Connecting words creates a map. How to craft top messages that guide companies toward the future.

Hello. I'm Marie Kobayashi from Dentsu Inc. Messaging Partners. The theme for this third installment in our series is "How to Create."
How does a powerful top message that guides a company into the future take shape as a single statement? What sequence of steps, dialogues, and thought processes does it undergo? We will carefully unravel this flow.

At Dentsu Inc., we offer various processes tailored to the specific situations of companies and their leaders. This time, we introduce what could be considered the classic approach from among them.

First, Start with a "Vocabulary Inventory"

At the start of a project, we begin with a "verbal inventory"—taking a bird's-eye view of corporate terminology and organizing it. Why is this step crucial? Because in many companies, words are already "overflowing."

There are many types of corporate "top messages": corporate philosophy, vision, corporate slogans, action guidelines, annual policies, president's messages... Yet it's not uncommon for these to be mass-produced without clear roles or purposes, ending up scattered and disjointed.

"Huh, our company has released another new slogan?"
"Wait, did we stop using that policy?"
"There are too many keywords, so I can't remember any of them"...
Have you ever heard such comments at your company?

Words are something we can create without needing special equipment or raw materials. That's precisely why we tend to add more without a clear design philosophy, resulting in all of them being ignored. It's a common scenario for top-level messages.

But just as the words of someone who speaks little can sometimes linger in your heart, corporate messaging isn't about quantity. More than just having many words, it's about "why this word exists." Only words whose reason can be articulated will grow into enduring messages.

That's precisely why, as the starting point for messaging, conducting a "verbal inventory" – extracting and reviewing the scattered pieces within the company – is essential.

When undertaking this "inventory," we often get asked:
"What's the right structure for a corporate messaging system?"
"What elements need to be in place?"
To these questions, we respond:
"There is no single, absolute correct framework for corporate messaging."

Of course, orthodox frameworks like "Mission, Vision, Values" exist, and if one fits, it should be used. However, there is absolutely no requirement to "fill in" every single element.

Some companies want a detailed roadmap from the goal to the steps, while others prefer to set a general direction and leave the rest to their employees. We believe the final picture naturally varies depending on the company's situation: its culture, history, the temperament of its employees, and the accumulation of its words over time.

That's precisely why, while reviewing existing pieces, we ask where you perceive challenges and how much you wish to articulate verbally, working together to conduct a "verbal inventory." Similarly, for speechwriting, we revisit past words to explore the form of messaging truly needed now.

Outlining the "Missing Piece"

As we take stock of existing words and reexamine their relationships, the "missing pieces" gradually come into view.

For example:
"The vision for the world we aim to create is clear, but our role within it remains undefined."
"Our guiding principles are too lofty to translate into concrete actions."
"We lack concrete messaging that fits our company's current stage."

These identified "missing pieces" in our language become the words we need to create anew or refine.
Next, we organize the necessary requirements for these pieces from several perspectives:

• Is it an internal message? An external one? Or both?
• Is it for permanent use? Or limited-time?
• Should it be universal? Does it need to be catchy?

And so on—the points to confirm are diverse.

Of course, many aspects become clear only when we actually draft the words and create concrete proposals. However, by aligning as much as possible during this "design philosophy" stage, we can develop truly effective, powerful top-level messages.

Polishing the Pieces Through "Interactive Sessions"

Once the "design philosophy" is solidified, we move on to gathering materials. When shared information alone is insufficient, we conduct interactive sessions designed to draw out your thoughts and feelings.

Here, using several prompts, we uncover the hidden linguistic clues within the company and its leaders, connecting the dots. While session methods vary depending on the members, the author, Kobayashi, values two perspectives: "going back" and "digging deep."

For corporate messaging, we trace back to the founding story; for top-level speeches, we dig into the speaker's original motivation for starting this work. We "trace back" – including things that might seem unrelated to the current theme.
We "dig deep" by going beyond what's officially stated—asking about the vision entrusted to current businesses, or how the company wants to be in 10 or 100 years—encouraging candid, unvarnished insights.
Through these two approaches, we engage in repeated dialogue with top management and key personnel, meticulously gathering the raw material that forms the building blocks of the final piece.

After these sessions, the crucial factor for shaping the "top message" is the perspective of "usability." For taglines or visions, it's whether employees can think, "This is about us." For speeches, it's whether the top leader can speak it authentically in their own voice. For the audience, especially employees, it's whether they can genuinely think, "That's exactly what I wanted to hear."

No matter how polished a single piece may be, if it doesn't fit seamlessly when assembled, it won't be used. Words that function effectively on the ground. Words people want to repeat. Words that don't constrain corporate activities but instead broaden their scope. Words that become part of the company, words employees feel are truly their own – that is the "messaging" we aim to create.

The assembled pieces become a "map to the future."

What we've introduced so far is just one example of how we create top-level messages in our daily work.

First, we carefully "take stock" of the words you already possess. Next, we identify the "missing pieces" and meticulously align their "design philosophy." Then, through "interactive sessions," we polish them into the perfect fit...

We believe that when these crafted words are meaningfully arranged, what emerges is a "map unique to that company." Not a "picture in a frame" that's rarely revisited and whose contents are soon forgotten, but a "map of their own" where the users take center stage, revisited as the company evolves. Meticulously designed and crafted messages possess this power.

Words alone rarely bring immediate change. Yet when employees walk with a guiding "map" in hand, the company can advance much farther than before. We have witnessed this scene time and again.

As mentioned at the outset, stringing words together isn't particularly difficult. That's precisely why corporate top messages often accumulate familiar phrases and buzzwords of the moment. Yet we believe this is a tremendous waste.

Just as we've entered an era valuing individuality, every company possesses its own unique origin, strengths, and charm. Top messages woven with "their own words" become a powerful force—the first step to making that "corporate personality" visible and allowing it to blossom into the future.

Where are we headed? What values will guide our journey?

When you need such a guiding light, we hope you'll remember us at Dentsu Inc. Messaging Partners. We'd be delighted to help you create your "map to the future" together.

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Dentsu Inc. Messaging Partners
Email:messaging@dentsu.co.jp