What should our brand promise be based on?

Look beyond what the business makes or does to understand why its capabilities matter to its audience. For Strategy Object, The Frameworks used stakeholder interviews and audience research to identify a brand foundation beyond the company's e-government technology. The SOClass platform was widely respected, but the company behind it remained largely invisible.

Strategy Object had spent years helping countries exchange data securely and deliver trade reforms. Its strength lay not simply in technology, but in enabling collaboration, innovation and trust between governments. Its developer audience also shared the company's values of precision, clarity and continuous improvement. Those findings supported a direction centred on the developer community and Strategy Object's expertise in digital trade technology. A useful basis for a brand promise is the connection between a proven capability, its practical value and the priorities of the people the business serves.

Prioritise the genuine attributes behind the promise rather than trying to include every benefit. When developing its own employee value proposition, The Frameworks workshopped what it offered people through its culture, resources and benefits. It then shortlisted three non-negotiable attributes: "respect for the individual", "diverse workstreams", and "access to clients and training".

The Frameworks distilled their common value into "culture and challenges that inspire us to do our best". The creative brief expressed that idea as "let us bring out the best in you", giving subsequent creative development a clear foundation. The practice is useful beyond an employee proposition: reduce the list of possible claims, articulate the essential value simply, then decide how to express it verbally or visually. A concise promise should result from prioritisation, not from shortening an unresolved list of attributes.