“I went to school on Tom’s ideas!”
Jeff Taylor, Founder, Monster.com
A Clear Eye.
On customers, brands and marketplace success
by Tom Asacker
“I went to school on Tom’s ideas!”
Jeff Taylor, Founder, Monster.com
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That's not a complete question, is it? Add value to what and for whom, right? Surely you know that advertising adds value to organizations and their brands. If not, study the rise and rise of brands like Nike, Coke, Tide, and Boniva, to name a few.
"But," you quip, channeling Robert Stephens, founder of Geek Squad. "Isn't advertising a tax you pay for unremarkable thinking?" Not always. Toyota, Southwest Airlines and Apple are the most remarkable "thinkers" in their respective industries. So what's up with all of their advertising? Don't be fooled by the noise in the blogosphere. Advertising isn't simply a tool for commodity products trying to appear special. It's also a technique that smart organizations use to add value for their customers.
The latest issue of BusinessWeek magazine has an interesting piece, "Why Avon Is Going Hollywood," exploring the company's investment in celebrity tie-ins. According to Avon's global brand President Geralyn R. Breig, "In market after market, we found that we were meeting women's needs in quality, variety, and innovation. Where we fell short was in the image of the brand." Umm . . . not really.
It is not the "image of the brand" that's lacking in this case. Women don't have a problem with the "image" of Avon products, leadership or sales representatives. What's lacking is women's image of themselves as purchasers and users of the Avon brand. Do you see the difference? Avon is using celebrities to enhance the aesthetic experience, the "feeling" of being an Avon customer, by associating the brand with good-looking, likable celebrities like Reese Witherspoon.
Most organizations get this wrong. They believe that their image is what creates the brand bond. "Me. me, me," they shout. "Look at me!" But it's simply not true. Sure, transactional brands - brands selected for a single-minded purpose - are all about their images. For instance, a celebrity like Reese, is chosen by Avon primarily for her . . . celebrity, so that Avon can use that celebrity for its purposes. But that's the extent of their "relationship."
Most celebrity brands are transactional brands. They're all about creating attention for themselves and transferring it to their customers. Most are really not that interested in their customers beyond that transactional arrangement (that's why "difficult" celebrities continue to command top dollar). Unless, of course, they're selling something associated with their own brands and are therefore rightly concerned about negative word-of-mouth. Think Oprah and Martha and Rachel Ray.
On the other hand, brands that create passionate, repeat customers are process brands. They are acutely aware of, and totally focused on, the customer's process; her feelings before, during, and after the purchase. If you're a transactional brand, you should use advertising, pr and strategic media relationships to shine a light on brand you. But if you're a process brand, that light should be turned away from you to create a warm glow on where the value of your brand truly lies.
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"Tom is timely, thought provoking and all about the new brand vision packaged as a Seinfeld stand up. I went to school on his ideas."
- Jeff Taylor, Founder, Monster.com and CEO, Eons.
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Boy, you leave a few days and you miss an awesome post like this one!
Sometimes we marketers lean too much to the navel gazing side and forget what it's really all about.
Posted by: Bill Gammell | July 29, 2008 at 06:53 PM