Identity, Image and Reputation

"The FedEx brand is more than a famous name. It’s a set of values, attributes and artwork that reflects the spirit of the company. What comes to your mind when you hear or see FedEx? Speed, Service, Flexibility and Reliability. How did this company manage to portray themselves like so to their constituents? This is where their image, identity and reputation come into picture."

A company's identity is the visual manifestation of the company's reality as conveyed through the organization's name, logo, motto, products, services, buildings, stationery, uniforms, and all other tangible pieces of evidence created by the organization and communicated to a variety of constituencies. Image is a reflection of an organization's identity, so it is the organization as seen from the viewpoint of its constituencies. Image can vary among constituencies, and advertising is helpful to get people to adapt the image that the company wants to have. A company can have different images. A company's identity and image are two of the most critical components the corporate communication function has to deal with. When an organization's identity and image are aligned, the foundation for a solid reputation exists. The image and identity of a company also helps the company differentiate itself from others in the eyes of their constituents.

"Nike's marketing strategy is an important component of the company's success. Nike is positioned as a premium-brand, selling well-designed and expensive products. Nike lures customers with a marketing strategy centering around a brand image which is attained by distinctive logo and the advertising slogan: "Just do it". Nike promotes its products by sponsorship agreements with celebrity athletes, professional teams and college athletic teams. So what happens when a giant soccer ball meets the nike headquarters in Mexico? It promotes the identity and image of the company in the eyes of their constituents."

Reputation differs from image because it is built up over time and is not simply a perception at a given point of time. It differs from identity because it is a product of both internal and external constituencies, whereas identity is constructed by internal constituencies (the company itself). Reputation is based on the perceptions of all constituencies.

In the changing environment for business, corporate philanthropy and social responsibility are gaining visibility and importance in the eyes of many constituencies. A company that has a good understanding of its own constituencies and what is important to them, and that gives thought to how to tie such programs into its corporate vision, will be well positioned to create programs that will enhance reputation.

So the corporate should take care of their identity, image, and keep the communication well to make sure they can provide good product and service to keep the high reputation.

What i have learnt from my personal experience is that the first impression/appearance/contact with any company is extremely important. When I interact with a company for the first time and something goes awry, I tend to have a negative image of the company and will try my level best to avoid contacting the company again. This happened to me with Sify Inet India. I had gone to Sify's office to apply for a new internet connection. What I witnessed over there was that all the people working there were very unorganized and took a lot of time to do anything and everything like getting application forms, clearing my doubts etc. This inturn lowered the image of the company in my mind and thus I not only did not take the connection but I even asked my friends to avoid Sify.

References:
Corporate Communication - Paul A. Argenti
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_identity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_image