A Risk CMOs Can’t Ignore

Hey there,

This week, I was honored to be quoted in Forbes alongside leaders from IBM and McKinsey in their article about the top 10 business risks companies face today.

My takeaway? One of the most overlooked risk areas is brand misalignment. While risks like cybersecurity, economic volatility, and climate change dominate headlines (for good reason!), brand clarity is quietly becoming a business risk of its own. When your story is unclear, erosion starts slowly: missed signals, muddled positioning, and strategies that stall.

Why we think this matters to you

For mid‑enterprise and enterprise teams, brand misalignment doesn’t just cause “marketing problems.” It:

• Slows sales cycles, inflates budgets, and saps team energy—not because brand is broken, but because alignment is unclear.

• Causes lag, especially for mid‑enterprise teams when different departments speak different languages about your mission.

• Burns out teams as they try to make disconnected narratives fit.

Things might look polished from the outside, but if your team or buyers are still unclear, the brand isn’t doing its job.

What wildly busy CMOs need to do next (before risk becomes reality)

1. Start chipping away at alignment from within

   Schedule a quarterly narrative sync with marketing, sales, product, and finance. Align on how you talk about your brand across channels, stages, and stakeholders. This simple cadence prevents silos before they snowball.

2. Audit your internal storytelling

   Ask: Do sales reps use the same words your exec team puts on LinkedIn? Do product documents reflect your brand values consistently? Is everyone telling a slightly different story? Misalignment hides in the details.

3. Track alignment signals like informal KPIs

   Monitor behavioral data such as branded search volume, direct traffic, and recurring narrative phrases across teams. If your story isn’t sticking internally, your brand's ROI won’t either.

The short of it:

Brand clarity isn’t just about messaging. It’s a business safeguard. When you get it right, you have leverage. You can drive valuation, protect margin, and lead your category. When it slips, your competitors shape the story—and you end up competing on price.

Want a gut check?

I’m happy to walk you through how we help clients spot misalignment and reposition around trust, influence, and long-term growth. Just hit reply and let me know.

Lauryn