DIG Insurance & Business Magazine Summer 2018 | Page 5

FEATURE STORY invigorating. A fresh brand, new name and identity would connect the firm’s legacy to its future, while establishing a direct voice that is relevant and personal. BY: LAURA DEELEY BREN, CIC, ASLI PRESIDENT, DEELEY INSURANCE GROUP Laura is a second generation insurance agent. With over 17 years of insurance and leadership experience , Laura devotes her time to developing the vision for the firm and working closely with her team to make it a reality. Laura is a Director for the Bank of Delmarva and also serves as the Co-Director for the local district of the Eastern Surfing Association. Laura resides in Ocean City, MD and can be found surfing or boating with her husband and 2 sons. Want to connect? Laura can be reached at 410-213- 5567 or [email protected] “We want to be bold and bring a certain level of energy to what we do—but there is also a balance in the way we use our expertise to actively serve our clients,” says Laura Deeley Bren, President. “We had a lot of assumptions about what people thought about us—but we didn’t know for sure,” says Beth Bell, Vice President of Operations. “The brand now matches who we are.” FINDING OUR VOICE The rebranding process is a deep-dive discovery that includes assessing the existing brand and our competition. It involves in-depth interviews with the initiated a company-wide survey. They reached out to our employees, clients and other stakeholders to gather insights. We found out that our energetic culture was not lost on clients, but we weren’t presenting ourselves that way online or through the content we distribute. We also learned that our name was confusing, and many of our Client Advisors were using iterations of it when speaking to prospects, like “Cropper Deeley” or “Atlantic Smith.” (More on that later.) Kelly Farrell, president, designRoom, relates that our transition in leadership and competitive position in the marketplace made it an ideal time to rebrand. “Laura and her leadership team had re-energized the firm during the last five years. The culture evolved as they focused on growth and redefining DEELEY INSURANCE GROUP LAUNCHES A NEW BRAND AND IDENTITY H ow do you capture focused energy—how do you define the positive way we advise clients and our passion for doing the right thing? How do clients perceive us, and how do we talk to them about who we are, what we do and how we can help them? WHO ARE WE, ANYWAY? Rebranding is a pivotal journey where you ask the tough questions and listen to the answers. As a firm, Atlantic/Smith, Cropper & Deeley recognized we needed to pin down these answers to clearly define who we are and where we’re going. Our team needed a unified platform so we could go to market with confidence and own the energy that differentiates us. Our clients needed the clarity, too. So, we launched a comprehensive rebranding process in 2017. Rebranding is revealing. It makes you vulnerable. It grounds you. You look at the firm inside and out. Also, rebranding is executive team, employees, clients and other stakeholders. “Everyone had the ability to comment on who we are and what it is like to be a part of our team,” Deeley Bren says. The process is intentional and deliberate. “The intent was to stay very focused on the end results, and to work through the process,” says Cindy Hall, Vice President of Sales. To accomplish this, Atlantic/Smith, Cropper & Deeley partnered with designRoom to conduct a comprehensive brand assessment to identify where the brand is today—and to develop a strong brand that is relevant, engaging and will carry the firm into the future. designRoom’s process includes an in- depth assessment process where they research, survey and analyze the existing brand. That includes identifying our culture, goals, environment, history, and clients’ attitudes and perceptions. designRoom held a focus group and how they work with clients, acting more as advisors,” Farrell says. “Clients were feeling that, but the messaging didn’t match. Connecting the ‘inside’ culture and energy with the ‘outside’ perception is critical. What do clients and prospects value about the firm? The brand assessment process allowed us to dig deep, take a position and put a stake in the ground.” > “REBRANDING HAS MADE US MORE PURPOSEFUL IN OUR VOICE AND IN THE WAY WE COMMUNICATE.” 5