Top 5 Lessons from the Wall Street Journal’s Reputation Rankings

Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal announces the results of the surveys of this year’s best and worst companies.   Any corporate communications professional should take a look at the metholodgy (you can find it here) as a good example of how to track a company’s reputation overall and by specific variables.   There is an interactive chart here that takes a look at the companies based on different measurement variables.
What should be noted as significant is that only some of the reputation variables fall directly under the communications function.  However,  all of them impact the reputation and are areas in which communicatoins professionals should be providing qualitative and quantitative counsel.
Below is a list of the key variables measured and how corporate communicatons folks should be using this to help protect their company’s reputation. 

Measurement
 Role of the Communications Professional
Trust
 Message counseling to ensure messages have matched up to reality and the audience mindset.  Also a reflection of crisis management.
Customer Service
 Counsel and programs to ensure interactions with customer service leave a desired impression on consumers.
Ethical Standards
 Counsel on programs that reflect ethics (e.g., employee benefits), a reflection on issues and crisis management.
Familiarity
 The ubiquity of a brand.  Often the result of either being a market leader or having a hot property.  This is the result of a mix of good overall communications and a strong company with strong product.
Communications
  
Via Advertising
 Counsel on messaging and audience perception.  Usually done when advertising falls under a senior communications role.
In the Media
 Effectiveness of media relations outreach and quality of media placements.
From a Sponsorship
 Counsel on messaging and audience perception.  Usually done when sponsorships fall under a senior communications role.
On the Web
 Counsel on paid web presence and effectiveness of outreach to online community (via blog-media, bloggers, discussion groups etc).
In an Annual Report
 Counsel on messaging, content and design to have annual report leave the desired impression.
 Perceptions
  
Sincere and Consistent
 Counsel on messaging and presentation of any public face (including product)
Distinctive and Transparent
 Counsel on messaging and presentation of any public face (including product)
Correct and Unified
 Counsel on messaging and presentation of any public face (including product)
Recognizable and Consistent
 Counsel on messaging and presentation of any public face (including product) as well as integrated communications.
Emotional Appeal
  
Financial Performance
 Reflection of actual performance combined with financial messaging (e.g., overpromising, under promising etc).
Products and Services
 Reflection of product combined with messaging (e.g., overpromising, under promising).
Social Responsibility
 How well a company treats its people and community.  Not necessarily a reflection of extra programs as much as day to day operations (e.g., compliance with safety rules, providing health insurance.
Vision & Leadership
 Reflection of leadership with messaging.
Workplace Environment
 Reflection of both reality combined with how employees communicate – employee communications is critical here).

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