The best brands are those managed by business leaders who understand their brands are not one dimensional. They know it is more than just delivering a high quality product or service experience to consumers.Brands are multifaceted and multidimensional, just like the companies that own them.
There are four key areas that business leaders need to examine regularly, to build their strategic roadmap for growth and success;
To whom you market.
You can only create cool products or solutions when you know who the likely buyer will be that will be using the product. It is critical to understand as much as you can about the potential buyer.
Why they buy.
Grabbing the largest share of those consumers’ wallets requires you really understand the usage of products in your space, and put rigor against their illuminating needs, motivations, attitudes, and preferences.
What you market.
Your positioning needs to drive purchase behavior and be ownable and differentiating (yes, you can actually measure these things). How you position your products/services will determine whether your brand will make it into, and dominate, consumers’ spending patterns.
How you compete.
Your brand equity or the health of your brand is a culmination of consumers’ familiarity with your brand and the sum total of their brand experience. These attitudes and perceptions determine whether you will have loyal advocates for your brand who will be the first to try any new product extensions, or become vocal detractors sharing their views with their online social network.
When you actively manage these four key drivers of your brand’s success, you will gain greater confidence to make the hard strategic decisions that help you avoid expensive mis-steps.
Editor’s Note: We’re pleased to introduce Mike Murphy as a contributing author on the Infuence by Design blog, MIke is Founder and Chief Energizing Officer at Los Angeles based Brand IQ, a leading consumer insight and brand strategy consultancy. We look forward to your comments. Email Mike: mmurphy@brandiq.biz
