Advertising Center Branding
The Brooke brand is a powerful sales tool because it triggers name recognition by prospective customers and inspires customer confidence in local agents. The advertising center’s primary mission is to build and protect the Brooke brand through cooperative advertising with franchisees.The advertising center builds the Brooke brand by promoting branding efficiencies and branding results and protects the Brooke brand by controlling Brooke’s image and message.

Branding Efficiency
There is branding strength in numbers. By sharing the cost of advertising and public relations activities among more than 800 franchisees, branding is less expensive and more effective than it would be if all franchisees were on their own. Brooke is a branding partner through cooperative advertising with individual franchisees. By sharing the cost of advertising campaigns with Brooke, franchisees leverage their advertising investments. Additional efficiencies include the negotiation by the advertising center of volume discounts for branding-related purchases and reduction of administrative expenses from consolidation of vendor payment processing. Franchisees also have access to outside professionals through the advertising center.

Branding Results
Getting the desired results from an investment in advertising requires discipline and focus. The determination of whether the desired results are obtained first requires a write up, or summary, of
expenses and expectations so that a standard for measuring results is established.

The measurement of results requires a follow up analysis after completion of an advertising campaign.
Campaign follow up includes an analysis of the source for customers. Specific sourcing information
is typically captured by the advertising center during the process of setting up prospects in the Brooke
Management System. Additional specific information regarding campaign effectiveness is provided by
analysis of phantom phone number traffic and direct mail responses to phantom departments. Campaign follow up also includes an analysis of overall revenues and a survey of franchisees for their general perceptions.

The final step in generating branding results is communication with franchisees. By requiring
campaign write ups and follow ups, the advertising center is a clearinghouse for advertising information
and generally knows what is effective and what isn’t. To help franchisees analyze branding results, the advertising center provides semi-annual “intelligence” reports, tailored specifically for each franchisee, that summarize advertising expenditures and campaigns, logo usage, customer demographics and several other important branding measurements.

Brand Control
Controlling the Brooke brand is very important to individual franchisees because the local perception
of the Brooke brand directly affects their sales. With more than 800 franchisees, controlling the brand
requires constant attention. A marketing committee has been established with the responsibility for
establishing brand policy and auditing brand usage. The advertising center implements the branding
policies of the marketing committee and the regional offices audit branding usage for compliance review by the marketing committee.

Branding decisions can affect all franchisees, so the makeup of the marketing committee is important. The marketing committee includes senior management, advertising center professionals and regional office representatives.