Hi and welcome to Blaydemor's podcast series Centre Stage.

My name is Anthony Coombs and I'm the creator of Bladermore.

In Centre Stage we tackle the issues that business communicators face,

from investor and ESG communications to employ engagement and brand.

In this episode, which is the first in a two-part series, I'll be joined by Carl Smith,

strategy director here at Bladermore. And we'll be talking about brand, in particular

how organisations communicate change and the role of branding in singling that change.

Hi, and welcome to centre stage, Carl.

Hey, Ant, great to be here.

So, Gahal, tell us why business is so concerned about branding.

I think when you look around, there's so much discussion about branding.

So many different branding terms, people talk about brand strategy, brand architecture, positioning,

brand experience, identity. There are people talking about corporate brands versus enterprise

brands, employer brands, sustainability brands. So there's so much discussion about branding,

but I think there's a lack of clarity and a lack of precision. And that's,

on the client side, I find lots of people talking about brand, but maybe being too afraid to ask

what exactly what exactly it is about. And often, I've probably feeling a bit silly to try and

actually ask questions about it.

So maybe we will have a look at that today.

I also think that sometimes the brand agencies themselves like to keep some confusion

and mystery around branding,

and that's part of their cachet or part of their business model I suppose.

...