The Brand Matrix
SocialNext Toronto 2026 · Workshop
Brand Matrix Workbook
A framework for pressure-testing your brand messaging
Greyser + Urde, Harvard Business Review, 2019
Brought to you by Takt · Architects of Impact · takt.com
The Brand Matrix
A system. Not a hierarchy.

Nine elements. Three layers. Brand Promise at the centre. Every element informs and echoes the others — the core shapes everything around it.

External Value Proposition, Relationships, Position How your brand appears to the world.
Bridge Expression, Brand Promise, Personality Where internal meets external. Brand Promise sits at the centre.
Internal Organizational Purpose, Culture, Competencies The foundation most brand frameworks skip.
Greyser + Urde, Harvard Business Review, 2019
External
Value Proposition
Relationships
Position
Bridge
Expression
Brand Promise
Personality
Internal
Org. Purpose
Culture
Competencies
External How your brand appears to the world.
Bridge Where internal meets external. Brand Promise at the centre.
Internal The foundation most brand frameworks skip.
Before You Start
Three principles.

Keep these in mind as you fill in the matrix. They separate a useful output from a polished-sounding one.

1
Be Concise

Short phrases, not paragraphs. Think headings. If you're writing sentences to explain your answer, you haven't landed it yet.

2
Be Authentic

Capture words that actually resonate — that your team would agree signal "this is us." Some elements may be aspirational. That's fine, as long as you know which.

3
Be Timeless

A brand's core tenets should be lasting. If it sounds like a campaign theme or a quarterly push, it belongs in a brief — not here.

Your Turn
Start Your Matrix.

Work through as many cells as you can. Flag the ones where you'd struggle to answer clearly. The gaps are the insight.