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Get tips to keep your brand voice consistent during a merger or acquisition.
Author: Dama Ewbank
Last updated: 02/23/24
Healthcare mergers and acquisitions (M&As) continued at a strong pace over the last few years. According to Modern Healthcare, the number of healthcare industry deals in Q4 2023 (506) was up slightly from Q4 2022 (just under 500 transactions); however, volume remains short of pre-pandemic totals. The article also notes that when it comes to hospital mergers, while number of acquisitions have settled down over the last year years, the consolidations that are happening seem to be creating large, mega-health systems.
While healthcare organizations have a lot to think about when joining together — like merging technology, policies and personnel — maintaining a consistent brand voice must remain top of mind. After all, it’s your brand voice that distinguishes your organization from others online and helps you stand out from the crowd.
During an M&A, how do you recognize your differences but keep your brand voice consistent?
M&As don’t happen overnight, and neither should brand work. You’ll want to consider creating both short- and long-term plans that support your immediate needs and move you closer toward your desired future state.
Here are five things you can do during your M&A planning to ensure brand voice consistency isn’t an afterthought.
During an M&A, some in your organization may push for a quick merger of logos and language. Brand strategy, design and experience firm Siegel + Gale cautions against just slamming two brands together.
Many M&As bring together similar organizations and create the need for a combined identity and brand voice approach. But some M&As combine two distinct services that are better served by maintaining separate identities and personas.
It’s important that you first consider whether your M&A creates the need for an entirely new brand message. If you decide a unified brand is needed, be thoughtful in your approach.
Siegel + Gale says to review each brand carefully to find synergies and determine how each brand creates value.
Once you know what elements of each brand you’ll merge, develop a brand content playbook for all to follow. Be clear about changes to tone and voice. This will help your content creators maintain a consistent brand voice as they develop internal M&A communications as well as consumer-facing content pieces like blogs and social posts.
If you are merging two brands, chances are you’re also joining the online presence of two organizations. Take time to audit online content to determine what should stay and what should go. Be sure to update pages and posts to reflect brand voice changes.
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Consumers will need to know about and understand how your M&A will impact them, so strategic communication is critical. But consumers aren’t your only audience — and early on, they’re probably not the most important one.
Employees are your best brand ambassadors. Clear M&A communications to employees can help them understand organizational plans, alleviate uncertainty and help them become champions of new brand messages.
Branding and marketing firm Hinge Marketing emphasizes the importance of getting everyone moving in the same direction. The firm suggests communicating with and listening to key internal stakeholders early in the M&A process.
Early involvement, Hinge says, will encourage buy-in and help create representatives within your organization who speak in a unified and consistent brand voice.
An M&A can be stressful, but it can also offer a fresh start for organizations already in need of branding updates.
For example, suppose you aren’t already focused on becoming more inclusive in your brand messaging. In that case, an M&A is a great time to review and update your approach.
While it takes work to ensure a consistent brand voice, the more time you spend early in the process, the better off you’ll be. Keeping brand top of mind throughout a M&A can pay off with improved reputation and growth.
Need help matching your content to your brand voice or creating a new writing style guide? WG Content can help. Our team of healthcare writers can freshen up existing pieces or create new content that aligns with your brand and strategy. Reach out any time to learn more.
Editor’s note: This blog was updated on February 23, 2024. It was originally published in March 2021.
Organizations should conduct a comprehensive brand audit to evaluate the current brand voice against the goals and identity of the newly merged entity. Much like the process you’d go through during a rebrand, it involves reviewing all existing messaging, gathering feedback from key stakeholders and analyzing customer perceptions. Based on these insights, adjustments can be made to align the brand voice with the new strategic direction.
Leadership plays a critical role in maintaining brand voice consistency by setting the tone for the entire organization. Leaders must communicate the importance of brand voice to all levels of the organization, model the desired brand behaviors, and ensure that the brand strategy is integrated into the overall M&A plan. Work with your leadership on executive communications best practices to show a commitment to the brand message and inspire employees to champion the change.
Success can be measured through several key performance indicators (KPIs), including employee engagement surveys, customer feedback, and brand perception studies. Additionally, tracking metrics such as brand equity, customer loyalty, and content engagement can provide insights into how well the brand voice resonates with both internal and external audiences after the merger.
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