Re: Branding and marketing

From: Larry Raubach <larryraubach_at_hotmail.com>
Date: Thu 04 Jan 2001 10:56:50 -0500

I love a good debate.

PRESTON BEALLE <preston_at_babygear.com> WROTE:
> My argument against branding does not apply to Coke
> and Nike, it applies to new web businesses which have
> to quickly get profitable.

I can understand his argument in light of all the
recent dotcom disasters and wasteful Super Bowl spots,
but I disagree. What makes a new Web business so
different from any other in that only they have "to
quickly get profitable?" Is it perfectly okay then for
others to flounder for a while before the red ink
hopefully dries up?

PRESTON BEALLE WROTE:
> (Branding is) appropriate for new car brands which
> have to stand for something for decades to come.

As opposed to the countless other categories managed by
marketing "wizards" who plan on yearly repositionings?
Ideally all brands will stand for something for
decades to come. Sometimes market conditions do occur,
however, which make repositionings necessary.

PRESTON BEALLE WROTE:
> the branding comes along with it when the product
> arrives on time at a good price.

Yes, in part absolutely, but effective branding starts
long before the product arrives.

PRESTON BEALLE WROTE:
> If you hit critical mass and are breaking even after
> a period of months, then you can afford to start
> burnishing the brand name with some pretty magazine ads
> that make people feel good about who and what you are

The key word here is "if." Frankly, in my humble
opinion, branding on the web is MORE important than
branding offline. Branding is all about building a
bond that ultimately makes a purchase decision easier,
because, to a certain degree as our friend Rob Frankel
has said, "it's about being the only choice." Offline
brands have more credibility. People can see them,
feel them, try them out, easily return them etc.
Offline brands have a distinct advantage online
because they already have a strong position (we hope)
and that credibility and trust. New brands or would be
brands online have a lot to prove. Despite the
ubiquitousness of the Web now, and the rapid rise in
online purchases, only the real innovators would likely
make a purchase from an unheard of, untried Web
company that tried to make a sale solely on a
direct-over-the-web marketing piece.

It's rare that people have a specific want or need for
a particular product at the very moment they view an
ad or message. Branding is about owning a position in
that prospect's mind such that when that want or need
finally arrives, they will already know who they trust
and who they want to buy from.

To paraphrase Michael Douglas in Wall Street: Branding
is good.

Cheers,

Larry Raubach
Strategic Planner
Spire Wired, Inc.
Ottawa, Canada





Received on Thu Jan 04 2001 - 09:56:50 CST