Is Your CoP Keeping Secrets?

Have you ever heard anyone say, “Extension is the best-kept secret?” We’ve all heard it, and we’ve all said it, for decades. And audience research has shown it to be true. In the national Extension brand study, non-clients indicated little awareness of Extension, but, when exposed to a description of Extension, most wondered why they hadn’t heard of Extension before, because it sounded valuable. We have never had a national, research-based understanding of what our brand really means. We now have a research-validated message that both captures the core truths about Extension and that clients and potential clients say is accurate and compelling. Extension’s diversity of subject matter is one of our greatest strengths, but it’s also one of the strongest forces fragmenting our brand. You are critically important in building a strong, consistent brand for Extension. In this session, you will learn about the research and the new tools and messages; and you’ll develop messages of your own. We will also develop ideas for promoting the Extension brand through eXtension and the CoPs. If we work smarter, Extension will have a strong, lasting, and inspiring brand among all those we contact—we’ll no longer be the best-kept secret.