Beyond

the MBA
Brand management training
designed for the real world
 Beyond
the MBA
Our purpose is to use our experience to provide you the marketing skills
you need to realize the full potential in your brand management career.
BRAND MANAGEMENT
Brand management training designed for the real world

✓ Strategic thinking for brand leaders

✓ Write a brand positioning statement
✓ Come up with a brand idea
✓ Build a brand plan everyone can follow
✓ Advertising and Innovation processes
✓ Write an inspiring creative brief
✓ Smarter decisions on marketing execution
✓ Analytical skills for brand leaders
✓ Conduct a deep-dive business review
✓ Learn finance 101 for marketers
✓ Create your own career game plans

Graham Robertson Learn everything you need to reach your

full potential in your marketing career.
Graham Robertson
Founder of Beloved Brands
 Learn to think, define, plan,
execute and analyze your brand
Winning

1
Strategic 2
Positioning
What What your
Thinking consumers
want
brand
does best Statement

Dad’s wins on innovation and deep price What your

competitor
discounts,
Measuring the brandExceptional
love, to determinebutthe
scores among is weak
early Adopterson taste.
(“Proactive does best
Preventers”) making it highly beloved among the niche.
love, power and profit progress of the brand
Blind taste test performance
90 Brand
Annual PlanPlan
Marketing
Gray’s
Exceptional
67.5 • Gray’s scores
Use the brand
among
is very healthy
funnel to
earlywith
among “Preventers”
measure
Adopters •(“Proactive
strong awareness
health
Dad’s
at 80% andbrand is the mature brand
all related Brand
Brand Vision: Be first ‘healthy cookie’ to generate craving, popularity and sales of a mainstream cookie. $100 Million by 2024.

Analysis Issues and Strategies Execution Plans

Funnel scores significantly above norm. However, that strength has not carried over to the
Preventers”)
45 making it highly beloved among
overall market, where Gray’s is significantly under-developed in the the
inoverallniche.
themarket.
“good for you” segment P&L forecast
• Sales $30,385
Key Issues
1.What’s the priority choice for growth: find
Advertising
• Use awareness to drive trial of the new
Dad’s • Gross Margin $17,148 new users or drive usage frequency among Grays. Target “Proactive Preventers”.
22.5 • Brand funnels become thicker as the brand
becomes more loved. It’s notstrong
just about driving
holding on average a 25% • GM %
• Marketing Budget
• Contribution Margin
56%
$8,850
$6,949
loyalists?
2.Where should the investment/resources
focus and deployment be to drive our
Suburban working women, 35-40.Main
Message of “great tasting cookie without the
guilt, so you can stay in control of your
• 0Gray’s is very healthy among “Preventers” Brand
with Funnel Scores
awareness Preventers vs.all
at 80% and Overall
related Brand • CM% 23% awareness and share needs for Gray’s? health”. Media includes 15 second TV,
Awareness Funnel particular numbers
2018 scores significantly
2019 above norm. butHowever,
2020
about moving themhas
that strength
2021
from share over the past 10 years.
not carried over to the
Drivers
• Taste drives a high conversion of Trial to
Purchase
3.How will we defend Gray’s against the
proposed Q1 2014 ‘healthy cookie’
launches from Pepperidge Farms and
specialty health magazines, event signage,
digital and social media
Sampling
one stage to the next.
overall market, where Gray’s is significantly under-developed in the overall market. • Strong Listings in Food Channels Nabisco? • Drive trial with In-store sampling at grocery,
• Exceptional brand health scores among Strategies Costco, health food stores and event

Familiar • Awareness is never enough. Anyone can get that. • Dad’s scores low on taste Early Adopters. Highly Beloved Brand
among niche.
Inhibitors
1.Continue to attract new users to Gray’s
2.Focus investment on driving awareness
and trial with new consumers and building
sampling at fitness, yoga, women’s
networking, new moms.
Distribution
Consideration
Average isFunnel
Price
Brand the
perpoint you
unit
Scores start to see
Preventers that your
vs. Overall
brand idea starts to connect and move the quality, but higher on innovation • Low familiar yet to turn our sales into loyalty
• Awareness held back due to weak
Advertising
a presence at retail.
3.Build defence plan against new entrants to
defends with consumers and at store level.
• Support Q4 retail blitz with message
focused on holding shelf space during the
competitive launches. Q2 specialty blitz to
Consider 5.49 • Low distribution at specialty stores. Poor Goals grow distribution at key specialty stores.
6 4.97
consumer.
5.29 5.39 than Gray’s, launching 2 new coverage.
• Low Purchase Frequency among most
loyal.
• Increase penetration from 10% to 12%,
specifically up from 15% to 20% with the
core target. Monitor usage frequency
Innovation
• Launch two new flavours in Q4/15 & Q4/16.
Explore diet claims, motivating and own-
Purchase 5 • To drive trial
3.99 3.77you need3.61
to gain consideration first
3.19the
(the brain) and then you need to move flavors each year. Risks
• Launch of Mainstream cookie brands
(Pepperidge Farms and Nabisco).
among the most loyal to ensure it stays
steady.
• Increase awareness from 33% to 42%,
able.
Competitive Defence Plan
• Pre Launch sales blitz to shore up all
• De-listing 2 weakest skus weakened our in- specifically up from 45% to 50% within the distribution gaps. At launch, heavy
3 consumer towards purchase and through the store presence core target. Drive trial from 15% to 20%. merchandising, locking up key ad dates,
Repeat • Legal challenge to taste claims Close distribution from 62% to 72%. BOGO. TV, print, coupons, in-store

2 experience.
80 • Dad’s fought \ declining share Opportunities
• R&D has 5 new flavors in development.
• Hold dollar share during competitive
launches. Grow 11% post launch gaining up
sampling.
• Use sales story that any new “healthy”

Loyal Explore
• To drive loyalty ways
(the to you
heart) leverage
need toLove from Preventers, as early
create
• Sales Broker gains at Specialty Stores to 1.2% share. Target zero losses at shelf. cookies should displace under-performing

0 experiences thatadopters,
60
deliver theto influence
promise the tools
and use rest of the market. with a “buy one get one free” • Use social media to convert loyal following. and declining unhealthy cookies.

5 Analyze
2018to create
2019 2020 2021

3 Brand
40an emotional bond with the consumer.
Preventers that we decidedNorm
Overall not to match
80
GRAY’S Gray’s
Explore ways Dad’s
20 to leverage Love from Preventers, as early Business
Cookies Review

Performance adopters, to influence the rest of the market.

Plans
60

Beloved Brands 0
The playbook for how to build a
40 Awareness Preventers Overall Norm
Gray’s needs to step up on innovation to use
brand your consumers will love.

✓
✓
How to think strategically
Write a brand positioning statement
The playbook for how to create a
GRAY’S brand your consumers will love Business
✓ Come up with a brand idea
✓ Write a brand plan everyone can follow
✓ Write an inspiring creative brief 20
✓ Make decisions on marketing execution
✓ Conduct a deep-dive business review
Cookies !1 Review
superior quality to gain share against Dad’s.
✓ Learn finance 101 for marketers

Beloved Brands is available on Amazon and Apple Books 0

Awareness

4
Marketing
Execution
 Beyond
the MBA
Certificate program

1 How to win with smart strategic thinking

2 How to define a winning brand positioning

3 How to build a brand plan everyone can follow

4 How to inspire creative marketing execution

5 How to use analytics to uncover brand issues

1 How to win with smart strategic thinking

We challenge you to think strategically, to prompt you

to ask the right questions before you reach for solutions

Our holistic look at strategy pushes you to assess your

brand’s core strength, the relationship with consumers,
competitive stance you take, and business situation.

You will be capable of leading a well-thought strategic

discussion across your organization or winning any
strategic argument with your management team.

Learn to apply your vision, to focus your resources on

identified opportunities that create a market impact you
can transform into a performance result for your brand.
 1 How to win with smart strategic thinking
Assess how you think and Use our 5 elements of smart Our Strategic ThinkBox asks tough
1 2 3
how you make decisions strategic thinking to guide you questions to frame the key issues
1. Set a vision of what you want Strategic ThinkBox
Instinctual 2. Invest resources in programs 1. What is the core strength your
Thinker brand can win on?
3. Focus on an identified opportunity 2. How tightly connected is your
consumer to your brand?
4. Leverage market impact 3. What is your current
Strategic competitive position?
Thinker 5. Performance result that pays back 4. What is the current business
situation your brand faces?

Show how to lay out and write the

5
ideal strategic objective statements Our strategic thinking tools help assess your brand’s
4 core strength, the relationship with consumers, the
a Strategic programs
competitive stance you take, and the business situation.
b Focused Opportunity
Competitive
c Market Impact Strategy

d Performance Result Product led brands Use the

focus onBrand
beingLove Curve to
better
focus your strategy choices
Core Strength Brand Love Curve
• Continue to invest in Innovation to stay ahead of
Strategic Objective Example: Product High Story
Unknown
competitors, being the leader in technology, claims, and
Medium
Indifferent
new formats. Establish your reputation as the superior
a. Create an elevated VIP consumer experience brand in the category, defending against any challengers
Low
b. That rewards our most loyal consumers’ to your position.
• Leverage product-focused mass communication, Like It
c. that turns their regular usage into a ritual directly calling
Loveattention
It to the superiority and differences
d. and tightens their bond with our brand in your product versus the competitors. Use product
Price Experience
reviews and key influencers to support your brand. Build
Beloved
the “how you do it” into your brand story, to re-enforce
point of difference.
• Use rational selling to move consumers along the
 2 How to define a winning brand positioning

We start off by showing you how to define and focus

on an ideal consumer target profile, framed with need
states, consumer insights and the consumer enemies
Winning Space

We take a consumer centric approach to turn brand

features into functional and emotional benefits. Use
What What your
consumers brand our innovation benefit cheat sheets to make decisions.
want does best

You will learn how to find a winning brand positioning

space that is own-able and motivating to consumers.
What your
competitor
does best
You will develop a brand idea that can focus every
everyone who works on your brand. You will learn to
write brand concepts, brand stories, and a credo.
 2 How to define a winning brand positioning
Define a focused consumer Bring all the work together
Summarize your winningto create a
positioning
1 target profile with insights, 2 Benefits Ladder 3 statement in a space that is unique,
enemies and buying patterns. winning brand positioning
ownable statement
motivating to consumers
Use our • Healthy proactive preventers who
Target Name Emotional benefits To
Benefits 1
(Target)
want to do more for their health,

GRAY’S
working moms, 35-40 years old.
Description Ladder to
move from Cookies 2 Gray’s is • The healthy cookie option
Needs Functional benefits (Category)
features to
Enemy rational and 3 That is the • Guilt-free cookie to help you stay
(Benefit) in control of your health
Insights emotional Product features
• In blind taste tests, Gray’s matched
They think now?
benefits That’s the leaders on taste, but has only
4
because 100 calories and 3g of net carbs.
Buying process Consumer Target More Cookie. Less guilt. (Support Points) • In a 12-week study, consumers using
Gray’s once a night as a dessert
Desired response were able to lose 5-10 lbs.

Using the work around Brand Positioning and the Brand

Get you ready
Idea to to win in the
generate market Brand
winning with a brand concept and brand
Concept
5 story that combines the brand positioning statement and brand idea Find a brand idea that will be viewed
The playbook for how to create a
4 as interesting, simple, unique,
brand your consumers will love

Brand Idea inspiring, motivating, ownable.

Enemy or
Guilt free pleasure with Gray’s Cookies Insight
Products Consumer
• Do you feel guilty when you stick your hand in the
cookie jar? Wouldn’t it be great if you could just sneak a & Services Reputation
cookie without worry that you have gone off your diet?
• Gray’s Cookies are the best tasting yet guilt free
pleasure so you can stay in control of your health.
Main
message
Brand
• That’s because Gray’s is low in fat and calories, yet still
tastes great. In blind taste tests, Gray’s cookies
matched the market leaders on taste, but has only 100
Idea
calories, with 2g of fat and 3g of sugar. In a 12 week Cultural Influencer
study, consumers using Gray’s once a night as a
dessert lost 10 pounds.
inspiration Reputation
Support
Support
Try Gray’s Cookies and find GRAY’S points Brand Role
your way to stay healthy Cookies
visual

Motivating
call-to-action

The playbook for how to create a

3 How to build a brand plan everyone can follow

You will learn best-in-class methods for coming up with

all elements of a smart brand plan including the vision,
purpose, goals, issues, strategies, and tactics.

We will show youh how to turn strategic thinking into

smart strategic objective statements for the brand plan

You will walk away with brand plan templates that will
help you build a brand plan presentation you can use
for your senior management and across organization.

We show how to develop smart execution plans that

delivers against the brand strategies, including a brand
communications plan, innovation plan and sales plans
 3 How to build a brand plan everyone can follow
Deep-dive business review to Summarize the drivers and inhibitors Use strategic questions to
1 2 3
look at every area of the brand. currently facing brand. Map out the help you frame the key
• Market: Macro view, economic indicators,
risks and opportunities for future. issues facing your brand.
consumer behavior, technology, political 1 What is the core strength your
Drivers Inhibitors brand can win on?
• Consumer: Target, buying habits, trends,
consumer enemies, key insights Factors of strength or Weaknesses or 2 How tightly connected is your
inertia that accelerate friction slows brand consumer to your brand?
• Channels: growth channels, major your brand’s growth. down, leak to fix
customers, available tools and programs 3 What is your current
• Competitors: Performance, positioning, Opportunities Threats competitive position?
innovation, pricing, distribution, perceptions. Changing consumer Competitor launch, 4 What is the current business
• Brand: Funnel, reputation, tracking results, needs, technologies, trade barriers, situation your brand faces?
pricing, distribution, financial analysis. channels, legal, customer preference.

5 Brand
Lay out elements of a
brand plan on one
page and in a formal
presentation.
4
Annual Plan Plan
Marketing Use “where are we” questions to uncover
Brand Vision: Be first ‘healthy cookie’ to generate craving, popularity and sales of a mainstream cookie. $100 Million by 2024.
Analyze
Analysis Issues Strategy
and Strategies Execution
Execution Plans
answers that frame the overall strategic plan.
P&L forecast
• Sales $30,385
Key Issues
1.What’s the priority choice for growth: find
Advertising
• Use awareness to drive trial of the new
Questions to ask Planning Elements
• Gross Margin $17,148 new users or drive usage frequency among Grays. Target “Proactive Preventers”.
• GM %
• Marketing Budget
56%
$8,850
loyalists?
2.Where should the investment/resources
Suburban working women, 35-40.Main
Message of “great tasting cookie without the
1. Where could we be? Vision/Purpose/Goals
• Contribution Margin $6,949 focus and deployment be to drive our guilt, so you can stay in control of your
• CM%
Drivers
23% awareness and share needs for Gray’s?
3.How will we defend Gray’s against the
health”. Media includes 15 second TV,
specialty health magazines, event signage,
2. Where are we? Analysis
• Taste drives a high conversion of Trial to proposed Q1 2014 ‘healthy cookie’ digital and social media

• Vision
Purchase
• Strong Listings in Food Channels
launches from Pepperidge Farms and
Nabisco?
Sampling
• Drive trial with In-store sampling at grocery, 3. Why are we here? Key Issues
• Exceptional brand health scores among Strategies Costco, health food stores and event
Early Adopters. Highly Beloved Brand 1.Continue to attract new users to Gray’s sampling at fitness, yoga, women’s
• Purpose among niche.
Inhibitors
2.Focus investment on driving awareness
and trial with new consumers and building
networking, new moms.
Distribution
4. How can we get there? Strategies
• Low familiar yet to turn our sales into loyalty a presence at retail. • Support Q4 retail blitz with message
• Values • Awareness held back due to weak
Advertising
3.Build defence plan against new entrants to
defends with consumers and at store level.
focused on holding shelf space during the
competitive launches. Q2 specialty blitz to
5. What do we need to do? Execution & Measures
• Low distribution at specialty stores. Poor Goals grow distribution at key specialty stores.
• Goals coverage.
• Low Purchase Frequency among most
• Increase penetration from 10% to 12%,
specifically up from 15% to 20% with the
Innovation
• Launch two new flavours in Q4/15 & Q4/16.
loyal. core target. Monitor usage frequency Explore diet claims, motivating and own-

• Brand Idea Risks

• Launch of Mainstream cookie brands
(Pepperidge Farms and Nabisco).
among the most loyal to ensure it stays
steady.
• Increase awareness from 33% to 42%,
able.
Competitive Defence Plan
• Pre Launch sales blitz to shore up all

• Key Issues • De-listing 2 weakest skus weakened our in-

store presence
• Legal challenge to taste claims
specifically up from 45% to 50% within the
core target. Drive trial from 15% to 20%.
Close distribution from 62% to 72%.
distribution gaps. At launch, heavy
merchandising, locking up key ad dates,
BOGO. TV, print, coupons, in-store

• Strategies Opportunities
• R&D has 5 new flavors in development.
• Sales Broker gains at Specialty Stores
• Hold dollar share during competitive
launches. Grow 11% post launch gaining up
to 1.2% share. Target zero losses at shelf.
sampling.
• Use sales story that any new “healthy”
cookies should displace under-performing

• Tactics • Use social media to convert loyal following. and declining unhealthy cookies.
4 How to inspire creative marketing execution

You will learn to write strategic, focused and thorough

creative briefs that will create great work from experts. We
show the best and worst of every line of the creative brief.

We will teach you the project management of the process

so you will be able to lead all marketing execution projects
on brand communication, innovation, selling or experience

You will be able to inspire greatness from teams of experts

at execution agencies or throughout your organization

We will show how to engage your instincts to judge

marketing execution and make smart marketing execution
decisions that will tighten the bond with consumers
 4 How to inspire creative marketing execution
Use brand idea to consistently Build Marketing execution plans Creative brief focuses experts on
1 deliver across all execution 2 (advertising, innovation, retail) 3 strategic objective, insights, desired
across all touchpoints. as part of the brand plan process response, main benefit, support.
Consumer
Brand Brand
Idea

Brand Consumer
Promise Experience
Brand Purchase
Story Innovation Moment
Packaging Ideas Culture and
Logo/Slogan Operations

Advertising Sales
and Media Product and Retail
Development

Marketing Execution decision matrix

Execution 4
5
At creative meetings, inspire
Find execution with the experts to deliver great
branded breakthrough work and use your gut
and motivates consumers instincts to make decisions
to act. Our ABC’s
decision-making tool
focuses on achieving
attention, brand link,
communication and
stickiness.
5 How to use analytics to uncover brand issues

We help you understand all sources of brand data,

including market share, brand funnel, consumption,
tracking results, and financials

We challenge you on the principles of analytics so

you dig deep into data, draws comparisons and
builds a story toward the business conclusion

You will be able to lead a best-in-class deep-dive

business review that looks at the marketplace,
consumers, channel, competitors and the brand.

We provide templates for the deep-dive business

review, and monthly performance reports that will
help trigger new key issues and strategic thinking.
 A
your market share in comparison to how well you are
co-op ads and display ratings to get your fair share.

B The FSI is your fair share index. (share of activity div

your market share)

5 How to use analytics to uncover brand issues C See if you under or over-developed against a certain a
Draw conclusions. Compare how you're doing in each
and versus other periods.

Pricing Differences by Chan

Customer scorecards
Customer Scorecards Food Drug Mass
Customer A Scores
Avg Price $6.55 $6.47 $6.62
Overall Sales Dollars 39
% change vya -6.4% -2% +3.1%
Share of Category 11%

Macro view of the market Define consumer target, Avg Price

% dollar
% change
Your
on Deal
change
vya
Brand Share
5.99
+19.1%
+8.3%
33%
6.59
-12.3%
5.29
+1.7%
%
%change +3.3 points
1 looking at major economic, 2 looking at needs, buying habits, 3 on deal
Share Index
+/- vya
32%
+7 pts
105
22%
+1 pt
38%
+10 pts
Your brand’s avg Price $6.33

consumer, technology, trends. growth trends and key insights. % change +3.3%

Look
The at channel
Brand Love Curve
First, look at the average price and change versus
A Price Index
for each channel. Match up the data to what the sale
Share of Co-Op Ads
125
33%

TheBrand
Brand Funnel
colleagues are saying about the different prices for ea
Growth Tracking Funnel performance, % change
Depending on channel/brand, you should be looki
B Co Op Index
+18%
143

Unknown customer deal pricing, % on deal and coop ad points. Comp

Share of Merch
the channels and compare to prior years.
% change
25%
-2%
Awareness Indifferent March Index 111

strategies, Distribution
Distributiongap
Distribution Gaps analysis
gap analysis

Familiar distribution gaps, Tops Kroger CVS Club

Gray’s
A&P Tops
S Kroger CVS Club A&P Safewa

merchandising Like It Gray’s8 ct Choc Chip

8 ct Choc Chip
Consider Gray’s
Gray’s
16 ct Choc

performance. 16 ct Choc
Chip
Chip

Gray’s
Purchase 8 ct Mint Chip

Love It Gray’s
8 ct Mint Chip
Gray’s
16 ct Mint Chip

Repeat Gray’s Gray’s

Summarize the analysis into drivers and Loyal
8 ct Lemon
Beloved
16 ct Mint Chip

Brand Program tracking shows how well you are

6 inhibitors currently facing brand as well as Analysis
doing behind key marketing activities
Gray’s
8 ct Lemon

threats and opportunities for the future. 4

We ma

Drivers Inhibitors Ad Tracking

Execution Tracking Dissect the closest
Tracking Results Gray’s Norm •
can compare how well the competitors by looking at
Program tracking or testing results
Factors of strength or Weaknesses or Aided Recall 38 62
program
has done against key measures.
inertia that accelerate friction slows brand Unaided Recall 30 46 • performance, positioning,
You will also be able to get scores
your brand’s growth. down, leak to fix that match up to the brand funnel
Brand Recognition 10 23 such as Awareness (aided, innovation, pricing,
unaided), purchase scores (share
Brand Link .33 .50
Opportunities Threats of last 5 purchases) and distribution
purchase and reputation.
Main Message 64 60 intention.

Changing consumer Competitor launch, Uniqueness 38 22 Competitive

Market market
Share share performance
Performance
needs, technologies, trade barriers, Purchase Intent 10 9 60

channels, and legal, customer preference. 45

To understand brand
5 performance use brand 30

funnel, tracking results, 15

pricing analysis, distribution 0

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

gaps and financial results. Gray's Dad's Sue's Devonshire

BRAND MANAGEMENT
Brand management training designed for the real world

✓ Strategic thinking for brand leaders

✓ Write a brand positioning statement
✓ Come up with a brand idea
✓ Build a brand plan everyone can follow
✓ Advertising and Innovation processes
✓ Write an inspiring creative brief
✓ Smarter decisions on marketing execution
✓ Analytical skills for brand leaders
✓ Conduct a deep-dive business review
✓ Learn finance 101 for marketers
✓ Create your own career game plans

Graham Robertson Learn everything you need to reach your

full potential in your marketing career.
Graham Robertson
Founder of Beloved Brands