The Finch Post

Failure to Compute

It is said that history is written by the victors of battle. Those who compete but lose, be it nation or brand, are often doomed to obscurity. The very fact that you are reading this blog on anything other than an Osborne laptop proves this point. Osborne Computers first introduced the world to the laptop in 1981, but failed to integrate their brand with their product. As a result, Osborne couldn’t compete with rivals such as IBM and Compaq, who launched their own versions of the laptop in 1984 and 1988 respectively.

Companies that stay in the forefront of consumers’ minds don’t merely survive, they thrive. You must build a strong foundation, base it on the principles you live and breathe, and construct and fortify each subsequent layer of your business like a besieged army defending its last stronghold. Doing so will not only earn you customers from the top down, but help you escape being just another footnote in the annals of business history.

Brand Castration

The iconic coke bottle with its highly visible, instantly recognizable contour shape epitomizes the power of packaging. Now imagine the same soft drink housed by a no-frills plain glass bottle sitting on the shelf, nestled next to its competitors, all without a single, distinguishing shape or label as far as the eye can see.

This barren branding landscape is not merely a business’ worst nightmare, but the reality facing one industry. After years of increasingly stringent regulations, the Australian government has recently introduced legislation that has Big Tobacco fuming. In an effort to discourage smoking, new cigarette carton packaging rules have extinguished tobacco companies’ ability to brand their products.

Packs now bare an identical look, with no brand adornments whatsoever. Product names are required to be in a uniform, small font unobtrusively placed on the bottom of the carton.

Legislators enacted these new laws with one clear objective in mind: to seriously hurt tobacco companies’ capacity to thrive in the market by removing the differentiators that package branding provides.

This Australian ambush on nicotine is the perfect reminder of how powerful branding (or in this case, brand castration) is to maintaining or losing market share. If it’s been a while since you’ve polished your brand persona, it’s time you revisit this integral investment. Ignore it and you will be ignored.

Reality Sucks

“Reality Sucks”, and sometimes, so do marketing campaigns. General Motors, while targeting college students, managed to insult a rather large group of people. Besides being an insult to an ever increasing cycling community, an image that equates owning a bike to being a loser doesn’t so much evoke a desire to drive a car as it does to watch a teen flick from the 80’s. GM removed the ad after a bombardment of complaints, but one has to wonder how this ad even came about. With its tagline of “Stop pedaling…start driving” they’ve not only insulted those on bikes, but have ignored the environmental pleas that have been promoting the exact opposite.  According to the blog community of bikeportland.org the general college public viewed the campaign as an attack on the environment, fitness and everyone that rides a bike. (Full article found here)

Ads should speak about your product, represent your brand, and of course identify with your target market.  GM has wisely listened to complaints and has taken on the difficult challenge of apologizing to the World Wide Web community.  We can all be reminded of the issues which arise when a company thinks of creativity as a stand-alone tactic. The most successful creative tactics are those which fully account for your brand and all that encompasses, and embraces the mind-set of the intended market. While the impact of an ad may be powerful, it may not always be positive. 

Netflix tests the power of brand

All the missteps of Netflix have been interesting to follow if you’re in to watching just how fast a brand can self-destruct. We surely take no joy in any brand’s challenges; but we watch these things closely to hone our ever sharpening expertise on brand dynamics through studying real life cases. A few things to take from Netflix’s current events, and from this article in particular:

1. Building brand fanatics is obviously a brand’s most meaningful triumph. But, it’s also a tremendous responsibility and fundamentally undermining that relationship comes with grave consequences.
2. The turn on a dime, pivot mentality that is so essential to the emergence of an early stage company can become a liability at a more mature stage of life. Once you have customers to answer to, you better make sure their perspectives are understood before decisions are made.
3. In this article, the author writes, “…the move might have been good for Netflix, but not ideal for Netflix’s customers.” We go on record as saying the paradox of that sentence can never prove true (at least long-term). In the end, what’s good for your brand by definition must be good for your customers.
4. It turns out that Saturday Night Live can, in fact, still be funny.

Hello Brand? It’s me, your consumer.

As consumer behavior shifts, major brands such as Coke must keep up not only with heavy competition but also the changing nature of their core market.  According to recent reports, sales of carbonated beverages have been decreasing for 6 years straight.

That’s one of the reasons why we’ve seen Coke and other category leaders move so aggressively into alternative beverage categories in recent years. 

Coke is now exploring another strategy to address this by offering a smaller sized bottle for 89-cents, attempting to appeal to today’s budget conscious marketplace.  Additionally, with the attention of health advocates turning to soda, the consumer may permit him/herself an indulgence if the portion is controlled. 

Read the full article found here.

Will this strategy succeed?  Time will tell.  Ultimately, some degree of re-packaging can help energize a brand and reawaken a consumer base.  With issues like cost, health, environmental sustainability, etc. all weighing on the beverage industry, the trick is to unlock the triggers that really drive consumer behavior.  When it comes to new products or strategies, the answer is usually that those companies with the best consumer insights win.

Post-PC Era?

We’ve recently noticed a few articles such as this one that suggest we are now living in a “post-PC” world.  IBM’s Mark Dean believes that services have taken over, rather than another computing device.  Frank Shaw, communications chief for Microsoft thinks otherwise, calling this the “PC plus era,” meaning that people will supplement their PCs with other computing devices such as tablets.  HPs spinoff of the former Compaq, disastrously acquired in 2002 based on a big bet on the PC, certainly suggests the end of an era.  

While the argument rages, dominant players in the technology space are both driving and reacting to customers’ sense of what they need to function – some win by leading, others by learning.  Apple has been a leader – changing the discussion with must-have technologies consumers would never have even contemplated.  Others have focused on learning – including Microsoft, whose fast follower launches in mobility and elsewhere haven’t quite taken off, but whose core “PC plus” business (operating system enhancements, cloud computing, etc.) have created value.

The bottom line is that there is no consistent template to win – ‘leaders’ have seen customers fail to follow, ‘learners’ have struggled to adapt to changing times.  The winners, though, have several things in common – a focus on brand strength and strong customer relationships.  This is the lesson for all companies, whether they seek to lead the market or win by learning from it.

An Apple A Day?

Widely reported this week was the unilateral decision (not without pressure) by McDonald’s to include apple slices and reduce the portion size of French fries in each Happy Meal.  While only 11% of Happy Meals were purchased with apple slices when the selection was a consumer option, this move will likely get McDonald’s out of the glare of health regulators, at least temporarily.

While a solid PR and defensive maneuver, what will the business and brand impact be?  The company clearly hopes that parents, the primary purchaser of Happy Meals, will make McDonald’s more than an occasional treat.  McDonald’s has had a positive growth trajectory compared to its peers, with US same store revenue up over 4% in 2010 – as the company added healthy menu options and positioned its restaurants as a more balanced, welcoming place to eat.

Apple slices will likely not be an inflection point, but the long-term question is whether or not consumers – at all levels of health consciousness – will see McDonald’s as a place for them to eat.  While others have ‘doubled down’ on an unhealthy but cheap and delicious positioning, McDonald’s clearly aspires to something more.  But will consumers and investors be "lovin’ it?"

Jack Who?

 
   

 

This artical from CBS Business Network tells the sad story of a mismanaged brand. It is chock full of everything we care about and believe in at Finch Brands. It perfectly highlights the relationship between brand management and financial performance, the difference between "creative" advertising and effective advertising (which may very well be creative), and the broad spectrum of what brand delivery includes. Viewing the world through your consumers' eyes is challenging, yes, but also critical; as Jack now knows all too well.

True Grit

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Becoming an essential part of your customers’ lives is the ultimate expression of brand relevance and can only be earned by a complete and integrated approach to brand building.  Something we found very interesting is Ethan Wayne’s plan to turn his father, John Wayne, into a commercial brand.  Certainly, John Wayne has long since reached iconic status among a strong fan base; but how does one transfer that love of person into love of brand. Ethan’s plans are briefly described in this Ad Week Article: Rebranding Duke

Extending a brand, especially driven by the legend of an all American Icon, may seem fairly straightforward; but this may be particularly challenging as many people already have an emotional connection with John Wayne that his son should be careful not to upset.  Those who are fans of the Duke will presumably be expecting that every product sold under the John Wayne name will be a symbol for courage, honor, fortitude, braveness... basically, True Grit. Will Ethan capture the character's authenticity as he moves towards selling penknives and coffee mugs?

Success or failure, this case will illustrate the difference between a strong, well known label and a strong, well loved brand. Will the John Wayne brand become a collection of random items or will it stand for something more substantial and meaningful? Creating buzz and short-term sales is one thing - and the celebrity of his father surely gives him every opportunity to achieve at least that. But crafting a brand that will penetrate the hearts of consumers and endure in their minds is reserved for only those who view every aspect of how they execute through the lens of a crystal clear vision. Good luck, Ethan.

Daring Strategies

As the presidential campaign begins anew (did it ever end?), Republican hopefuls are actively jockeying for position.  For students of branding – regardless of political affiliation – this is a fascinating time.  Those vying to earn the right to face President Obama, one of strongest political brands of this generation, are casting about for a narrative that will resonate with voters. Like products and services, they too need to advance a compelling sense of self as well as position themselves against the competition; both their primary opponents and the President.

The field is rife with interesting options, but the subject of this post is the approach and launch of the Tim Pawlenty campaign.  The former Governor of Minnesota’s reputation seems to be that he is personable if bland, and solidly in the conservative mainstream without being too polarizing.  As his campaign launched this past week, however, Pawlenty 2.0 is wrapping his message around the concept of ‘speaking truth’ about the state of our nation as he sees it.  He has backed this message up by a campaign swing through Iowa, in which he railed against locally popular ethanol subsidies, and through Florida where he told the aging population of the Sunshine State about the tough choices facing Social Security and Medicare.

Only in politics would telling the truth be seen as a daring strategy. There are benefits, though, if Pawlenty can establish himself as the adult in the room, a serious thinker and truth-teller regardless of the cost.  This type of ‘Straight Talk’ propelled John McCain into national prominence and may just be a successful way to position Pawlenty to stand out from the crowded field of GOP candidates.