4 steps to build a meaningful brand peter heshof - bloom - 2014
DESCRIPTION
4 steps to build a Meaningful Brand Marketing is not about brands; it's about people The Zeitgeist development from the I-era to the We-era has implications for brands and marketers. In the upcoming years, brands should not focus on the “me, myself and I” (brand image,) but on the We-side (brand meaning.) The successful marketer will put his or her efforts into improving the well-being of people and society. I will explain how marketers can work on the well-being of people and society, by expanding the benefit ladder of their brand. By expanding from functional and emotional benefit (step 1 and 2) to transformational and societal benefit level (step 3 and 4). See the Bloom Brand Ladder model on the last slide!TRANSCRIPT
4 Steps to build a Meaningful Brand
Peter Heshof – Brand strategist & Zeitgeist watcher
2014
4 Steps to build a Meaningful Brand Marketing is not about brands; it’s about people
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4 Steps to build a meaningful brand Marke'ng is not about brands; it’s about people! The Zeitgeist development from the I-‐era to the We-‐era has implica'ons for brands and marketers. In the upcoming years, brands should not focus on the “me, myself and I” (brand image,) but on the We-‐side (brand meaning.) The successful marketer will put his or her efforts into improving the well-‐being of people and society. In this ar'cle, I will explain how marketers can work on the well-‐being of people and society, by expanding the benefit ladder of their brand. By expanding from func'onal and emo'onal benefit (step 1 and 2) to transforma'onal and societal benefit level (step 3 and 4).
4 Steps to build a Meaningful Brand Marketing is not about brands; it’s about people
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Func6onal and emo6onal benefit Marketers are trained to develop and communicate the func'onal and emo'onal benefits of their brand. One example is Nike, who offers super-‐light running shoes with Lunar technology, which makes you feel athle'c and in shape. In most cases, however, brands are based on emo'on, because it is hard to have a dis'nc've func'onal claim. That’s why Coca Cola is inves'ng in the feeling of happiness. However, this kind of marke'ng is not enough these days. From brand image to brand meaning In the past few decades, there has been too much focus on brand image and on building emo'onal associa'ons. However, in a society where government has a decreasing role and consumers get more power, people expect more posi've contribu'ons from companies. People want to know what brands do to improve the well-‐being of their daily life (transforma'onal benefit) and the well-‐being of society (societal benefit.)
4 Steps to build a Meaningful Brand Marketing is not about brands; it’s about people
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Societal benefit At the moment, many companies already offer a contribu'on to society. This can be done in two ways: by reducing your nega've impact and by increasing your posi've impact. The first has goXen the most aXen'on with sustainable business. Unilever, for example, aims to halve its environmental footprint by 2020. Yet that is not enough; that's just a pre-‐requisite for a decent business prac'ce. Investment in your posi've contribu'on as a brand is more important. Unilever’s brand Dove accomplishes this by helping to increase the self esteem of young girls through the Self-‐Esteem Project. While the Dutch coffee brand Douwe Egberts contributes by organizing the Neighbor Day, which is a day that encourages people to meet their neighbors by drinking coffee. Providing a societal benefit is important, but is not the most important key to success.
4 Steps to build a Meaningful Brand Marketing is not about brands; it’s about people
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Transforma6onal benefit As a brand, you are most relevant if you can be of significance in a consumer’s daily life, on a truly human level. Because the consumer s'll thinks, “what's in it for me?” first and, “what's in it for the others?” later. So your focus should be on helping your consumer to improve the daily well-‐being, helping to develop, and helping to transform himself or herself. That is much more valuable than just the social contribu'on of your brand! Cases: Nike, Flora, Exact Nike understands this concept well. They want to help you as an individual to become a beXer athlete more and more each day with Nike+. Flora and Becel spreads have been helping people around the world to successfully lower their cholesterol level, through its three-‐week Flora pro-‐ac'v challenge. Also in B2B, there are front runners, like Sofware solu'ons company Exact, who is helping entrepreneurs to become beXer in online business by sharing all their knowledge. The marketer who focuses on improving the well-‐being of people’s lives will be most successful in the coming decade. The transforma'onal benefit that they offer will have more impact in people’s lives than the last feature (func'onal), another funny viral on Facebook (emo'onal) or a CO2 neutral Office (societal.)
4 Steps to build a Meaningful Brand Marketing is not about brands; it’s about people
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Bloom helps brands stay relevant based on trends and insights
Peter Heshof
Brand Strategist Zeitgeist watcher
[email protected] +31618552437
www.tobloom.nl/en