thing – a business book that is useful, interesting and accessible to anyone who wants to learn more about marketing.”
Over and above her writing credentials, Rachelson has a solid marketing history and has held Marketing Director positions in several blue chip South African organisations, including fast-food group Nando’s and the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants. She was previously Marketing Manager at AECI, the JSE-listed chemicals group, and held a project management position at Standard Bank. She is currently a guest lecturer at GIBS, the University of Pretoria’s business school.
Rachelson’s company, Branding & Marketing YOU, was founded in 2007 with the intention of working to help individuals, teams or businesses develop branding and marketing strategies, execute those strategies, and market themselves in an innovative and impactful manner. Rachelson’s work has seen her train or coach individuals and groups across more than 20 top companies, among them Microsoft, Discovery, Deloitte, Standard Bank, Nedbank, Basil Read, Anglo American, McKinsey and SABMiller.
Rachelson’s specialist skills include personal branding and marketing, team branding and marketing, strategy development, values development, change management, marketing strategy development, marketing implementation, brand building, business development, strategic partnerships, cross-selling, customer partnerships, entrepreneurship and online marketing.
She is an alumnus of the University of the Witwatersrand and has also completed an MBA.
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