Are Brands Stuck in a Rut?
bizSanDiego, by John Ball
August 2007

The State of the Brand Report sheds valuable marketing insight
Is your company doing enough to stand out in today’s crowded marketplace? Based on the State of the Brand Survey, conducted by MiresBall in conjunction with Luth Research and the American Marketing Association, probably not.

According to the survey, eight in ten companies see their brand as a high priority, and marketing spending is on the rise (on average up from nine percent in 2005 to 11% in 2006). Even more telling, 83% of surveyed brands were revitalized in the last five years and 57% within the last two years.

The good news for companies expending the effort: Revitalizations are paying off. Brands revitalized within the last five years are significantly more successful than brands revitalized six years ago or longer.

The bad news: Marketers appear to be falling short in two critical areas, brand positioning and brand marketing.

Consider the following survey findings:

• 56% of brands are positioned around three common positionings, “value,” “premium” and “innovative.” Moreover, marketers anticipate little net change in positioning over the next five years, with the same three positionings holding the top spots.
• Although marketers cite “word-of-mouth,” “customer service interaction,” “Web & interactive” and “public relations” as the most effective brand communication methods, they spend over 60% of their marketing budget on traditional outreach mechanisms such as broadcast and print advertising, direct mail and corporate communications.

By definition, a brand positioning should be highly differentiating; so the apparent clustering around a few popular positionings flies in the face of best practices in brand development.

To establish clear market differentiation, MiresBall recommends positioning your brand against an obvious competitor. For this to be effective, you should think in terms of black and white, not shades of grey. The brand wars between Coke and Pepsi, McDonald’s and Burger King, Apple and Microsoft illustrate the strength of this strategy: A simple, highly differentiated positioning helps consumers make brand choices, and often both brands benefit from the obvious contrast. A note on this: Although you should focus on a key competitor (or a key competitor in each major vertical market), make sure you conduct a comprehensive competitive review. Today’s seemingly insignificant up-and-comer can easily grow into a brand that challenges your market position.

Marketers’ enthusiasm for “word-of-mouth,” “customer service interaction,” “Web & interactive” and “public relations” aligns with two significant trends in brand communication: an emphasis on niche, or targeted, communication and the growing importance of authenticity in marketing. What’s concerning is that marketing spending does not appear to correlate with these new priorities. Perhaps marketers are reluctant to break away from tried-and-true advertising mediums or find it difficult to conceive and implement more unconventional outreach strategies.

To break away from this trend, challenge yourself to think outside of the box. Start by taking your cues from some of today’s most innovative brands, particularly those that understand how to use the art of “surprise and delight” to generate buzz. From BMW’s branded mini films to Dove’s Real Beauty traveling photography exhibit, trend-setting companies are blurring the lines between self-promotion and entertainment, business and culture, advertising and experience, to create brand impact. By studying what these leading brands are doing and understanding why it’s effective, you can begin to identify new and often unexpected vehicles for communicating your own brand.

However, this strategy doesn’t necessarily mean steering clear of traditional advertising. Savvy brands have found a way to use conventional media in unconventional ways. Doritos’ 2007 Super Bowl ads, which were submitted and selected by the public over the Web, are one prime example, but there are countless others.

Last year Target purchased all the ad space in The New Yorker’s August 22 issue, a move that used traditional print advertising to generate significant press coverage, and Coca Cola’s Refreshing Filmmaker’s Award spotlights aspiring film students’ work while promoting its soft drinks on theater screens nationwide.

Whatever strategies you use to break from the status quo, one thing is clear: High brand commitment and activity are not enough. You need to approach brand development with a healthy dose of creativity and take your cues from the brands that are successfully forging new territory.

John Ball is a respected leader in strategic design and brand development. A partner in MiresBall, one of the largest independent brand design firms in Southern California, John has led high-profile projects for brands including Creative Nail Design, Gateway, Jabra, QUALCOMM, Shure Incorporated and Starbucks. For more information about MiresBall, visit www.miresball.com.