‘Super-connecting’ your difference
Corporate communication strives to present a compelling vision and engage stakeholders as co-creators of a shared future. The fight to be noticed is fierce, the times are uncertain, and the audience is sceptical. Cut-through is only the first step.
‘Super-connecting’
If you are reading this article, you’re probably one of us, a corporate communicator. You want people vested in your company to feel part of who you are and what you do. To be effective, your content must demonstrate empathy, take ownership of shared issues, and show tangible results. You must do so in a highly competitive environment where companies are vying for attention. And you must reach people where they are, providing frictionless access. For us, connecting on these many levels is ‘super-connecting’.
Purpose, plan, performance
Societal, political, economic, and technological shifts shape fears, hopes, and aspirations. Research from international PR firms like FleishmanHillard and Edelman consistently shows that uncertainty fuels the belief that business serves the interests of a select few but is the only institution capable of effecting positive change*. Your corporate communication must show that the company recognises the realities of its stakeholders, supports common interests, and delivers on the promise of optimism. We sum this up as ‘purpose, plan, and performance’.
Embrace your difference
‘The difference’ makes a company stand out, compelling, and competitive. When your corporate narrative conveys what you stand for, what you do about it, and how it’s working — that is, the three Ps — you align who you claim to be with who you truly are and are more likely to be perceived as authentic and trustworthy. While you should calibrate the Ps differently depending on the context, you must always highlight what makes you different. We call it “embrace your difference”.
Here are three examples:
1. The comms ecosystem
Home furnishings retailer Dunelm positions the consumer brand as “The Home of Homes”, capturing its purpose to “help create the joy of truly feeling at home”. The company partnered with Gather to help it embrace its difference. We rewired Dunelm’s corporate channels to place the website at the centre of a super-connected ecosystem that extends to investor communication and sustainability reporting. Every channel consistently conveys a straight line from purpose to plan, ensuring audiences understand the company’s strategic vision, values, and commitments to responsible practices.
2. Niche content
In 2024, PwC awarded Workspace, a provider of London office space, the “Building Trust Award” for its remuneration report. The specialised communication addressed a complex array of expectations. The regulator and investors demand transparent disclosures demonstrating appropriate rewards and incentives tied to the business’s overall performance. The public and employees expect that rewards and incentives align directly with the organisation’s vision. Gather assisted Workspace in super-connecting heavily scrutinised content, focusing on purpose and performance to create a reputational and brand asset.
3. Brand identity
Clarkson, a global maritime broker, needed to embrace its difference as the market leader. Gather developed a new visual identity, streamlined a complex ecosystem of microsites, and produced a corporate video capturing Clarkson’s renewed purpose of “Enabling global trade, leading positive change.” We also evolved the annual report to showcase how the leading business’s plan and performance successfully navigate global trade’s complex and ever-changing dynamics.
The clarion call
As a corporate communicator, your corporate website, social media, and annual report are opportunities to share your story, present a compelling vision, and bring stakeholders on board as co-creators of a shared future. But the competition for attention is intense, the times are uncertain, and the audience is sceptical. Building trust and loyalty requires embracing and super-connecting your difference by conveying an authentic purpose, a strategic plan, and a performance that balances short-term achievements with long-term impact.
*Download the UK edition of the Edelman Trust Barometer here
*Download the FleishmanHillard’s Corporate Affairs Trends for 2025 here
Get in touch
If you’d like to discuss this, or any other subject, please get in touch with Richard Costa, Consultancy Director, at richardc@gather.london
We’d love to know what you think.