Choose.More.Often.
I‘m always trying to make your brand as practical as possible.
It’s not a new thing – in fact, I’ve been writing and speaking about this for many years now, whether giving this speech at the ‘town hall’ event of an ASX 100 company…
…or joining TrinityP3’s ‘Managing Marketing’ podcast to share what we can learn from a decade of data on building brands.
Most recently, I’ve distilled it down to three words, something so practical – and simple – that it can work for marketers and non-marketers alike.
Three simple words.
Choose. More. Often.
Three practical steps.
Step 1. Make your brand distinctive.
That way you can stand out in the crowd so that customers choose to buy from you.
Step 2. Make your brand consistent.
Do that and you build a reputation that gives customers the confidence to keep choosing to buy more from you.
Step 3. Make your brand meaningful in the moments that matter.
With that focus through the customer experience, you can build loyalty and encourage customers to buy more often.
Follow these steps, build a strong brand, and that’s exactly what your customers will do.
BTW the same logic applies to employees too when it comes to choosing to work for you in a role that keeps them engaged, learning and growing. (For more on this too, here’s a recent newsletter I wrote on how to build a brand worth working for.)
Building brands and making change
It was just last night that I joined the Sydney Marketing Community to host a panel discussion on the topic of brand transformation.
As I’ve said a thousand times before now and as I said once again to introduce this panel discussion too…
There are two things we do at FutureBrand, either we transform existing brands or we create new ones.
And there’s one reason why we do it, something changed.
So it was that we explored the opportunities and challenges that come with brand change with the help of three wise marketers, namely ASX’s Theresa Lintvelt, hipages Group’s Carolin Sternberg-Heyze, and fractional CMO Andee Branwhite.
As the title of the event makes clear, the stakes are high when it comes to making a brand change, all the more so if you want that brand change to have enduring impact.
Think about your own brand and business for a moment, ask yourself these questions…
When was the last time your business changed?
Did your brand change with it?
Did your brand lead the way, or did it get left behind?
How did you know what to change and when to change it?
And, who in the organisation – marketers and non-marketers alike – helped you make the change?
…and you may find yourself reflecting on some of the ways in which your own brand could better align with your business and become all the more impactful.
Of course, if you’re stumped on how to answer some of those questions, feel free to hit ‘Reply’ as I’m always happy to chat, however formal or informal a conversation it might be (or you can even join the Sydney Marketing Community yourself and meet more like-minded people).
A window to the world
One of the benefits of working globally – whether working with our clients wherever their projects may lead, or working with our FutureBrand colleagues in their own cities and cultures – is that we’re able to open a window to the world.
One of those colleagues is Sam Hollis who is Head of Strategy at FutureBrand in London, and he recently joined the latest episode of The Drum Podcast for a discussion on what it means to be a brand strategist today – at a time when brand and business, culture and technology are all shifting at once.
While that might sound a little daunting for some, Sam had this reassurance to share – something that I know that would resonate with our own Head of Strategy here in Australia:
“It’s probably one of the most exciting times to be in the industry. The value isn’t just in making things anymore, it’s in helping people understand what to do with all this change, and how to move forward with clarity.”
To my mind, the discussion gets going at the 12:40 mark when Sam starts to talk about the role of brand in future-proofing your business; the difference between brand companies and advertising agencies; and, the evolution of brand from identity systems to behavioural systems…
Sam also reflects on the risk of the flattening of brand strategy thinking in a world of LLMs; the role of curiosity and character in a brand strategist; and, the wonderfully-worded concept of 'idea density’, brought to life with the help of none other than Bob Dylan…
Suffice to say, it’s worth a listen, thanks Sam.
Getting ready for the big game
Strong brands are created with purpose but ultimately defined by the experience.
That’s why experiencing any brand first-hand is pivotal to our ways of working.
In fact, here at FutureBrand in Australia, it’s one of our ‘habits’ to Try, Buy or Use our clients’ brands, products and services.
This month was no different as we took advantage of the opportunity to enjoy the best seat in the house – or should I say, the best shoes? Yes, your customers’ shoes… try them on, you never know where they’ll take you!
That’s it for this month of news, views and insights.
For me, the best thing about this email newsletter format is that you can simply reply if you have questions or comments. Please feel free to do so, I’m always happy to follow-up with more detail on any of the stories I share, especially if that can help you build your own brand and business. Hit ‘Reply’, speak soon.
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