WHY BRANDING

IS IMPORTANT

And how to
take it to the
next level

WHY YOU SHOULD

HATE

BRANDING

WHY WE SHOULD

LOVE
BRANDING
(1 reason)
Branding forces management
to articulate, plan and manage
what they want the brand to
achieve for the organization
over the next 3-5 years, relative
to customer growth, revenue
and profit contributions.

Brand

Value &
relationship

Consumers

Profits
Innovation
& execution

Information
& input

Company

WHY WE SHOULD

LOVE
BRANDING
(the other, more
important, reason)

Heuristics

1 .0
b
e
W
2.0
PA
Sv
s. B

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dv

s.

nd
itabili
ty

es s or
RAM vs. proc

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speed

vs . f

utsb
al

Maybank vs. CIMB

afari

uc
b
r
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s.
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s

ffe
Co

an
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Firefox vs. S

AirA
sia
vs.
MAS

ne

Ho

Zu

vs.

Sales
vs. pr
of

tic

eb
W
.
vs

ta
yo
To

Bangsar vs. Damansara Heights

lic
a
l
t
i
a
.
ld vs
io n
o
t
i
B
ad
r
t
vs.
l
it a
g
i
D

Sm
a
hon ll wedd
eym
in
oon g vs.
exo

Buyers make most decisions by relying on

their two-second first impressions based on
stored memories, images and feelings.
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
By Malcolm Gladwell

R
U
L
E
S

Because brand-influenced heuristics impact

buyer decision-making, companies with strong
brands often have better financial performance. The heuristics used by potential buyers
lead to greater access, shorter sales cycles,
lower price sensitivity, better openness, and
more forgiveness for mistakes for well-branded
companies.
Business Market Management: Understanding,
Creating, and Delivering Value
By James Anderson and James Narus

EMOTION
Some
Japanese
women
put off
having a
baby until
they can
buy a
Louis
Vuitton
handbag

Baby

B=T+V+E

SALE!

SALE!
1. Price is the only way to differentiate
from competition
2. During last phase of product cycle
3. New product is being introduced

QuickTime and a
mpeg4 decompressor
are needed to see this picture.

Strategic branding

1880s

1900s

1960s

Features

Benefits

Experience

1980s

2000s

2006 ->

Identification

Segments

Context based

S-E-G-M-E-N-T-A-T-I-O-N
Behavioural

PA
SS
Demographics,
etc.

IO
N

Collaborative filtering

Personal

Attitudinal
Social media

Bra

ndi

ng
Pro
mo
tion

n
o
i
tat

n
e
m
g
Se
n
o
i
s
s
Pa

TRIBAL BRANDING
Sense

Define

Deliver

Sustain

Tribal types
Passion that
unites
Tribal values
Leaders/
influencers
Requirements for
value
And more

Purchase &
other triggers
How do you
meet/enable
passion
Differentiation
How do you
communicate
How do you
engage
Messages
And more

Operational
excellence
(service,
quality,
support, etc.)
Consistent &
committed
engagement
Economic,
experiential &
emotional
value
Measurement

Focus on
retention
Encourage
& incorporate
input
Innovate
Develop
new sources
of value
Support
customers &
the tribe
Continuous
improvement

HOW WE CAN ENABLE

Tagging, Web 2.0, User Generated Content, Surveys,
Interactivity, Games, Stakeholder Panels, Review,
Personalization, Word-of-Mouth, Events,
Demonstrations, Purchase, Trial, Sampling, Subscription,
Download, Bookmark, Visit, Brand Ambassador,
Measurement, Customer Co-creation, Conversation,
Links, Click Streams, RSS feeds, Adoption, Advertising,
Pass-alongs, Videos, Podcasts/Vidcasts, Facebook
Groups, Forums, User Conferences, Seminars/Webinars,
Ranking, Referrals, Retention, Evangelism, PR, Blogs,
Twitter, Dialog, Social Bookmarking, Test Drive, Coupon
Redemption, Downloads, Investment and more!

ENGAGEMENT WITH YOUR BRAND

SMART

BRAND QUESTIONS

1. How do you create a customer experience that drives

emotion and ensures loyalty?
2. What is the best way to differentiate your experiences
from your competitors, and to make this differentiation
visible to your customers and prospects?
3. How do you ensure that front-liners consistently deliver a
quality customer experience? (staying on-brand)

One of US largest banks;

operations in 25 countries;
20,000 employees
PROBLEM:
Performance worst among competing
banks
Employee morale low; talent leaving
New low in stock price
1/3 of new customers leave in 1st year
New CEO: Vision = focus on customer experience
to be most admired financial institution in the
markets we serve

SOLUTION: BETTER CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

5 strategic themes
Enhance
shareholder value
Be the Trusted
Advisor
Execute 1Key

Initiatives
Train employees to
follow up promises
Question skills to
understand customer
needs

Integrated
Be Proud to Be
solution/cross-selling
at Key
skills
Live the Key
Single team
Values
manages 1 customer
relationship
Employee
recognition for
customer focus

Payoffs
Cross-selling
increased from 2.4%
to 5.5%
Deposits up 14%
Earnings up 36%
Retention rose 5%
Employee
engagement went
from 3.78 to 4.26

Thank you

Nick Wreden
Nickwreden@gmail.com