Talk less, show'em some love.

Many believe that Branding and Advertising may generate the same impact: awareness. So, if the outcome is identical, then why waste million-dollar into branding? Why not just develop a TV commercial and gain million viewers at the same time? I tell you what; what others may believe might not always be right.

There are more and more companies spending gazillion money, time and efforts to produce one advertisement that creates a boom in the market without really having a lasting impact. Advertising may give you a maximum exposure at a relatively short amount of time. But, could it build trust and loyalty? I don’t think so.

Let me start with the ultimate question: What is a Brand? As I have previously discussed in 'I am more that what you see' post, Brand is holistic unification of a company’s strategies with their operations, and how you communicate it in the eyes of the public; it is the whole story of your company and what your company is all about. Whilst Advertising is in its juxtaposition to branding, where it helps you to communicate and giving exposure of the story and message of your brand through mass media. 

Advertising is one of the ways to communicate your message as a brand; but advertising itself could not create one brand. Branding is not just an overnight sensation; it takes steady growth and consistency in the way you behave over time to earn trust and love of people.

Take an example of the simplest most beloved brand in the world: Starbucks. All their employees knows how to ‘behave’; all their trainings, the benefits of being part of the company, and their sense of solidarity through fair trade coffee served – generate a different approach on how they should ‘behave’ being a Starbucks employee.

It shows how, if you understand your brand – its values, its mission, its reason for being- and integrate it consistently into everything you do, your entire organization will know how to behave in virtually and all situations.

Therefore, through branding, it gives a consistency for the whole company that guides behavior and quality, over time, builds trust. Advertising, if it is any good, should help to confirm what already is, not what should be.  

Think of it like this: “Advertising is shouting. While Branding is whispering; when you whisper, people lean forward.”

So, do you shout or whisper?

Sound off below, and tell me what you think!

'till then,tha!xx

Be Yourself, Everyone else is taken...

The key sucess factor of every company lies on how do they differentiate themselves against others. It is crucial to know exactly how you are unique or different  compared to others, especially in the early stage of a business development, as it is more complicated to change public’s perception about your business when it is developed. However, it is important to bear in mind that not changing public’s perception that matters, but adjusting the perceptions that already existed in the public’s mind and personalize it into your own brand that counts.

One of biggest drivers of a sucess in brand personalization is to own a unique Attribute or Concept. Take an example of Google own ‘search’ or Facebook with ‘like’ and ‘poke’. It has becoming a word on their own, and that’s their brand. The most significant brand that invent and owned their personal concept is Apple with their ‘i’ series. The word ‘i’ symbolizes everything that Apple embodies; form innovation, ideas until personalization of every product like iPad (i am Pad) that has been an undefeatable pioneer in their own product category.

However, having our own concept itself will not sustain the life of the brand if it is not supported by asking ourselves :

“What are we doing as an organization to motivate our customers and to feed their hungers and desires?”

Abraham Maslow define that there are five stages in human hierachy of needs: Physyiological, Safety, Sense of Belonging, Self- Esteem, and Self Actualization. Harley Davidson is an excellent example of a brand that has created their own concept and it is aimed to motivate their customers, as well as feed their hunger and desires.

Established in 1903 by William Harley and Arthur Davidson with a racer motorcycle in mind. And today, Harley Davidson has become a cultural icon and had attracted people who loved its bad-boy mystique, powerfulness, rumbling voice, distinctive roar, and toughness; as well as own the word ‘bad boy’ and ‘manly’ as their brand. They have suceed to build a unique selling point or concept that are able to gain extraordinary loyalty from their customers, through developing a worldwide community that valued the experience of riding a Harley Davidson more than the product itself; which feed human basic needs of belonging and esteem.

At the end of the day, the key importance of building a brand strategy lies not only in the capability of developing a concept of your own that differentiates you against others. But the unique concept have to motivate or inspire the customers and satisfy their basic emotional needs at the same time.

Reference:

Trout,J. (2012, March 19th). Brand Strategy: Lessons Learned. Branding Strategy Insider (http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com). Retrieved at 21st March 2012.