Accounting and Consulting
A brand identity
How Greg Skoda created a new brand in the midst of three start-up launches
By Patrick Mayock
Smart Business Cleveland | September 2007
Redefining an existing company’s brand and launching a new
brand are daunting tasks for even the savviest of executives.
But trying to do both at the same time? Difficult, but not
impossible, says Greg Skoda, who as chairman of Skoda,
Minotti & Co. facilitated a complete brand overhaul in the
midst of launching three new companies.
“We didn’t want to go down the path where we started a
range of different businesses and then got involved in the
brand,” he says. “It was important for us to do those things
simultaneously.”
The process began in early 2006 when the firm’s vice president of marketing began interviewing Skoda, Minotti’s partners to find the true essence of the brand. Following these oneon-one interviews, the staff was interviewed in two-hour group
sessions.
“Everyone in the company had an opportunity to participate
in the development,” Skoda says. “They’ve got to have bought
in to who we are, what we want to be and how we want to
deliver services.”
When all the responses were compiled and analyzed, a new
brand was born. Featuring a new logo and slogan —
“Delivering on the Promise” — the brand was launched internally in January, in tandem with a new five-year plan. The
external launch is set for early September 2007.
At the same time Skoda was overseeing this brand implementation, he was simultaneously developing three new businesses. Skoda, Minotti & Co. Financial Staffing was formed in
2006 to help clients fill financial staffing needs. Also last year,
Skoda, Minotti & Co. Small Business Services launched to help
small business owners manage their finances. Skoda also
helped create Aurum Wealth Management to complement the
firm’s existing financial services.
Each business was developed with the new slogan in mind,
and by offering distinct services, each business aimed to deliver on that promise of helping clients grow.
“We want to be an integral contributor to their success,”
Skoda says. “The only way that we’re going to is if we can continually find ways to add value for them.”
HOW TO REACH: Skoda, Minotti & Co., (440) 449-6800 or www.skodaminotti.com
