1.
VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
A New Way for Communicators and Marketers to Drive
Growth and Sustain Efficacy in a Social/Digital Age

2.
WCG | COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016 2
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
In today’s social/digital reality, Relevance has become the new reputation.
This means that an organization must connect consistently and
authentically on multiple levels with its key audiences — in areas that are
both meaningful to the business— its core purpose and strategic direction
— as well as areas that are meaningful to its audiences. What makes this
different is the speed at which relevance forms and dissipates and the agility
necessary to harness it for sustained growth and success.
In an age where information is ubiquitous and people move from one subject
to another in the blink of an eye, if your brand, product, service or company
isn’t on their radar, you don’t exist.
It’s all about connection.

3.
WCG | COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016 3
In a word, Relevance is about being meaningful
to the matter at hand. From an organizational
perspective, it’s more about consistency
of behavior vs. consistency of message or
communications. Reputation is more vulnerable
than at any time in history. Yet, Relevance is
more valuable than at any time in history.
Given the speed, veracity, and lack of controls,
conversation in a digital world impacts
relevance at will. Consumers and influencers
now place relevance in a different position
interspersing individual ideals and beliefs
with that of the organization to determine
value. We are living in a time where the entire
balance of power has shifted and organizations
no longer control the dialogue or even their
own brands. Rather, consumers, customers,
employees and influencers all have the
capability to characterize and shape opinion
and perspective on products, policies, and
initiatives virtually every minute.
The biggest challenge, then, for organizations
who want to increase their Relevance is to
move from a coverage/broadcast communications
model to one that reflects the rise of influence
as a means of opinion formation. The term
“citizen journalism” now pervades our lives
as anyone with an opinion and a web address
has the ability to reach the world. In this
environment, media is not only fragmented
but so are their audiences. To fill the void,
individuals and organizations alike are
creating new content and distributing it on
diverse platforms and in multiple formats
to increase interactions and generate new
learnings about behavior and interest. Instead
of the five or six traditional media outlets who
cover your industry and company, you may be
looking at 50-100 (or more) influencers driving
conversation about topics or areas linked to
your business creating multiple ecosystems
where your brand either thrives or dies.
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
A new way for communicators and marketers to drive growth
and sustain efficacy in a social/digital age
■■ A NEW MODEL FOR AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT IS NEEDED
The age of transparency
Customers, employees,
shareholders, investor
community are privy to higher
levels of product information
and company knowledge
A new corporate
ecosystem
The lines between stake-
holders are blurred; all are
integral parts of one ecosystem
Growing sense of distrust
Recent events have elevated
concern about corporate
governance
A new balance of power
Power is shifting away from
management to employees,
suppliers, distributors,
customers, business partners
and other stakeholders

4.
VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016 4
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
WCG | COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE
It’s about understanding precisely:
• How your organization’s priority
initiatives and strategy are
resonating in real time
• How your communities of
influencers and stakeholders
are talking about relevant issues
positive, negative, neutral:
how their conversations are
resonating and what risks and
opportunities that may pose to
your organization and brand
• How to predict the trend of
an issue: is it a “slow burn,”
blowing up, or burning out
and not having a plan to act and
engage appropriately (vs. reacting)
• The most appropriate content
and channels to use with specific
stakeholders at specific times
• Determining new conversations
and interest streams that allow
you to convey your story and
enhance learning
■■ A NEW MODEL FOR AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT IS NEEDED
EMPLOYEES
CUSTOMER/
PROSPECTS
INFLUENCERS
GOVERNMENT/
POLICY MAKERS
FINANCIAL
COMMUNITY
ADVOCATES
CONSUMERS/
GENERAL PUBLIC
RELEVANT ISSUES
STAKEHOLDER AFFINITIESDemocratized
Transparent
1-9-90
Hyper-fragmented Media
INFLUENCE
INFORMATIONAL MODEL
MEDIUMMESSAGECOMPANY
INFLUENCERS
CUSTOMER/
PROSPECTS
EMPLOYEES
ADVOCATES
GOVERNMENT/
POLICY MAKERS
Unidirectional
Opaque
One-to-Few
Concentrated Media
BROADCAST/COVERAGE
COMMUNICATIONS MODEL

5.
VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016 5
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
WCG | COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE
It begins with a comprehensive understanding of
your audience’s reality, or what we call Audience
Architecture. Dissecting interests, networks,
communities, topics — the entire ecosystem
of belief — into a relatable data set that can be
assimilated and acted upon in real time. From
there, it’s about grasping your company’s core
beliefs, capabilities, and business strategy and
distilling them into a Narrative, or how your story
melds with the marketplace.
The Narrative is the foundational platform
from which to dimensionalize the myriad
stories that comprise your organization
and provide the connection to Relevance.
Segmenting your content into different story
lines (aka Narrative Cubes) so you can target
those who lead the conversation (influencers)
in your category, those who share content
(advocates), and those who prefer to “lurk
and learn” (the market). The result provides
audiences with the fuel to discover the
organization for themselves, where and when
they want it, the full picture of a company,
brand, product, service, policy, subject or issue.
■■ WHAT’S NEEDED TO WIN STAY AHEAD? A NEW INTEGRATED MODEL...
Why Relevance?
Reality: Social/Digital Age Ushered
in Awareness, Voice...
1. Consumers, customers, employees
actively participate in commerce and
societal discourse
2. Reputation is now defined as “what did
you do for me today?”
3. If an organization is not important
or meaningful to core audiences it
doesn’t really exist
4. Branding that doesn’t track with relevance
is on a path to nowhere
5. Relevance can lead to white space —
places where organizations can make
greater impact and achieve greater levels
of success
6. Communicators and marketers have
the tools and technology to keep ahead
of the curve; comprehend influence;
assimilate how communities and
ecosystems learn; discern needs and
benefits sought; and capture relevance
CORPORATE REPUTATION
WHAT’S IMPORTANT
(Point in Time Dashboard KPIs)
Benchmarking/ KPI driven methodology
based on important, but often not
actionable, stakeholder perceptions
CORPORATE RELEVANCE
WHAT’S URGENT ACTIONABLE
(Context, Targeting, Ongoing KPIs)
An approach based on understanding the
full spectrum of what matters to a modern
company – moving from a focus on just what
stakeholder recall, to the specific, observable
behaviors that are foundational to driving
key business objectives
AUDIENCE ARCHITECTURE
Cutting-edge insights, based on
actual stakeholder behavior,
developed at the pace and scale
of digital technology
TRADITIONAL MARKET
RESEARCH
Traditional primary research,
usually in the form of stakeholder
surveys and interviews.

6.
VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016 6
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
WCG | COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE
Finding Relevance
At W2O Group, we employ proprietary analytics
to identify and comprehend Relevance in
multiple sectors and industries. This is a
crucial first step to calibrating an organization’s
or brand’s efficacy and positioning against
where a market is tracking. In each of the
examples below you can discern where the
conversation and influence is moving and begin
to reconcile where you might be in terms of
communications and direction.
FOOD | CPG
FROM: Calories and Ingredients
TO: Lifestyle and Health Well-Being
IMPLICATION OPPORTUNITY:
SUPPLY CHAIN
HOTELS/HOSPITALITY
FROM: Location Amenities
TO: Cultural Immersion Experiences
IMPLICATION OPPORTUNITY:
LOCALIZATION GEO-FENCING
FROM: In-Person, Location-Based
Support
TO: Hyper-Personalized, Self-Service
— Anytime, Anywhere
IMPLICATION OPPORTUNITY:
EMPLOYEES LOCAL ECONOMIES
HEALTHCAREBANKING
FROM: Volume Efficacy of a Pill or Procedure
TO: Outcomes and Overall Health Wellness
IMPLICATION OPPORTUNITY:
SYSTEMIC INCENTIVES INDIVIDUAL IMPACT
AUTO
ENERGY
FROM: Manufacturing Selling Vehicles
TO: Mobility
IMPLICATION OPPORTUNITY:
TECH CULTURE FLEET NETWORKS
FROM: Global Green
TO: National / Local Secure
IMPLICATION OPPORTUNITY:
HYPER-LOCAL VALUES POLITICS
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
FROM: Network Performance
TO: Delivery of Solutions Experiences
IMPLICATION OPPORTUNITY:
USER EXPERIENCE TECH ECOSYSTEM

7.
WCG | COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016 7
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
WHITESPACE ADJACENCIES CONNECTING
BUSINESS OBJECTIVES SOCIETAL PRESSURES
AUDIENCE
BEHAVIOR
BUSINESS
OBJECTIVES
Capabilities Community
Lines
of Business
Policy
Future Growth Demographic
SOCIETAL
PRESSURES
■■ WHAT IS CORPORATE RELEVANCE?
Relevance as your Northstar
Fortunately, communicators and marketers
now have an unprecedented ability to
provide audiences with content they find
interesting and valuable utilizing analytics
to track impact – what they search, click-on,
spend time on, talk about, and share. New
analytics approaches now make it possible
to much more precisely understand how to
create the right stories and experiences, in
the right places, to spark deeper audience
engagement and action.
Relevance is the measure that any
organization, regardless of size, scope, or
category, can employ to truly understand
and address the reality facing its audiences
in a manner that provides mutual benefit.
When you wake up tomorrow it might be a
good idea to ask yourself one question:
Are we relevant?

8.
WCG | COMMON SENSE FOR THE C-SUITE VOL. 5 | ISSUE 2 | NOVEMBER 2016 8
Relevance is the
New Reputation…
For more information, please contact:
Rob Jekielek
rjekielek@w2ogroup.com
646-503-2733
Gary Grates
ggrates@w2ogroup.com
212-257-6994
WCG is a leading communications and marketing
firm specializing in healthcare, technology, and global
brands. The firm is a unit of W2O Group, a leading
network of independent, global strategic marketing,
digital, and corporate communications firms.
The Corporate and Strategy practice advises and supports organizations in
effectively addressing reputational risk, change management, leadership
positioning, market/product supremacy, and brand relevance.
The group offers distinctive expertise in culture transformation, strategy
implementation, CEO transitions, leadership positioning, internal branding,
MA post-merger integration, labor-management relations, advocacy and
issues management, internal communications, employee engagement, investor
relations, executive training and development, and research/measurement
through a proprietary combination of analytics/insights that fuel distinctive
models, methodologies, and approaches designed to achieve sustainable
business results.
wcgworld.comw2ogroup.com