brandblog

The gold standard of persuasion

It’s easy to be seduced by the notion that effective branding emerges from a mysterious, alchemic moment of inspiration. The truth is, there is no chemical process for turning base metal into gold bullion or a way to turn bullshit into a great brand.

There is however such a thing as instant brand destruction. Gerald Ratner proved this in 1991, when showing total disdain for his customers, he described Ratner’s products as “total crap” and instantly wiped £500 million off the value of his jewellery business.

Silence is golden

Greek myth describes a king whose touch turned everything to gold. Mr Ratner, the king of budget gold plated jewellery demonstrated in spectacular fashion that the reverse is not a mythical occurrence but a real possibility. Like a scene from a movie: Gerald! – “Your mouth is writing cheques your ass can’t cash!”  Never has there been a a more dramatic real life enactment of pride preceding a fall.

When arrogance exposes scorn for customers they will stop buying and destroy a business. With branding, half the task is to identify your target audience. The other half is to identify with them.

Can you dig it?

After that, branding is a lot like gold mining.  It can be either a big expensive hole that produces nothing much of value or a tunnel leading to treasure. Digging in hope of discovering a rich vein of ideas. Effective and enduring brands are dug out from the market using a combination of perception, logic, psychology, design and imagination. A brand is a unique and compelling expression of a potent proposition. Defining the proposition is like deciding where to start digging a mine shaft.

Assets with values

Compare the Market/Compare the Meerkat” meets the gold standard and is an idea that has magic. The strategy is based on the requirement to attract people to their domain. The proposition is simple: remember this website address. The meerkat concept proves that a very simple idea can be rich and inspire a feast of creative opportunities. If the process of inception is executed well the brand is invested with all the elements it needs to work, develop and grow in stature. At any time the elements can be melted down and recast into a new expression of the brand without devaluing itself. If handled correctly, recasting a brand has the potential to make it appreciate – not depreciate – in value.

Future proofing

The best branding ideas are campaignable. A commercial enterprise must have the capacity for change built into it to meet the demands of an ever evolving marketplace; taste, technology and timing are the main factors that erode the viability and profitability of a business. A brand is most valuable when it represents – or better still invents – its own unique set of values.

Priceless simplicity

Steve Jobs understood these branding principles and over the course of his career turned Apple into the ultimate consumer brand. The launch campaign for the iPod – with the white headphones – standing out against silhouettes is iconic – and indelible. The clarity of the idea is stunning; “Headphones have always been black, let’s make our headphones white”. White headphones don’t cost any more to make than black. The idea is affordable and priceless. Complexity is expensive. Clever is costly. To unearth simple one has to dig down and past both complex and clever. Clarity is the gold standard of persuasion.

A treasure trove

Meerkats are pure gold for the CTM brand. White headphone are pure gold for the Apple brand. Once the branding idea is discovered it’s a treasure trove of cost-efficient customer acquisition, above average response, rapid market penetration, steadfast competitive supremacy and a high level of customer loyalty and retention.

A tunnel into the mind

Branding refines nuggets into bars that are perfectly shaped for brand-building. A strong brand means premium level pricing and maximum profit margins. Brand advocacy is created by the accumulation of experiences directly related to using a product or service. And through the influence of advertising and media coverage. Ultimately the ethos of a company’s brand is the essence of its own identity.

However, a true brand does not live in the media, a true brand cannot be captured on paper or on a television screen, or a business card, carton or a shop front. A true brand lives in the minds and hearts of a company’s staff and its customer base. This is what a brand must tunnel into and mine.