I hope no one thinks this is referring to them. I am writing this for my students at Orange Academy and my Personal Branding Community. So, 'Brand Managers' kindly stay off as this may not be suitable for audiences in suits.
Ok. I'm holding my cup of coffee and I'm really thinking: 'should I pour this out?'. I guess you should blame my fingers for all that you read henceforth. These fingers are itching to type.
ASDF;LKJ SPACEBAR.
What really does a Brand Manager manage?
Imagine I have a new chocolate brand coming to town. Let's call it ASDF. As the owner of the brand, I will be seeking how to add Value to ASDF so that it can return on my investments. That's fine. Let's call that BRAND VALUE.
So, I need Market intelligence, Distribution networks, etc. So, I get a Marketing Manager to help me map out the way to the market. Long meetings. Calculations.
Fast forward to 12 years after. I'm no more interested in ASDF due to Sociopolitical issues. Now I need to sell ASDF to an acquirer. Let's say UNILEVER. How does UNILEVER calculate my Brand Value at the exchange? How much is ASDF going to be worth? Do we calculate the BRAND VALUE based on my Market Share or the potential of my brand sold and unsold?
Let's rewind back a bit. Imagine I have a new chocolate brand coming to town. Let's call it ASDF. As the owner of the brand, I will be seeking how to add Value to ASDF so that it can return on my investments. That's fine. Let's call that BRAND VALUE.
Then I realise that a brand is not made in the factory but in the mind. I realise I need to have a share of mind in my Market. I want ASDF to be recalled so easily or mentioned whenever anyone wants to talk about Chocolate. I need people to recommend ASDF to others. I need to have a huge followership for the brand. I want to be in their consideration set. This then is a function of the Mind.
So, I need a Brand Management Specialist. The Brand Manager comes in. She sits with me to unearth a Brand idea for ASDF; something that has a universal human truth in it. She spends time with a potential consumer and she comes up with human insights on why anyone would eat chocolate called ASDF. Lots of Mind work. She tweaks my logo a bit. She changes the colour. She tells me I must not be found in the Shopping Mall based on certain truths. In ten years, this lady has created what I call BRAND EQUITY for my brand. i.e the worth of my brand in the mind of the consumers.
Hmmm. Let me get some more coffee.
Fast forward to 12 years after. I'm no more interested in ASDF due to Sociopolitical issues. Now I need to sell ASDF to an acquirer. Let's say UNILEVER. How does UNILEVER calculate my Brand Value at the exchange? How much is ASDF going to be worth? Do we calculate the BRAND VALUE based on my Market Share or the potential of my brand sold and unsold? [ Share of Mind]
In 1997, Amazon's Jeff Bezos faced his darkest hour. His three year old e-commerce website faced online competition. Wall Street thought it was going down. Jeff called his staff one day and said to them ' I want you to wake up every morning terrified with your sheets drenched in sweat, but don't be afraid of our competitors, be afraid [ instead] of our customers, because those are the people with whom we have a relationship'.
According to Forbes, Amazon's shares have "defied gravity" in 2011, jumping 55 % and adding $6.5 billion to his net worth.
If ASDF needs some quick sales, I know where to go. The Marketing guys. They know how to do those Promos, those sales slashes and Black Fridays sales. They are here to deliver on the figures to run the brand in the short term. Marketing managers call consumers 'target market', Brand Managers called them 'real persons' Marketing people do more of PUSHES than PULLING. Shooting an expensive commercial does not necessarily build a brand equity if it's not coming from a holistic place. These and more are the questions real Brand Managers ask. And I swear [ pardon me, pastors] real Brand Managers are so scarce.Today's ad agencies are torn between these issues. Who briefs the agency? The Brand Manager or a Product/Sales Manager? If the brief is a response to the Market dynamics, be rest assured you are reading one more brief from a Sales Manager dressed disguised in the Robes of a Brand Manager.
Now I think I need another cup of coffee.
A real Brand Manager who specialises in creating brand experience is obsessed with the Brand consumer. She/he wants to know what moves them. They seek to be in their conversations, creating meaningful relationships for the brand. A real Brand Manager is not here to deliver on the short term figures. Leave that to the Sales team. Brand Managers are here to build real equity into the brand; something money cannot really buy.
What's this brand about? What should we be about in the conversations of our consumers? How do we sit along with their other lives? How's the sociological climate changing our ideals? How about technology? How about the economy? What about the political environment?
Coffee please, anyone.
For real, I need a cup of coffee on this too, Kenny. At the end of the day these companies often make marketing managers out of brand managers. They ain't just the same. Period.
ReplyDeleteMarketing is a Science. Branding is an Art. Meanwhile, the world believes in Science more than Art because it can be counted. However, I'm aware that Medicine as a Science was even created by an Artist, Da Vinci ,because he understood the human form. It's simply the difference between the age of Rationalism and Humanism. The role of Marketing in Brand Management is therefore to help validate what the Artist [ The Brand Specialist] has created. Many Account Planning theorists have posited that most numbers cooked up in Marketing Research cannot be relied upon in its entirety. You need an astute Brand Manager, who understands the human mind, to call the short.
ReplyDeletethanks Kenny, you spelt it out as easy as QWERTY it's nt that hard to see what needs to be done, to get Brand Equity....it looks so easy. But then why then do some brand manager still get it wrong?...could it be the 'risk factor' or maybe... *bite nails* This is the reason why I like reading ur blog in the office, there I cn get a cup of cofee... Bt in the bus rit nw and craving for one so bad
ReplyDeleteI was practically drifting into sleep at the office when I saw this notification on facebook. Jeez! This is so true, but in subtle ways, mostly negligible, we quickly drift into sales sales and sales. Responding to the market more than we respond to the human mind has become the order of the day. I have personally noticed that over time, it becomes obvious, that it's the human mind, and not money, that determines the market. Thanks a lot Kenny, I'd figure a way to incorporate this into my design solutions [www.uyibranddesign.blogspot.com] for my clients or brands in my portfolio.
ReplyDeleteUyi has a very good point! After all, it’s the human mind that thinks and creates strategic plans on how to market a product. It’s the human mind that develops effective techniques in order to build a name in the business realm. And hey, I thought about commenting here is like engaging into a discussion with you over a cup of coffee, Kenny. =)
ReplyDelete