Brands lose customers because of dips in quality, scandals involving their business practices, and the ease of access to literally hundreds of other options at the push of a button. Brands do not lose loyalty because this generation isn’t as loyal as its predecessors. Brand loyalty is definitely still around, but it has changed shape according to the times.
Read more here.
Branding itself has no value for neither customer or product. A logo, a slogan, a promise do not have any value for nobody without the customer satisfaction, without a promise kept, without a great product using experience.
Branding is destined to help remember, to get the customer closer to your already excellent product, not to replace or complete the experience. Your business need a good branding strategy, but if someone imagine that a good branding strategy will replace some missing promises of your product, or an incomplete experience then is in a deep mistake. Continue reading
As marketing channels become increasingly fragmented, what of the tried and tested corporate event and its place within a promotional strategy?
As many executives now use webinars and conference calls for that direct, personal contact with potential and existing customers, it would be easy to jump to the wrong conclusion and think that corporate events have had their day. However, having important delegates under one roof, whether for a trade show or charity event, is still a valuable approach to customer relationship marketing. It’s not a case of the new, virtual versions taking the place of the real thing, rather how they can complement each other. Continue reading
Setting-up a start-up, especially online, needs attention to a lot of details, branding included. The enthusiasm of a new beginning is indispensable for a new endeavour but can put some important things in the blind spot. There are DO’s and DON’Ts, things to look up for or things to avoid. While there are no definite rules or sometimes is worth breaking some of them, here are some notes you should take in consideration before you “go out” to the real world.
Before you go out to your customers be specific and honest regarding your purpose. What are you going to provide? Clearly define your product/service in detail. Think what are the benefits for the potential customer, what’s the need that you cover. Continue reading
A brand is not:
A brand is:
… branding is more than that. Actually if you are able send your brand message to your customers without the presence of your logo, you’re on the right way. I don’t say here that a logo is not needed, but if your (potential) customers are able to sense your brand from every message you send towards them, then, as said, you’re on the right way.
Here is an example of that from Martin Lindstrom:
…branding is much more than developing a familiar consumer image.
I realized a couple of years ago, when one of my colleagues was asked by a major U.S. airline to write a standard announcement to be used by the airline’s captains, that many operational elements, as well as deliberate promotional strategies, are all integral to branding and the establishment of image and identity.
The speech was carefully composed incorporating the advice of a psychologist and a marketing expert, and the writing of one of the country’s best copywriters. The aim was to achieve an announcement that would carry the airline’s image message to the passenger, just as the company’s logo did. This event made me realize the full potential of branding: the 360 degrees that I briefly discussed last week. And 360-degree branding is everything.
Full article here.
Aston Martin made it to the coolest brand in UK according to the study released today by superbrands.co.uk.
The UK’s CoolBrands are chosen by the Expert Council and members of the British public. Brands do not apply or pay to be considered. The entire selection process is independently administered by The Centre for Brand Analysis.
A comprehensive database of the UK’s coolest brands is compiled using a wide range of sources, from sector reports to blogs. From the thousands of brands initially identified, approximately 1,500 brands are short-listed. An independent and voluntary Expert Council scores this list, with members individually awarding each brand a rating.
The lowest-scoring brands (approximately 40%) are eliminated. A nationally-representative group of more than 2,100 UK consumers on the YouGov panel are asked to vote on the surviving brands. The opinions of the Expert Council (70 per cent) and the British public (30 per cent) are combined and the 500 highest-ranking brands are awarded ‘CoolBrand’ status.
Cool is subjective and personal. Accordingly, voters are not given a definition but are asked to bear in mind the following factors, which research has shown are inherent in a CoolBrand: style, innovation, originality, authenticity, desirability, uniqueness. Continue reading
There is an ever-growing trend towards “nostalgia,” hence the throwbacks from Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Doritos, Nike, candy companies, and prominently through the NFL this past season. As technology is moving us forward at warp-speed, the economy is in disarray, and the world seems to be filled with disaster, consumers want to feel safe and familiar again.
It’s time to turn-back to tune-in. People are looking for more ways to enjoy life again, simply. Families are finding the importance of sitting down to dinner (this time without cell-phones and remote controls), people are searching for vacation getaways where there is limited phone reception and internet, people want to learn about the past – hence sites like ancestry.com and the show ‘Who Do You Think You Are’ (in its second season).
Classic brands are taking note and tapping into this emotional yearning from consumers. Of course, this only works with brands that ‘we’ grew up with. With the use of throwback packaging, these brands are triggering consumers to think about the past and reminisce about the ‘good ‘ol days,’ even if it was just 10, 15 or 20 years ago.
Continue reading
In order to avoid possible mistakes in managing your brand there is a need to clarify and identify some of the main brand and branding terms.
When analyzing your current brand situation there are three elements that should be taken in consideration:
We should keep in mind that the target audience for your brand should be either your current customers or potential new ones, your employees, your partners etc. You should carefully consider appropriate ways to communicate with each of them in order to have a message that converge to your brand identity.
Since you have to start with the final purpose in mind you should, first of all, correctly have a clear vision of what do you want your brand to be. How do you want it to be perceived? Defining a brand identity should be step one. In his “Building Strong Brands” book, David A. Aaker identifies four traps you can get into when you approach the development of the brand identity: Continue reading
Many people nowadays are turning to the Internet to receive their education from online schools and universities. Marketing professionals have much to gain from taking online; not only is it cheaper to pay the tuition for an online class, but going to school online allows you to have a flexible schedule so that you can work in your spare time. While taking online classes is easy, the process of finding the best online school is not and not every school that offers a marketing or social networking program is worth your time. To separate the best from the rest, here are a few points to consider. Continue reading