Brand Alignment Pothole #1: Internal Marketing Employees

The Brand ON! Show

Your internal marketing team should be your brand champions—but sometimes, they’re the ones throwing it off track. In this episode of The Brand ON! Show, Brandon Coleman Jr dives into the first major pothole that wrecks brand alignment: internal marketers who, without realizing it, make decisions that dilute or misalign the brand. From the paycheck trap to the rookie rut, Brandon unpacks the subtle ways marketing teams can sabotage brand consistency—sometimes with devastating consequences (remember Bud Light 2023?). Tune in to learn how to keep your team BRAND ON! and out of the danger zone.

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Transcript (with chapter marks)

00:01:04 What Are Potholes?

Brandon Coleman Jr: Potholes. In your car, they take it out of alignment. You hit just one pothole at speed, and your car begins to wobble, drive bumpy roads consistently, and your car will struggle to perform at its best. Likewise, your business hits potholes for various reasons, and they will take your brand out of alignment.

00:01:53 The First Pothole

Brandon Coleman Jr: Number one brand alignment pothole, the one you expect the least, internal marketing employees. That's right, this pothole could fill an entire book… At first glance, it's hard to swallow that your brand's biggest enemy might be your own internal marketing person or team, but it's true, especially in entrepreneurial enterprises.

00:06:09 The Second Pothole

Brandon Coleman Jr: The second big pothole is the pride of authorship, and it's rampant in the marketing and internal employees want the program to be their idea. They want their name on it to be your hero… They'll run through walls to put their stamp on something that wins your favor, even if it's the wrong move or brand.

00:07:29 The Third Pothole

Brandon Coleman Jr: Number three, lack of relevant experience. We'll call it the rookie rut. We're all rookies at one time. But here's the reality, many internal marketers simply lack the experience to steer a brand.

00:09:10 The Fourth Pothole

Brandon Coleman Jr: Number four, tactical tunnel vision strategies, blind spot. Most internal marketers aren't strategic thinkers, they're tacticians. They thrive on execution, posting to Instagram, blasting emails, running ads. That's their comfort zone.

00:10:34 The Fifth Pothole

Brandon Coleman Jr: Number five short tenure, the talent turnover trap. I've talked about it for five decades. Marketing people don't last long.

00:12:51 Fix for the Talent Turnover Trap

Brandon Coleman Jr: So what's the fix? Align their incentives with your brand success. Think equity or performance bonuses. Compare them with an external strategist who will call it like it is.