compose a SWOT analysis and a target audience profile, and present it along with recommendations for communications (including a well-supported positioning statement).
First step: Re-read / compile the data
Secondary research reports
Primary research data and key findings
Second step: Know what you are looking for
The objective of this research / analysis is for you to determine a communications strategy for your brand – who should your brand communications target, and what should the message be that you want people to remember about your brand? What position do you want the brand to fill in the target audience’s mind?
Third step: Build brand analysis
Based on the research you conducted, determine and write a report that includes the following:
Define the situation, problem/issue & opportunity and key research findings (1/2 page)
Based on what you learned, what is the current situation that the brand is in – what problems can brand communications solve, or what opportunities can the brand take advantage of? What can advertising achieve for the brand? What key findings emerged from the secondary and primary research?
Create robust SWOT analysis, using the research you conducted as its foundation (1.5 pages)
A SWOT is seen as an analytical framework that can help you lay out all that you learned in the research in a thoughtful way. A good SWOT not only allows you to articulate brand strengths and weaknesses, it takes things a step further by forcing you to think about the external factors that bear heavily on the health and direction of the brand. This SWOT must be original and emerge from your research findings, not be a SWOT for the brand that you find online.
Develop target audience persona(s) (1 page)
Bring the target audience to life with specific, data-driven characteristics. Be creative in determining how you will “introduce” the target audience to others. Details should emerge from your research.
How should we position the brand in future communications to this audience? (1/2 page)
Combine your information from above to think about an effective positioning statement for the brand, rooted in research. Write it in the form of an elevator pitch if possible or desired, and write a brief justification for why this is the recommendation.
Further Recommendations – focus on communications (not products, distribution, pricing, etc.) (1/2 page)
How can the brand communicate this position in the market? Enhance your analysis to include messaging ideas, possible execution ideas (no need for creative execution), media recommendations, etc.
Fourth step: Write the creative brief
The creative brief is a succinct overview of the key strategic elements to understand when creating a new brand campaign (1 page). This brief should reflect the strategic analysis you did above, but be written in a more succinct and creative way. This one-page document will provide direction and inspiration for the creative team that is tasked with building a communications campaign based on your strategy. It should include:
Components of the brief (review voice lecture for details on each section)
Who is the client? (background)
Why are we advertising? (communication objective)
Who are we talking to? What do they currently think? (target audience)
What is the most important idea we can convey?
Why should they believe it? (Support from research)
How is this different from other brands in this category?
What is the mood and tone?
