More than 62 million people watched the presidential debates. Amazingly half the country selectively heard one message while the other half heard something completely different. What made the difference were the personal values people used to filter and interpret what they saw and heard. Values are what drive behavior in politics, commerce, and your business.

Successful companies often assume that if sales are good, then their branding must be effective. They often pay little attention to what actually sustains their brand and reputation, leaving them vulnerable to dangerous backlash if a rift develops between their values and those of their stakeholders.

Every stakeholder--customers, employees, shareholders, and community members--plays a role in the overall success of a company. When corporate values are out of alignment with stakeholder values, trouble is right around the corner. In this groundbreaking book, branding expert John Foley shows how to understand and effectively respond to the needs of each stakeholder group, emphasizing "reputation" in balance with "brand" to avoid damaging misalignment between them. "Balanced Brand" provides tools for identifying potential backlash flashpoints and for designing internal and external communication strategies for projecting appropriate values.

This important resource is based on years of research, including interviews with senior managers who struggle with the challenges of foreign competition, outsourcing, and the relentless cycle of reducing costs while adding value to compete in a global market. The book delivers the systems and tools to assess and align corporate values with stakeholder values. Using these guidelines, companies will have a new way to manage stakeholders that results in building and protecting a strong brand and a strong reputation. The competitive advantages created by "Balanced Brand" can help any company--no matter how large or small--succeed.