Burson, the global communications agency purpose-built to create value for clients through reputation, announced the launch of Reputation Capital, an AI-powered technology and consulting solution designed to connect drivers of reputation to specific business outcomes such as stock price, sales or purchase intent.
This new offer fundamentally advances how reputation is measured, valued and managed, offering leading businesses a live view of this dynamic, multi-faceted asset. Burson’s approach facilitates immediate decision-making so businesses can act with speed and precision against reputational shifts that have a direct bearing on commercial success. Reputation Capital is available through WPP Open, the AI-enabled marketing platform.
The Reputation Capital methodology defines eight levers of reputation management, ranging from citizenship & social responsibility to management & leadership, to creativity & innovation, among others, and uses advanced data and AI models to predict the potential impact of the media environment, news, narratives, events, or actions on each lever.
The models ingest and analyze information 24/7 from proprietary sources and technology platforms, capturing signals ranging from client-owned information to digital and social media. This analysis yields an up-to-the-minute reputation score that illustrates how a brand is perceived overall and isolates which specific levers need action to improve reputation with a direct impact on business. Burson’s expert counselors then develop strategic and creative messages and ideas, which are then tested and perfected for their potential for impact.
Reputation Capital analyzes brand-specific signals across segments – including geography, sector, reputation lever and audience – and uses near real-time AI analysis to pinpoint hidden or emerging reputational risks and opportunities and forecast their likelihood of scale and impact. Reputation Capital’s breadth of data and its modeling capabilities can deliver reputation scores and insights for thousands of global companies, both public and private.
The Reputation Capital platform models the shareholder value of a company’s reputation by focusing on business outcomes, such as stock returns, that differ from market expectations – to provide a clear picture of the impact of specific factors, like reputation, on shareholder value.
Corey duBrowa, Global CEO, Burson, said, “Our core belief at Burson is that reputation is the most valuable asset that any organization possesses. It’s complex and constantly evolving, influenced by a variety of factors beyond any singular element such as trust. Traditional tools for measuring and shaping reputation simply can’t keep pace with the velocity and volume of challenges our clients are navigating today. With Reputation Capital, we’re pinpointing the specific drivers of reputation, forecasting the impact of potential actions, connecting these insights directly to business outcomes, and pairing them with expert counsel. This empowers our clients to make informed decisions with speed and agility, ensuring their actions and communications positively impact corporate perception and business performance, and ultimately build a lasting competitive advantage in the marketplace.”
He added, “This profiling exercise underscores the critical role of reputation in driving financial outcomes. For businesses, it highlights the tangible economic value of building, maintaining and enhancing reputation. For investors, it emphasizes the importance of considering reputation when evaluating potential investments. For boards, it makes reputation – always a subject in the boardroom – a more tangible asset for every company and brand.”
Deepshikha Dharmaraj, CEO, Burson Group India, said, “We have always known and demonstrated the impact of reputation on business. But now, Reputational Capital gives us a more tangible, AI-powered solution for understanding and even predicting that impact. It empowers us to move beyond traditional metrics, providing clients with a nuanced understanding of the complex interplay between reputation and business performance. And we are then pairing these insights with expert counsel, and helping clients make their reputation a competitive advantage.”
Chad Latz, Global Chief Innovation Officer, Burson, said, “Traditional reputation management tools only offer a backwards view of corporate perception. Reputation Capital changes the game by providing a dynamic understanding of a brand’s reputation in the marketplace and predicting the impact of actions relative to key business metrics. This latest innovation is unique in the marketplace and especially valuable during periods of turbulence or emerging opportunity, when advanced intelligence, urgent action, and sophisticated communications counsel are critical for safeguarding reputation or seizing potential.”
Added Grant Toups, Global Chief Digital and Intelligence Officer, Burson, said, “Imagine knowing that perception around corporate integrity and governance, for example, or creativity, was having outsized impact on shareholder value creation compared to the other levers of reputation. Reputation Capital delivers that specificity, arming our clients with the predictive intelligence needed to build and sustain the reputational currency that drives business performance. By transforming perception into actionable intelligence, we can help clients make reputation a distinct and quantifiable competitive advantage that can be optimized for maximum ROI.”
