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How to Manage Your Brand

Posted on June 24, 2013 by skulkaew

When we think of branding, we tend to think of it as this modern day phenomenon where companies work to create an emotional connection that resonates between itself and its products with customers. But the fact of the matter is that branding has existed for nearly as long as people have sold goods to one another. In preparation of writing this article, I did some light reading on the history of branding to better provide context and yeah, it’s all over the place.

One source attributed ancient Babylon as a frontrunner. Because the general public by and large was illiterate, barkers were used to attract buyers by “exhorting” passing crowds (i.e., pitching spices, wines and other goods). I took “exhorting” as a euphemism for barking. Another cited ancient Greece and Rome where merchants would hang pictorial signs and paint their storefronts. Another credited Pompeii where advertisements were written on walls. I’d previously read and wrote that stelais, made of basalt, were used in Egypt.

Here in the states, its roots go back to the late 19^th century when a massive shift in product offerings and purchasing occurred with the advent of railways and the expansion of the postal service. For the first time, consumers had access to a wider selection of goods from outside their local economy. What quickly became evident was that new and unknown goods had a difficult time competing with proven local products. Because of that, manufacturers needed to convince the public that their products were just as trustworthy, if not more so, which led them to develop the concept of the unique selling position.

What happened after World War II, was that as consumer choice continued to proliferate, product quality only increased incrementally leading to this sort of standardization between similar goods that rendered them nearly indistinguishable from one another. As product differences continued to erode, companies shifted their focus from functional parity to building emotional associations. This sparked a creative revolution in advertising that became synonymous with branding. In doing so, a brand perceived as being superior would be able to charge a premium and price itself above its competitors.

So how do you apply this to your business?

With or without your input, either your customers or your competitors will position your product.

Product positioning is the process where marketers determine how to showcase a product in its best possible light while simultaneously communicating its unique attributes. If I were to ask you what you thought of Lexus automobiles, you might associate it with luxury or elegance. If I were to mention Honda, you might think efficient or affordable.

You might actually be thinking of vivid negative attributes when it comes to either make, but you get where I’m going. The fact remains that people don’t simply buy exclusively based on efficiency or affordability. We’d all be driving Smart Cars or Nissan Versas if that were the case, but we don’t. Why? Because preference aside, consumers factor in value: perceived or otherwise.

Successful product positioning requires a clear understanding of your customer and their needs, so that the right messaging can be created and delivered through the right touchpoints. To do so, you need to identify a specific target. It’s not enough to say, “men over 25.” It would be single men between the ages of 25 to 30, with college degrees, who work in X industry and make Y dollars each year. The more specific, the better. Once you’ve segmented that target, you need to do three things:

(1) You need to create a message that differentiates your product from your competitors’ (2) that addresses your customers’ buying criteria (3) and articulates key product attributes.

Just to kind of go full circle and recap, purchase decisions take both time and energy, something that are always in short supply. Your branding should alleviate both and work to differentiate not just between the good and the bad but the better and the best.

Your brand’s reputation is its lifeblood.

Niall Fitzgerald once said, “You can have all the facts and figures, all the supporting evidence, all the endorsements that you want, but if at the end of the day you don’t command trust, you won’t get anywhere.”

Think about it in terms of your normal day to day. You trust that when you stop and proceed through a four-way-stop that the next driver will yield to you. You trust that when you buy meat or produce at the grocery store it won’t make you sick upon consumption. If that were an actual concern, wouldn’t you shop elsewhere?

Back in 2009, Concerto Marketing and Research Now conducted a study on the benefits and drivers of trust. They found that when people trust a brand, 83% will recommend it to other people. 78% will look to it first for things they want, and that 50% of respondents said they would pay more for it.

But as it turns out, brands really struggle to deliver on the promises they make due to glaring inconsistencies, empty claims, misbehavior and so on. Burberry boasts that its luxury apparel is “Made in Britain.” There are two factories there. The rest of the operation has been shipped to China. McDonalds is an Olympics sponsor. It also represents a leading contributor to obesity and poor nutrition. One of Unilever’s most well-known campaigns was Dove’s “Real Beauty” initiative that focused on self esteem and realistic body images for women. Ironically, it also owns one other brand called Axe, where the recurring theme of body spray commercials is scantily clad, sex-crazed women. Weird.

Remember: not doing anything is better than making a new promise and not delivering on it because a brand can’t survive without trust. If you fail here, you can potentially burn through brand equity extremely quickly.

That means that a brand’s values must be embedded into every action and decision the company takes and not spearheaded or compartmentalized solely to a marketing team. If it is, therein lies a strong possibility that it’s destined to fail. Any actual change should be clear throughout the entire organization and obvious at every touchpoint.

To wrap things up…

When writing this, I naturally thought of Bravo Design, Inc.’s branding and what we’ve done to make good on our promises. One of which is that we’ll always work our asses off for our clients to do things right and turn work around as soon as possible. It doesn’t actually say that in our mission statement verbatim, but it’s implied. If you go through our testimonials or talk to our clients whether that be small business owners or the folks at movie studios, they won’t tell you otherwise.

Another thing we promise to do is deliver information that’ll help you at the end of the day. Whether you have questions about web development, design, branding, whatever that is, someone here at the office will be able to help you if you fill out a contact form or leave us a comment. That’s what this blog is for.

Someone [me] once said, “Hell hath no fury like a consumer scorned.” Your brand is one of your most valuable possessions. Treat it well.

Photo Credit: Printpapa.com

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Branding and Rebranding

Posted on August 29, 2012 by skulkaew

Branding. It started with soap.

In 1931, an associate at Proctor & Gamble named Neil McElroy was working on an advertising campaign for Camay soap. Frustrated with not only having to compete with a countless number of soaps outside of the company but also P&G’s flagship product, Ivory, McElroy circulated an internal memo in which he argued that individual teams should be tasked with and devoted to marketing specific brands as if they were each a separate business. This way, the qualities of one brand would be distinguished from the next, and their respective ad campaigns could be directed at different consumer markets.

McElroy’s formula for success was: “Find out what consumers want and give it to them.” In the 1950s and 60s, mass produced goods that had previously been thought of as being cheap and/or low-quality evolved and became standardized amongst competitors so as markets expanded, brand awareness efforts became necessary for manufacturers and sellers to break through the clutter and distinguish their goods from their nearly indistinguishable competitors’.

But outside of marketing and advertising, why do brands exist?

One reason is that because people need help with their buying decisions, brands work as tools for differentiation. Faced with a countless number of choices, making purchase decisions takes both time and energy, two things that are always in short supply. As consumers, what we want is a way to tell the difference between the good from the bad and the better from the best. Brands enable us to do that.

From a marketing standpoint, all too often, branding is thought of in terms of its design elements: a name, a logo, its color, typefaces, maybe a tagline but like an iceberg, the bulk of it goes unseen beneath the surface. More than each of those individual elements, branding is how we prescribe value to a company. This often takes form in the assignment of attributes. For example: Ford, tough, Chevy, dependable and long-lasting and Volvo, safe. And it’s why you and I will pay an additional premium for something we trust and know is good. In short, branding is a promise. The products are the proof.

If you’re thinking of rebranding, you should first ask yourself why. A rebrand affects everything from product development to web design to customer service to marketing and can be both time and cost intensive. If done for the right reasons, it can breathe new life into your business turning embers into a fire; but if done for the wrong ones, can end in disaster with a company eroding its existing brand equity. Listed below are some considerations to keep in mind.

First, if a rebrand is spearheaded solely by a marketing team, therein lies a strong possibility that the initiative is destined to fail. The purpose of a rebrand is to signal change. That starts from the top down and isn’t compartmentalized to one department. Any actual change should be clear throughout the entire organization and obvious at every client interaction. Next, do-overs and second chances are few and rare so use them wisely. That much applies to rebranding and pretty much everything else in life.

Next, half-heartedly undertaking this process is a lot like putting lipstick on a pig. And without action, you will simply confirm the position you already have in their minds. The purpose should be to make it easier for your customers, prospective or otherwise, to decide that your company is the go to one for X, Y and Z reasons and that your competitors are unable to deliver comparable value. Remember: not doing anything is better than making a new promise and not delivering on it.

While there are plenty of reasons to rebrand (e.g., when undergoing a merger or acquisition; in response to growth, particularly into international markets; to improve relevance; to reposition; etc.), there are more reasons not to. Reasons not to rebrand include: (1) doing so out of impatience. Young brands need time to grow and become meaningful to their target audience. (2) Because you need to update marketing collateral and want to knock out two birds with one stone. (3) And finally, just for the sake of doing so. If you haven’t found valid commercial reason to, you’re probably best off staying put.

Rebranding affects a change in how a company, product or service is perceived and, ultimately, aims to make it more successful. Rob Frankel writes, “Branding is not about getting your prospects to choose you over your competition; it’s about getting your prospects to perceive you as the only solution to their problem. If they don’t see you as the only solution, it means they’re still shopping.”

Photo Credit: Underconsideration.com

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One Year

Posted on August 22, 2012 by skulkaew

This upcoming Sunday, the 26th, marks one year since I moved to Los Angeles from Dallas. If you’ve ever moved to a city you knew basically nothing about, you know how difficult finding an apartment or home is. But to be fair, it’s actually kind of a pain even if you’re only moving a mile down the road. Though the Internet enables you to browse through reviews of neighborhoods and properties, look at crime maps as well as check out schools, attractions and so on, it really only prepares you so much. I learned that lesson the day I signed my first lease here in a seemingly okay neighborhood only to find an intruder in my bathroom later on that very evening. With just one month left on my lease, the apartment hunting process has begun. What’s interesting is that as I invest more and more time into digging through what seems like an endless list of potential options, I’m starting to see the similarities, namely recurring problems, that pop up here and in both graphic design and advertising.

First and foremost, it’s no secret that the cost of living in Los Angeles is high. That’s reflected in everything from a gallon of milk to a gallon of gas. While I can’t afford to live in a 5,000-squarefoot mansion in the Hollywood hills, I’m very adamantly against the idea of living in a 300-squarefoot bare boned “bachelor pad” even if it is the most practical option from an economic standpoint. With regards to marketing and advertising, don’t assume that spending more correlates with yielding more. Research shows that there isn’t a positive relationship between the cost of an ad’s production and its corresponding sales effectiveness. If you’re operating on fairly limited ad budget, remember that it doesn’t take superhuman strength to move a 500lbs rock. One only needs a fulcrum, a lever and a little knowhow. There are a countless number of free resources, tools and forums you can use online to beef up your marketing efforts. All you have to do is put in the time.

Second, remember that all the marketing and spin in the world won’t fix a crappy product. Having spent a lot of time perusing about on Craigslist, I’ve gotten pretty good at eliminating lemons from the bunch by quickly skimming through listings. If you do find yourself looking for a new place, know that if at any part of a listing mentions “old world charm,” that usually means it’s haunted. Not really. But the 100-year-old building will usually look pretty scary so taking a pass is prudent for those who haven’t completely disqualified the existence of ghosts (e.g., me). Outside of apartment hunting, a brand’s strengths depend on more than just its name and the hype surrounding it. It’s dependent on the public’s perception of its quality. If a product is deficient in some way or another, that will show as soon as someone actually uses it, at which point they’ll probably decide to never repeat that mistake.

Finally, call it what you will but a big part of my decision making process in finding a new home is knowing that I’m going to spend a lot of time at this place. Maybe, I’m overly sentimental. On the short side, that might only be 12 months, though it may end up being much longer, but a one-year lease can certainly feel like an eternity if you get locked into something that’s not at all what you thought it would be [think: haunted apartment from point number two]. But in all seriousness, a home is more than bricks and mortar. Outside of being the place where I sleep, eat, shower, play videogames and so on, it’s where I can get away from the craziness that is Los Angeles. Provide more than just what’s necessary, and you stand to separate yourself from the pack.

Here’s to another year and not finding intruders in my next place, in the bathroom or otherwise.