The panel on "Building Resilient Brands Countering Global Threats" was held at the International Strategic Communication Summit (Stratcom Summit'23), which was organised in Istanbul by the Presidency's Directorate of Communications.
Speaking at the panel moderated by Nur Özkan Erbay, Coordinator of the Türkiye Brand Office under the Directorate of Communications, were Pieter Idenburg, Senior Advisor at Issuemakers, Aslı Ünlü, IC Holding Corporate Communications Director, and Çağ Günacar, Togg Brand Management and Corporate Communications Director.
Pieter Idenburg emphasised in his remarks that communication is ultimately about people and that understanding people is crucial. "Events beyond our control continue to challenge our lives today," Idenburg said, noting how individual lives are directly impacted by worldwide developments.
Idenburg suggested that people are drawn to "simple solutions" like fake news because living in a complex world might have psychological impacts on them, such as detachment from life, alienation, and feeling lost.
Highlighting the necessity of "building resilient societies" so as to shield society from these effects, Idenburg further noted the necessity of high-quality information and lifelong learning to make this possible.
Regarding the building of resilient societies, Idenburg stated, "Rather than being something that only exists top-down, information should be a dialogue and a connection." If this is successful, only then can an understanding emerge from it. People can have an understanding not only of life but also of understanding other people. In this way, you create citizenship, and citizenship is the basis of resilient societies."
"As a brand, you need to be consistent in both your behaviour and communication"
Çağ Günaçar noted that as Togg, they attach importance to "the experience of users on their way from A to B and to enriching this experience" and to intensive studies to ensure it.
Stating that Togg aims to become a global sustainable brand, Günaçar said, "When Togg becomes a global sustainable brand, it will be the product that will contribute the most to the Turkish brand."
Günaçar stated that Togg focused on branding efforts from the first day of its establishment and said, "The first branding efforts progressed under the leadership and efforts of Togg's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mehmet Gürcan Karakaş. We were very determined. All our work started with the user and ended with the user. First, we tried to understand the user characteristics. We conducted qualitative and quantitative research to reveal Türkiye's representation. We focused on users' expectations about products and the brand. In qualitative research, we tried to answer the question 'Why', not 'What'."
Noting that it is important for a brand to be "predictable and consistent," Günaçar concluded his remarks:
"Being predictable shows that the brand has character. As a brand, you need to be consistent in both your behaviour and communication. If you can combine this consistency with clarity and continuity, your brand will be resilient. This is how we progressed in Togg."