Spotlight on Tom Quash
As the Director of Marketing and Communications at WICT, Tom oversees professional development, special event marketing, promotion of the WICT Foundation research initiatives, e-newsletter content and industry partnerships with the trade press. Tom also leads the association's branding initiatives, which he discusses below.
We recently had an opportunity to discuss WICT's approach to branding.
Q: What particular challenges or opportunities does WICT face? A: The landscape of our members is growing at a healthy rate and WICT has an opportunity to tap into the new workforce of women and men entering the cable industry. Our primary challenge will be engaging this new generation of members. For them, it appears that there is an equal playing field between men and women. Typically it is not until they reach higher levels of management before they discover the disproportionate ratio between women managers and senior executives and men in those same positions. Q: How has the WICT brand evolved over time? A: In the early days of WICT (the 1980s), the organization was more engaged in informal networking among women professionals in the industry. Thus, there were a lot of mentoring teas, golf outings and networking breakfasts. While connecting members is still important to our members and to us, today leadership development is the linchpin of our brand. Our seminars and symposia are among the strongest in the industry. Q: Why do you feel that branding is important for WICT? For associations in general? A: Your brand clearly tells your members - and the general public - who you are and what you do best. Competition, technology and apathy have chewed away at the foothold that associations once had with their respective member base. By creating a strong brand, associations are better equipped to leverage their own value and build the case for membership. Q: What have you been working on recently at WICT related to your brand? A: By partnering with McKinley Marketing, we've developed a brand evaluation tool that allows us to measure new programs and services against our brand criteria. It's based on a strategic point system. If a new product "fails," it clearly violates our brand and will not see implementation until it "passes." Using this system along with a series of research activities, we've devised a process to ensure new professional development programs meet our brand. Q: Why did you decide to undertake this process? A: In the past, much of what we offered in terms of education was based on guesswork or limited research. This new system is far more valid, as the brand evaluation tool is based on research conducted with members, volunteer leaders and staff. Q: What were the most important outcomes? A: As we conducted research with our rank-and-file members, we discovered holes in our professional development offerings. Holes that the membership was looking for us to provide. Once these new programs passed the branding test, it was clear that we were likely developing much-needed programs for our industry. Q: Do you think the process will inspire any changes at WICT? How will the results affect future initiatives / plans at WICT, if at all? A: The new process validates all new offerings and allows us to evaluate the current ones. Equally exciting is the fact that everyone - the staff, our Boards and Committees and chapter presidents - see the value in the branding tool. It will remain a major factor in defining the scope of our work in all services we provide. Q: What advice would you give other associations that are thinking about working on their brand? A: Leave your sensitivities at the door. There will be pet projects and favorite programs that you may not want to sunset or revise. But your brand may direct you otherwise. We've found that one of our most visible programs was not embraced by our "typical" member. Rather, it was Board members and CEOs that rallied around this initiative. It was an "a-ha" moment for us and showed us that we needed to significantly change our communications and positioning of this program. Associations tend to be more resistant of change than our corporate cousins, but it's important to remember that the brand experience is best defined by those who experience it-the members. You may not always want to agree with the research, but likely it will define where you stand among your constituency. By re-branding or enhancing your brand, you have a better chance of remaining viable and competitive. Back to Spotlight Articles |