The mention of “brand” often evokes visions of celebrity endorsements and high-budget TV spots. Marketing leaders have battled this misconception for decades—and with it, the expectation of big and immediate results.

However, modern marketers know that those big budget ads are only part of the picture when it comes to having a healthy brand. In reality, your brand represents the innumerable customer touch points in our increasingly dynamic and digital world.

Strategic investments in your brand strategy and how you go-to-market are more critical than ever. Data shows that in times of turmoil, brand health is key to driving resilience and stability.These three components of brand transformation, illuminate how organizations must change the way they define, measure, and activate brand— going from simply tracking their brand, to practicing brand intelligence.In practice, brand intelligence delivers organizational transformation across three foundational characteristics.

1. Agility
Brand is the ongoing relationship you have with your customers. It’s a living, changing entity. While some elements like logos or taglines may change infrequently, the constellation of other attributes that shape consumer perception of a company and its products is subject to continuous change. We are now fully in the “Age of Agility,” where the nimbleness of a brand is its most important feature. How you respond to competitors, changing socio-economic conditions, and customer expectations will be the key to your success.

2. Accountability
As CMOs face their lowest average tenure in a decade, they can no longer justify marketing investments, or their jobs, without embracing clear, financial accountability. While this might signal a move to revenue marketing and short-term MQL generation, savvy marketing leaders will not lose the focus of driving long term growth with brand, and they will adopt new approaches to quantifying and proving impact.

3. Competence
Brand has long been the domain of “the creative team” or agencies working on the latest awareness campaign or T.V. spot. But marketers who understand the importance of brand will treat brand competency as a competitive advantage, and look to extend brand skills, techniques and tools across their entire organization for greater alignment, efficiency, and impact.