The Customer and the Brand

Brand recognition is central to a products success. People wear brands, eat brands, wash their clothes and dishes with brands, listen to brands – they communicate in brands; ‘The stairs need hoovering.’ The brand Hoover became synonymous with vacuuming in Britain; so much so that it has become a verb, adjective and noun for vacuuming.

By nature, people gravitate towards what is familiar as is provides a sense of security, comfort, and trust. This is why it is so important for a product to have an instantly recognizable brand – everyone knows what I’m asking for if I ask for a Kleenex. It is common for a consumer to spend more money on a product if it’s from a brand that they recognize, and the same cheaper product, will be left on the shelf.

Brand Image

A successful starting point when establishing a brand is to create an easily recognizable image. Factors to consider are the originality of the design as it is important that it sets your brand apart from market competitors, and that it will not be mistaken for a different brand (and perhaps even a different product!) Consistency is also a crucial element in developing brand image – no matter what venture of advertising is facilitating your marketing, your brand should have a uniform. Everything from business cards through to bill boards should feel cohesive to a customer.

More than a Logo

A company’s image is more than visual perception. For example, when a customer calls to speak to customer services, the employee on the other end of the phone is the brand. When a consumer uses the product, their experiencing the brand.

One of the most successful brands to note is Coca Cola aka “Coke”. Their original product: a fizzy, brown, sugary drink that probably doesn’t taste that good, yet we all seem to drink anyway, is a household name on a global scale. According to Business Insider, 94% of the world recognize its brand. It has even entrenched itself into Christianity when during a 1930’s festive campaign, Coca Cola dressed Santa in red and now, almost 100 years later, Santa is still dressed in red.

Why is Coca Cola so Successful?

Coca Cola’s brand is much more than simply a drink. When you buy Coke, you buy into a lifestyle of joy and happiness.

During WWII American troops were supplied with Coca Cola, and Coca Cola’s brand thus became symbol of patriotism amongst Americans.   In 1989 when the Berlin Wall fall, Coca Cola employees handed out free cans of Coca Cola which then led the brand to be a symbol of freedom.

With regards to Coca Cola’s packaging, merely a silhouette of the bottle alone, can be instantly recognizable as Coca Cola.

Disruptive Marketing

Brands are becoming increasingly innovative with their marketing strategies.  Disruptive Marketing is when a brand experiments with new approaches to marketing that haven’t yet been done. This type of marketing is requires a lot of trial and error, however, if you get it right, you may be onto the next big thing.

Red bull struck gold with a disruptive marketing campaign called ‘Red Bull Stratos’ with a record breaking stunt. The brand, promoting a high-energy, adrenaline-junkie lifestyle, took a pro skydiver to the highest altitude ever jumped from, and the PR video has since garnered over 100 million views on YouTube.

Warby Parkers eyewear brand experienced increased company growth following their disruptive marketing campaign, when they drove around 9 different US cities in a converted school bus that’s interior was fitted out to look like a library.

Vectone Mobile started in the 90s. Back then, calling overseas was very expensive, so they decided to do something about it.

Disruptive marketing can definitely be a way to get your brands name out there and talked about!