AI & Soc (2016) 31:371–379
DOI 10.1007/s00146-015-0621-8
OPEN FORUM
Communication and reputation as essentials for the positioning
of an organization
Natalya A. Karnaukhova1 • Ekaterina V. Polyanskaya1
Received: 28 November 2014 / Accepted: 9 October 2015 / Published online: 27 October 2015
 Springer-Verlag London 2015
Abstract Communication and reputation are essential
for the positioning of an organization, which is based on
communications theory, management sociology, corporate
management, and public relations. Corporate culture and
visual identity are also important for any organization;
they not only help develop an integrated image of the
organization but also contribute to developing its suc-
cessful positioning strategy. We began our research with
the analysis stage, in which we elicited the practices of
both the internal and external communications of the
organization studied. We used such methods as commu-
nication and reputation audits with a questionnaire survey,
focus groups, the semantic differential method, and the
projective method. The analysis stage of the research
produced results that helped us adjust the positioning
strategy of the organization by taking into account its
individual characteristics and the features of its target
publics and its target markets.
Keywords Reputation
Communication

Reputation audit
Communication audit

Positioning
Corporate culture
Visual identity
& Ekaterina V. Polyanskaya
polyanskayaev@mail.tsu.ru
Natalya A. Karnaukhova
Karnaukhova@mail.tsu.ru
1
Tomsk State University, 36, Lenina Avenue, Tomsk,
Russia 634050
1 Introduction
An organization’s marketing approach is the basis for its
positioning; the approach comprises such essential com-
ponents as marketing mix, characteristics of the organiza-
tion’s target publics, and competitive analysis. However,
this seems inadequate in the context of the modern market,
especially for those organizations that provide complex
services (primary industry and educational services), or
deal with the IT industry or scientific research and are
engaged in strategic development. When positioning such
organizations, it is necessary to take into consideration
such factors as communication and reputation. Communi-
cation and reputation are important factors that influence
the target publics’ perception of an organization; they can
be transmitted and retransmitted in the process of creating
and adjusting the communicative and reputational space of
an organization.
There are a great number of publications on the posi-
tioning of organizations that lay the foundation for our
research. However, very little research has been done on
communication and reputation as factors important for
positioning of an organization. We study the image of an
organization as an attribute of the organization’s position-
ing. In our research, we make an attempt to examine both
the theoretical and empirical aspects of communication and
reputation in relation to the positioning of an organization.
We use synthesis and analysis as basic theoretical methods
of our research, and questionnaires, expert polls, semantic
differential tests, the projective method, focus groups, and
communication and reputation audits as the basic empirical
methods of our research. We apply a general-to-specific
approach and first of all want to consider the relevant ter-
minology, beginning with the definitions of the term ‘‘po-
sitioning’’ that is basic to our research.
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2 Positioning
Positioning is essential for establishing the identity of a
product and is necessary for creating an image of the
product. The term ‘‘positioning’’ is used by many authors,
who understand the issue of positioning in different ways;
this accounts for the fact that there is no universally
accepted definition of it. Trout and Ries (2013) argue that
positioning always starts with a product, which can be a
service, a company, an institution, a person, or merchan-
dise; they emphasize that positioning is not what you do
with your product, it is what you do with people’s minds.
While positioning a product, you must change the way a
person perceives a company or a brand (Trout and Ries
2013). This standpoint appeals to us. However, we cannot
ignore a variety of other viewpoints on the issue of
positioning.
For example, Arnott (1993) defines positioning as ‘‘the
deliberate, proactive, iterative process of defining, mea-
suring, modifying, and monitoring consumer perceptions of
a marketable offering’’. Aaker and Shansby (1982) view
positioning in terms of creating an image or value among
the target publics, and making these publics understand if a
company or a brand is competitive. Keller and Kotler
(2012) state that positioning is an activity aimed at the
promotion of the company and its image; its goal is to
obtain a ‘‘distinctive place in the minds of the target
market’’. Kotler and Keller consider that positioning
implies putting a brand in consumers’ minds and that this
must generate a sufficient benefit. However, Kotler and
Keller interpret benefit as profit, without paying attention to
the strategic importance of reputation (Keller and Kotler
2012).
Another standpoint is presented by Hooley (2001). He
argues that positioning means searching for a market
position for a company, a product, or a service that can set
it apart from their competitors. Hooley states that posi-
tioning should be aimed at a certain target audience, cre-
ating benefits for this audience, and making the product
unique (Hooley 2001). Hooley emphasizes the two
important issues necessary for successful positioning. First
of all, positioning is closely connected with competition.
Indeed, if a company does not position itself in the right
way, it will not be competitive on the market. The target
publics will not differentiate the company from its com-
petitors; therefore, it will not be able to compete success-
fully on the market. The second important issue is that
positioning is related to certain groups of consumers, the
company, or product’s target publics. Indeed, different
publics can perceive a company or a product in different
ways. This can be connected with different social and
demographic characteristics, the differences in the publics’
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social status, and, what is especially important nowadays,
with the differences in the publics’ lifestyles. It is impos-
sible to create a product that will be suitable for everyone,
and likewise, it is impossible to receive the same reaction
from different target publics. That is why we consider that
it is necessary to pay attention to the complicated model of
perception: company—product/service—perception—con-
sumer—feedback/communication—reputation when creat-
ing a positioning strategy for an organization.
In our research, we study the connection between
positioning, communication, and reputation. We define the
methods that can be used to study positioning, communi-
cation, and reputation, and examine why communication
and reputation can be considered as background for suc-
cessful positioning of an organization. Communication and
reputation are complicated interdisciplinary concepts, and
we have to consider their causes and effects and their
structural and logical interconnections. We believe that the
concepts of communication and reputation combine several
issues. Therefore, these concepts require an integrated
approach in positioning. For example, the concept of
communication combines communicative space and com-
munication audit, and the concept of reputation combines
reputational space and reputation audit. So before we
examine communication and reputation as integrated con-
cepts, we would like to consider each of these issues
specifically.
3 Communication
Communication includes many meanings and is studied by
many disciplines. We can divide the existing definitions of
the term ‘‘communication’’ into four groups. First of all,
communication is regarded as the connection of any
objects, and exchange of information between any systems
and their parts. This definition is the broadest and the most
general one. The second interpretation of the term com-
munication is technical. It implies that communication is
the route of the message or the way of conveying infor-
mation; for example, transport or utility lines. Communi-
cation here is connected with space, but not with the
process or relations. The third interpretation is biological.
From the point of view of biology the term, communication
is regarded as information exchange among animals and
insects. The fourth meaning of the term communication is
social, where communication is the exchange of informa-
tion and ideas from one person to another through language
and other sign systems. For example, Shibutani (2002)
defines communication as an activity that simplifies co-
adaptation of people’s behavior. This meaning can be
applied not only to individual people but also to groups of
AI & Soc (2016) 31:371–379
people and organizations. This is the way the term is
interpreted in media studies, sociology, psychology, man-
agement, and other disciplines. However, if we consider
the issue of communication with regard to an organization,
we should pay attention to the fact that the organization’s
communications must be aimed at achieving certain goals.
Chumikov and Bocharov (2010) consider that the main
aim of public relations is mutual understanding and fruitful
communication with the organization’s publics. They
emphasize the importance of establishing two-way com-
munication between the organization and its publics, and
changing the publics’ perception of the product, which can
be a project, an object, or a person, without changing the
product (Chumikov and Bocharov 2010).
Thus, communications of any organization are a com-
plicated multilevel system, whose elements are not only
interconnected, but can be modifiable and interchangeable.
On the one hand, this is connected with the fact that all the
communicators can trigger the process of communication.
On the other, it is related to the nonlinear nature of com-
munication that can be of different types, levels, and
directions. Communication is involved in all the activities
of an organization (formal and informal communication,
internal and external coordination, in-house and interde-
partmental activities, and the visual image of the organi-
zation), and deals with different management issues
(Karnaukhova 2014: 148).
One of the most important elements of an organization’s
communicative space is the organization’s visual image;
visual image is essential for positioning. It is critical for
any organization to provide effective visual communica-
tion with different publics because the organization’s
visual image greatly contributes to the issue of raising
brand awareness. This is one of the most important ways
for creating the publics’ primary perception of information
about the organization. There are many different kinds of
visual information that can be used in the process of
positioning. We consider that the most important of them
are the website and the logo of an organization. The logo
creates a certain visual image that helps the target publics
identify the organization, and the site serves as a source of
information for the target publics on the one hand, and as a
channel of communication with the organization’s external
and internal publics on the other, thereby contributing to
successful positioning of the organization.
4 Communication audit
Another term that requires analysis is communication
audit. Communication audit is a relatively new term that
means an effective method of studying external and inter-
nal information flows of an organization. LegalManager
373
(http://www.legalmanager.ru/lems-841-1.html) offers sev-
eral viewpoints on the issue of communication audit.
Communication audit can be considered as (1) a situation
analysis that implies complete and systematic study of the
communications behavior of an organization; (2) the
analysis of information flows circulating in the system of
the organization’s external and internal communications;
and (3) a diagnostic test instrument that allows estimating
the existing inequalities of the suggested and real rela-
tionships between business structures and their target
publics.
In Effective Public Relations, Cutlip, Center, and Broom
(2012) argue that communication audit is a complete
analysis of all the internal and external communications of
an organization in order to build a complete picture of the
company’s communication requirements, policies, prac-
tices, and data acquisition opportunities. A communication
audit helps the company’s management to make deliberate
and economically feasible decisions concerning the com-
pany’s further communications. According to the open
systems model, a communication audit is performed in
order to find out with whom and how the company com-
municates, and the reason for communication (Cutlip,
Center and Broom 2012). The communication audit allows
seeing a full picture of the situation and gives grounds for
making decisions about necessary changes. A communi-
cation audit helps solve a number of problems of practical
importance. That is why it is sometimes used to assess the
current performance of the company, and to conduct a
comparative analysis of the objectives stated by the man-
agement of the company and the communication methods
that are used to promote the objectives. Additionally, a
communication audit can be used to detect the key com-
munication problems of the company, develop the general
communications strategy of the company, and develop the
company’s corporate positioning and its strategy for rep-
utation management.
5 Reputation
Another issue important for positioning is reputation.
Reputation can be interpreted as trust in someone or
something; it is connected with the publics’ expectations.
These expectations are shaped by both subjective and
objective circumstances that predetermine the behavior of a
person or an organization. Reputation is not only connected
with predicting the probable behavior of a person or an
organization but also gives an estimation of this behavior
that is concerned with the values of this person or orga-
nization. That is why reputation not only gives information
about this person or organization, but also about the esti-
mated environment (Voronina 2005: 13).
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In the last two decades, many researchers have been
interested in the phenomenon of business reputation.
However, there is no single viewpoint on the issue of
business reputation. This is caused by the differences in the
approaches and the research objectives. Business reputa-
tion has been the focus of the research of various scientific
disciplines: marketing and sociology, economics and
business, law and accounting, and others. Every discipline
emphasizes different aspects of business reputation, using
different terms: prestige (sociology); goodwill (law and
accounting); image, reputation, and brand (marketing); and
image, reputation, and reputation capital (management).
In sociology, business reputation belongs to the issue of
social capital, which enables creating broad and dynamic
networks, developing cooperation, and interacting inside
and outside social groups. According to Bourdieu (2001),
social capital is a kind of symbolic capital, which can be
incorporated into social practices through mental structures
of actors. Social factors that influence the reputation of an
organization include social responsibility and charity,
which are interrelated (Bourdieu 2001).
6 Reputation audit
Like communication, reputation can be considered a mul-
tilevel structure. A reputation audit is a prospective method
of studying the complicated multilevel reputation of an
organization. Reputation audit helps assess among the
target publics whether the organization’s reputation corre-
sponds to the organization’s aims and objectives, and the
strategy of the organization’s development. Shachnev
(2011) argues that the reputation audit of an organization
can include several stages:
1. Assessing whether the aims of reputation management
correspond to the strategic aims of an organization. In
this stage, the assessment must begin with the strategic
aims of the organization.
2. Analyzing the organization’s visual identification. In
this stage, it is necessary to define whether the
organization’s symbols, logo, website design, the staff
uniform, and other elements correspond to how the
organization wants its clients to perceive it.
3. Analyzing whether the aims of reputation management
correspond to the message intended to the target
publics.
4. Analyzing whether the brand promise corresponds to
the quality of the product or service.
5. Analyzing the employees’ behavior with regard to the
corporate culture of the organization. The organiza-
tion’s corporate culture depends on the behavior of the
organization’s employees on the one hand, and
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contributes to creating the organization’s business
reputation on the other. In this stage of reputation
audit, it is necessary to define whether the behavior of
the employees has a positive effect on the corporate
culture.
6. Assessing the organization’s corporate culture. As
mentioned earlier, the organization’s corporate culture
is partly based on the employees’ behavior (how the
employees think, feel, and act). However, corporate
culture is also closely dependent on the employee
relations, the working climate, the loyalty and initia-
tive of the employees, and customer relations.
7. Receiving feedback from the target publics about the
organization’s business reputation. The most common
and effective ways of receiving feedback are public
opinion polls and content analysis. At this stage, it is
necessary to make a comparison between the existing
reputation of the organization and the aims of the
reputation management program.
8. Making decisions about the changes in the existing
reputation management programs based on the results
of the reputation audit (Shachnev 2011).
Thus, the reputational space of an organization must be
studied with regard to the reputation audit. The reputational
space of an organization can be compared to a patchwork
quilt because it consists of separate ‘‘patches’’ of reputation
that are connected with the help of separate reputational
factors transmitted by different audiences and perceived by
these audiences as part of the image of an organization
(Karnaukhova 2014: 148).
7 Case study
We present a case study of an organization (Organization
N), which operates in Tomsk (a city in Western Siberia,
Russian Federation). The name of this organization is not
mentioned for ethical reasons.
Organization N is a government-owned educational
institution. It is a successful organization that ranks high
among its competitors. We studied the perception of Or-
ganization N by its internal and external publics. The
research methods included communication and reputation
audits, focus groups, interviews, questionnaire surveys, the
semantic differential method, and the projective method.
The objectives of the research were:
• to study the level of consumer awareness of the
company as compared with the competitors (other
institutions of higher learning of the city);
• to identify the brand attributes of Organization N;
• to identify the brand image of Organization N;
AI & Soc (2016) 31:371–379
• to study the public perception of the corporate identity
and corporate culture of Organization N; and
• to identify the most effective channel of
communication.
To study how the organization is perceived by its
external and internal publics, we studied the opinion of the
following groups:
• applicants;
• applicants’ parents;
• different age groups of the city’s residents;
• organizational staff of different levels; and
• representatives of the business community and
government.
In the first stage, we conducted the communication
audit. We analyzed the media mentions of the organiza-
tion and found out the most important characteristics
broadcast by mass media (local and national newspapers,
radio, and television). It turned out that most of the pub-
lications about Organization N were connected with such
topics as scientific research and innovations; education
(the project method, the quality of education, the reduction
in the number of state-funded places, grants, and confer-
ences); sport and other competitions between different
universities of the town; health care; employment of the
organization’s graduates; the organization’s business
incubator (project education and new education technolo-
gies); and various events. Most frequently, the organiza-
tion was mentioned as the winner of the national contest
of higher educational institutions, which was carried out as
part of the national project Education (Kiseleva and
Kononova 2006).
In general, we could divide the media mentions into
three groups:
• scientific and business achievements of the organiza-
tion, its academic staff, and students (information about
important projects, research and development, winning
of contests, participation in exhibitions, and collabora-
tion with partners from Europe, Asia, America, and
other countries); a particular emphasis was given to the
information about the innovative developments, and
community involvement of the organization, e.g., the
organization’s business incubator, acquisition of
patents and grants, participation in such national
projects as Education and Health, and others (67 %);
• special events (organizing professional and corporate
events, anniversaries, conferences, academic and sport
competitions, recruitment assistance, and others) (24 %);
and
• attracting prospective students (information about the
organization, its faculties and departments, open days,
and others (9 %).
375
First on the list of media mentions was the information
about the activity of the organization as an educational
institution as a whole (56 %); the information about a
separate faculty, department, educational center, or student
life ranked second (17 %); and the information about the
organization’s academic staff ranked third (10 %).
The media mentions were characterized by positive
information content and included comparisons with other
educational institutions of the town. They were concerned
with the political inclusion of students, living conditions in
dormitory accommodations, university ratings, enrollment
campaigns, and sport, cultural, and scientific achievements.
The focus group method was applied in the next step
while conducting the reputation audit of Organization N. A
number of focus groups with the involvement of the
internal publics of Organization N were used to test the
existing visual identity of the organization (the identity
colors and the logo), and finding the ways to improve the
identity colors and the logo.
The first focus group consisted of 10 people (students
and professionals in the field of corporate identity, com-
puterized design, and public relations). The major findings
of this focus group were as follows:
• Advertising campaigns conducted by Organization N
were not very effective; this could be explained by the
incorrect choice of communications media or ineffec-
tive positioning strategy.
• The focus group participants associated Organization N
with innovations and new technologies, which was
explained by the specialization of the organization. The
colors associated with the organization were orange
(innovations) and gray/silver (new technologies).
• The focus group participants considered that the
existing brand colors symbolized classics, traditions,
reliability, and rationality, and did not reflect the
specific character of the educational services of the
organization.
• Organization N used different image vehicles, reflect-
ing visual identity (stationery, business cards, envel-
opes, bags, T-shirts with the logo of the organization);
however, the focus group participants noted that there
were not enough office accessories with the logo of the
organization.
• T-shirts with the logo of the organization were good
image vehicles for reflecting visual identity, which
should be used in organizing such special events as
carnivals, parades, festivals, and others.
• The focus group participants suggested using non-
conventional image vehicles such as body art.
• The existing logo of the organization was non-specific
and could not be interpreted by the target publics (who
associated Organization N with modern technologies,
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the dormitories, and the main building of the univer-
sity) in the right way; therefore, it was necessary to
modify the existing logo or create a new logo for the
organization.
• The focus group participants worked out several drafts
for the new logo of Organization N; all of them were
based on the image of the university main building, and
the colors used in the drafts were orange, yellow, blue,
and silver.
• The website of the organization requires substantial
modification with the balanced combination of space,
graphic material, and useful information.
The second focus group included the representatives of
the top and middle management of Organization N, who
were interviewed twice to brainstorm and gather ideas on
how to improve the existing visual identity and corporate
culture of the organization. The major findings of the
second focus group were as follows:
• The academic staff who work with prospective students
did not have a clear understanding of the interconnec-
tion between the visual identity and the corporate
culture of the university.
• The existence of a well-established corporate culture
that was understood as a set of basic values and views
shared by all the levels of the organization’s staff was
questionable; there was a need to form the corporate
culture, which is possible only on the initiative of the
top management.
• Organization N had its specific visual identity that was,
however, not enough to set the organization apart from
its competitors.
• There was certain discordance in perception of the
existing brand colors, and the participants of the focus
group agreed that it was necessary to change them.
• The focus group participants were conscious of the
need to make some changes in the organization’s logo
and expand the color range of the brand colors.
One more focus group was conducted with the partici-
pation of the representatives of the academic staff of Or-
ganization N; it included the elements of the projective
method, and the semantic differential method. The focus
group participants discussed broadcasting and rebroad-
casting the visual image of the organization. The major
findings of this focus group were as follows:
• The focus group participants understood the intercon-
nection of the organization’s visual identity and its
corporate culture; visual identity was essential for
corporate culture.
• The existence of well-established corporate culture was
questionable; the focus group participants recognized
the necessity of forming a corporate culture, which is
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AI & Soc (2016) 31:371–379
possible only with the involvement of the top
management.
• The focus group participants recognized the necessity
of rebranding, which was connected with the changes in
the status of Organization N.
The reputation audit also included research with the
involvement of the external publics of Organization N:
applicants, applicants’ parents, different age groups of the
city’s residents, and business community and government
representatives.
Several interviews and questionnaire surveys were
conducted with the external publics to find out their attitude
toward Organization N and its position among the com-
petitors. The research results show that Tomsk is perceived
as a ‘‘students’ town’’ because of the three leading uni-
versities: Tomsk State University (TSU), Tomsk
Polytechnic University (TPU), and Tomsk State University
of Control Systems and Radioelectronics (TUSUR). The
percentage difference in the responses given by the exter-
nal publics was very small; thus, we can make an inference
that the publics have a generalized image and do not sep-
arate the images of these universities. This was confirmed
by the results of the research conducted to find out the
reasons why applicants decided to study at Organization N.
The associations of the target publics in regard to Orga-
nization N were divided into three groups, based on the
results.
The first group of associations contains the most sig-
nificant associations of the target publics; they are as fol-
lows (ranging from the most frequent answer to the least
frequent one):
• a technical university;
• computers and programming; and
• new scientific achievements and advanced technologies.
Scientific achievements and advanced technologies
were marked as the most significant issues by all the
target publics except for the university applicants who
ranked this point second. Middle-aged people associated
the university (Organization N) with its rector; they
ranked such issues as scientific achievements and
advanced technologies fifth. Educated young people also
considered that rector is the key figure of the university
(Organization N), who can ensure its success and
development.
The second group of associations (11–18.3 %) of the
target publics included the following:
• successful high-tech research; and
• business incubator for students.
The third group of associations (3.7–13 %) comprised
the least frequent answers given by the target publics:
AI & Soc (2016) 31:371–379 377

• sports achievements; that Organization N possesses some corporate culture,

• the students’ community; and which is reflected through traditions, celebrations, and
• the student television channel. lecturers and students’ behavior. However, about half of
the respondents were unable to remember any corporate
Probably, these factors are not very popular because the
events or celebrations held by Organization N.
target publics are not well informed about these activities
The most popular channel the respondents used to obtain
of the organization.
information about Organization N was interpersonal com-
Thus, this research helps to create a generalized image
munication (for more than half of the respondents). The
of Organization N based on the associations of different
Internet and television channels were also popular
publics about the organization. The dominating associa-
(30–50 %). The official website of Organization N was the
tions (more than 70 % of the respondents) were that Or-
main channel of information for the applicants and their
ganization N is innovative, modern, and fast-moving. It
parents.
means that we can notice a certain stereotype of perception
The representatives of the business community charac-
of the organization by the public at large: Organization N is
terize Organization N as an innovative business-oriented
an innovative university that is aligned with the times.
educational institution. They consider that Organization N
However, this fact contradicts the responses to the previous
should conduct advertising campaigns, involve mass
question, which show that only one-third of the respon-
media, develop international collaboration, improve cor-
dents associated Organization N with high-tech research
porate culture, encourage the internal publics (students,
and business incubator for students.
lecturers and other staff) to contribute to the organization’s
Second in popularity is the association that Organization
personal identity, and make the organization more trans-
N is a successful business-oriented university. This
parent for the external publics.
response was given by 27 % of young and middle-aged
As we can see from the results of the research, different
people, and 42 % of those older than 45. About the quarter
publics emphasize different issues connected with the
of applicants (21.5–23.4 %) and their parents have the
reputation of the organization. These issues are based on
same opinion. This is probably conditioned by the choice
different stereotypes of these publics about Organization
of media where the respondents receive information
N, and their expectations about the interaction with the
(printed media). Thus, this response ranks second among
above-mentioned organization. Organization N is an
all the age groups apart from young people younger than
institution well known in the city; it belongs to the edu-
22 years old, who chose sports events and university tra-
cational segment of the market. Most respondents consider
ditions as the second most important characteristic
that they are well informed about the activity of this
(31.6 %), which emphasized their involvement in the
organization, which is reflected through rebroadcasting the
organization’s corporate culture. This characteristic is also
reputational issues, and their choice of communication
important for students, middle-aged people, and those over
channels.
45 years old, who also consider that sports events and
All these issues are connected with communication and
university traditions are important as part of image of
reputation and reflect different aspects of the organization’s
Organization N.
positioning, although they are not perceived by the target
The responses given by the applicants and their parents
publics in such a way. Organization N is perceived as
were different from the others. Along with such charac-
innovative, dynamic, business oriented, and having strong
teristics as innovative, modern, and fast-moving, they noted
technical background. These factors are partly connected
that the university gave profound technical knowledge
with the concept of positioning of Organization N. The
(44.8–47.5 %) and was equipped with modern technologies
publics’ perception of the organization can be based not on
(34.3–40.5 %). This can be explained by the fact that these
the existing image of the organization but on the stereo-
groups of respondents perceived Organization N as a place
types about the organization, and the image that the target
where they or their children can obtain good academic
publics create in their minds.
qualifications.
The next step of the research was connected with the
Only 8–14 % of the respondents considered that Orga-
most important elements of the visual image of the orga-
nization N did not have a special image.
nization: the logo and the site of the organization. The
The respondents were also asked a question about the
organization’s staff and the respondents of different age
corporate image and the corporate culture of the organi-
groups were asked to describe and evaluate the organiza-
zation. More than half respondents believe that the cor-
tion’s logo. The result showed that the respondents per-
porate style is wholly or partly present; about half of the
ceive the logo in a binary way. The first group of
respondents gave a negative response; and the rest of the
respondents could remember the logo immediately; they
respondents were undecided. All the target publics agreed
were able to describe the logo in detail and even speak

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about its meaning. The second group of the respondents
was not able to give a detailed description of the organi-
zation’s logo, but they could remember the general image
of the logo. Both groups showed a positive attitude toward
the organization, which means that the visual image was an
important part of positioning. However, the logo cannot be
seen as the major criterion for positioning of Organization
N, it can only be considered together with the other factors.
However, if the logo of Organization N had a negative
connotation, it could influence the publics’ perception of
the organization, and, therefore, damage the reputation of
the organization.
The website of Organization N is also critical for its
positioning strategy. At the time of the research, the
organization’s website was undergoing a process of trans-
formation. The former version of the website was intended
for informing the selected target audience, but this no
longer satisfied the requirements of the organization,
because the website did not correlate well with the cor-
porate culture of the organization. The new version of the
website was aimed at different internal and external publics
(academic staff, non-academic staff, students, prospective
students, partners, investors, and stakeholders), and con-
tained sections and subsections. This version was designed
not only for broadcasting the information, but also for
managing the reputation of Organization N. The recom-
mendations to include the visual content connected with
the reputational issues that formed the basis for the modi-
fication of the website. The new version contained visual
anchors for gaining the attention of different publics that
were connected with generating trust, respect, and other
issues important for strengthening the reputation of the
organization. An additional audit conducted 6 months after
the research showed that the updated website greatly con-
tributed to the visual communication with the target pub-
lics, which was necessary for creating the successful
positioning strategy of Organization N.
8 Conclusion
Thus, communication and reputation are closely intercon-
nected. Their importance can hardly be overestimated; they
are critical in the process of positioning of an organization.
If an organization is not aware of what is important for the
target publics in terms of reputation, it will not be able to
establish successful communication with the target publics.
For example, lack of information can lead to the
misalignment in the information policy of an organization
(press services will not be able to place the right infor-
mation in the right place). Lack of information about the
most effective channels of communication can cause the
loss of audience or make it impossible to attract internal
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AI & Soc (2016) 31:371–379
and external publics and generate gaps in audiences’ per-
ception of an organization. All this can make the organi-
zation less attractive for sponsors and potential partners.
Nowadays, the issue of positioning does not only belong
to the field of marketing. In the context of market volatility,
the issue of positioning is becoming more interdisciplinary.
Thus, there is a clear interconnection between the reputa-
tion and the communication that serve as the basis for the
organization’s positioning. In addition, the functional area
of mass media and mass communication includes visual
communication (Internet communication), formal and
informal communication, internal and external communi-
cation, and other types of communication.
As we can see from the case study, communication and
reputation have a large impact on the strategy of the
organization’s positioning. It is important to establish the
internal corporate culture of an organization and create the
visual identity. Lack of such important issues as good
corporate culture and strong visual identity can lead to the
dissemination of negative information that cannot be con-
trolled by the organization, thereby damaging the reputa-
tion of the organization and preventing it from creating an
integrated and consistent positioning strategy. The visual
images of the organization, such as its website and logo,
must correlate well with the reputation of the organization
and convey its corporate values.
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