Suzanne Kushner

1
Successful Brand Management Moving from a
Product-Centric to a Customer-Centric Business
Model

• Suzanne Kushner
• Director of Marketing Communications
• Mainsoft Corp.
• Suzannekushner_at_hotmail.com

2
Top 3 Things to Remember When Branding

• Think of Branding as a way of doing business, not
  just a Marketing function
• Look for ways to improve your Total Customer
  Experience more often
• Service good or bad may have the greatest
  impact on your product or companys brand image

3
Why is branding so important to high-tech
companies?

• Product commoditization
• Consumers have more choices than ever
• Harder to offer strong value propositions,
  differentiation in technology products
• Strong brands can command premium prices
• (Historically) Strong brands have driven strong
  stock prices

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The face of a commodity!
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Whats a brand worth?

• 10 engineers asked to read a brochure and
• select a product
• NO BRAND LISTED IN BROCHURE
• Brand A 18.6
• Brand B 29.8
• Brand C 26.2
• Brand D 16.7
• Brand E 1.5
• Brand F 2.9

Source Driving Brand Value Using Integrated
Marketing to Manage Profitable Shareholder
Relationships by Tom Duncan
6
Whats a brand worth?

• 10 engineers asked to read a brochure and
• select a product
• BRANDS IDENTIFIED IN THE BROCHURE
• HP 18.6 63.2
• Brand B 29.8 12.5
• Brand C 26.2 7
• Brand D 16.7 5.6
• Brand E 1.5 4.3
• Brand F 2.9 2.9

Source Driving Brand Value Using Integrated
Marketing to Manage Profitable Shareholder
Relationships by Tom Duncan
7
Do most High-Tech companies have a branding
strategy that really works?
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Most arent sure!

• Most high-tech companies are run by people who
  dont know what good brand management involves
• Most branding is left to Marketing to create
  logos and run ad campaigns

XXX
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To brand their products, heres what theyre
doing

• Trying to gain mindshare via advertising and mass
  media
• Creating pretty logos!
• Creating interesting taglines

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Branding Idea Du Juor!

• Name a Ballpark!
• PacBell Park - San Francisco
• CMGI Park - Boston - 76 million/10 years
• Qualcomm Park - San Diego
• 3Com Park - San Francisco
• Network Associates Park -Oakland, Calif
• Campbell Field -Camden, N.J.
• Cinergy Field - Cincinnati
• Enron Corp. - Houston Astros - 100 million/30
  years
• Comerica Park - Detroit - 86 million/30 years
• FedEx Park- Washington- 205million/27 years

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High-tech branding is different

• Product lifecycles are short
• Innovation and change-driven industry so
  secondary brands dont have a real impact
• SearsKenmore/Craftsman
• GM Chevrolet, Pontiac
• Often concentrate on brand of company, not
  product
• Most high-tech brands must grapple with global
  complexity trademarking internationally is
  expensive

12
Biggest challenge for most high tech companies

• Not one-voice, one-look, or lack of pretty logos
  - these are tactical, logistical
• Creating and nourishing long-term customer
  relationships

XXX
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What is a brand?

• A brand represents a relationship customers have
  come to know and value
• - Regis McKenna

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Whats the company/product promising and whats
the company/product delivering?
What is a relationship?
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Sosounds simple, but

• Making and keeping a promise - consistently - can
  be a powerful source of competitive advantage

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Technology buyers are skeptical

• Conditioned to expect unreliable products
• Burned by old and new companies promising too
  much
• Dont think a company has their best interest in
  mind
• Low expectations for good service

msf
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In high tech, the interpretation of branding
is

• Sell the promise but its OK to deliver only 40
  of the time!

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For many companies, the brand IS the company

• Nordstrom
• Volvo
• SW Airlines
• Tiffany
• Kellogg
• HP
• Intel
• Microsoft
• Google

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How do you create a brand?

• OLD WAY
• Create a new category
• Displace a competitor
• NEW WAY
• An active experience where the customer is
  actively involved and feels empowered

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Today, branding is about

• Moving from product-centric focus to
  customer-centric focus
• Realizing the ENTIRE customer experience can be
  the most significant driver to brand value
• Any contact with your organization defines your
  brand

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How do you build or enhance your companys brand?

• OLD WAY
• One-way communication mass media via TV, print,
  word-of-mouth, broadcast
• NEW WAY
• Two-way communication All of above PLUS we must
  create 1-to-1 relationships by communicating WITH
  customers create purposeful dialog

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5 Rs of Purposeful Dialog

• Recourse Customers want to avoid risk when
  buying a product
• - Make it easy for the customer to contact the
  company if there is a problem
• Recognition Customers like to be personally
  recognized
• Address customers by name on solicitations
• Responsiveness Do more than provide an
  800-number!
• Respect Dialog w. the customer when it makes
  sense for them
• Reinforcement Reinforce your message w. mass
  media that has a call to action!

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Types of Brand Messages

• Product Messages Performance, price,
  distribution points
• Ex. Price sends a message! What would you think
  of a Rolex watch for 15? Or a diamond ring in
  Kmart packaging?
• Service Messages interactions your customers
  have w/your company
• Ex. Customer service reps, receptionist,
  delivery drivers - these can have a SIGNIFICANT
  impact
• Unplanned Messages messages you can influence
  but cant control
• Ex. news stories, word-of-mouth, special interest
  groups, chat rooms employees
• Planned Messages (marcom)
• Ex. Advertisements, Brochures, data sheets,
  datasheets

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Which source is often the most influential?

• UNPLANNED MESSAGES!!!
• Typically have more of an impact than marketing
  programs
• Sometimes you can influence them, but you cant
  always control them
• Are these confirming your planned messages?

26
Do you need advertising/mass media to build a
brand?
Logos? Taglines?
27
Tip!

• Marketing budgets are determined by results!

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What can advertising(mass media) actually do?

• Create positive images create awareness
• Position brand
• Reach multiple stakeholders
• AGGREGATE AND QUALIFY PROSPECTS then move to
  1-to-1

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Print Ad 2
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CAUTION!

• NON-ADVERTISING MESSAGES can negate the most
  brilliant creative work
• Building strong brand relationships means
  LISTENING to and RESPONDING to customers

33

• This is all interesting, but where does Product
  Management/Marketing
• fit in?

34
Sources of Brand Information
Field Sales Feedback
Competitive Information
Inventory Data
PMM
Design and Production Schedules
All Customer Touch Points
Transaction Data From Finance
35
How Product Management should view branding

• Clearly understand the net worth of your current
  customers
• Know your customer touch points determine which
  you can (positively) influence TODAY
• Postpone Marketing activities if more serious
  problems exist
• Hire a branding agency not an ad agency

36
How companies should think about branding

• Make your brand strategy a way of doing business
  not just a marketing function
• Shift emphasis from ACQUIRING customers to
  RETAINING and GROWING customers
• Communicate WITH rather than TO customers
• Better manage customer expectations

37
Measure Your Brand Through a Brand Audit

• Components of Brand Audit
• TRUST Does product do what it says it will do?
• CONSISTENCY Is product performance and service
  predictable? Are company policies and procedures
  consistent?
• ACCESSIBILTY Is it easy to reach your company?
• RESPONSIVENESS Are questions, inquiries and
  complaints quickly and thoroughly handled
• COMMITMENT To what extent is the company really
  interested in customers?
• AFFINITY Do customers identify with this brand?
  Do they relate to other people who use it?
• LIKING Do all stakeholders like to be
  associated with the brand?

38
Top 3 Things to Remember When Branding

• Think of Branding as a way of doing business, not
  just a Marketing function
• Look for ways to improve your Total Customer
  Experience more often
• Service good or bad may have the greatest
  impact on your product or companys brand image