Employees shape the brand experience

Brand manuals give detailed descriptions of how Deutsche Post and DHL are positioned and how our brands support our strategy. Of key importance to our brand image is how customers experience their interactions with our approximately 500,000 employees worldwide. In order to make a good impression, we have provided our employees who have direct customer contact with high-quality corporate clothing and given our vehicles and buildings as well as our promotional and informational materials a uniform and memorable design. We have also implemented internal measures aimed at motivating our entire staff to be active brand ambassadors at all times.

DHL employees have had a multilingual internet platform since 2008. We plan to make this state-of-the-art, interactive approach available to customers and prospective customers in 2010 under the name of DHL Brand World. Deutsche Post launched a motivational platform – the Deutsche Post Brand Fan Club – to strengthen brand awareness amongst the workforce. It conveys the main brand messages to them via sporting events, group activities and an interactive portal.

Steadily increasing value

Our brands face tough competition both domestically and internationally. Clear positioning and a lasting impression facilitate purchasing and investment decisions for existing and potential customers. Guided by market research, we invested some €70 million in the year under review (previous year: €80 million) in building our brands. Our print and online campaign for the DHL brand appeared in renowned international financial publications. Deutsche Post’s domestic brand campaign focused on service quality. Along with online, print and poster themes, a survey was conducted of approximately 34 million households in Germany, who were invited to comment on the quality of Deutsche Post’s services. In addition to traditional advertising, we enhance our brand image by sponsoring various events, appearing at trade fairs, conducting press relations and implementing measures to support sales.

Our success is measurable: in 2009, consulting firm Semion Brand Broker calculated a brand value of €12,614 million for Deutsche Post, putting us in sixth place in a ranking of the most valuable German brands. Factors analysed included financial value, brand protection, brand image and brand strength. DHL appeared in a list of the 100 most valuable brands for the first time in 2009. Market researcher Millward Brown computed a value of US$9,719 million for the DHL brand, which put us in 68th place in the world rankings.