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Brand Thinking Is Stuck in Yesteryear
Simply put, a brand is an indelible impression. The term brand derives from the practice of burning the rancher's mark on the hides of cattle. It cannot be erased and identiÿes a distinct relationship between the bovine and the rancher: ownership. In business branding, however, we make a major mistake if we think that the logo or image placed on a product or service is the brand and there is nothing more to customers feeling a sense of connectedness or ownership. The company logo, even with a tagline or positioning statement, is not in itself the brand. Brand is not a thing, logo, image, graphic, or statement. The brand is a combination of what the company wants to be known by and how it, in fact, is known -– a desired reputation made reality. This may sound straightforward and unarguable. But, think about it carefully… how many brand marketers are focused on communicating the company's position to gain consistent imagery along with a distinctive value that resonates in the hearts and minds of customers? They see their job as proactive outreach: build awareness, familiarity, consideration, preference, and loyalty. Push the brand into the market, attract prospects, and reinforce customer attachment. Job done. But, viewing the issue of building brand loyalty in this manner is like playing baseball with a ball but no bat -- it is only half of what is needed.The rub is that the brand is also what the customer experiences. The customer interacts with far more than the logo, ad, or marketing collateral; there is a product or service involved. The customer's impression of the company is formed by not just the marketing communication, but by the product or service the customer experiences. The Nike swoosh grew to mean something special not just as a logo but because of the product performance, use occasions, associations with top performance, and more. The Starbucks logo grew to mean something special not just because of the logo but because of the barista experience in a neighborhood coffee shop.
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