Gorilla Glass: A Brand With Real Strength

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I’ll admit most everyone knows what WD40 is. But it’s been around for 60 years. And it was invented when fewer products were introduced in any given year. A name like that would be a liability to a new product these days.

With hundreds of new products seemingly introduced every month, brand names like WD40 don’t do anything to help their audience recognize or remember what they have to offer. Or why the solution they deliver is any better than any other option.

In contrast, Corning recently started mass media marketing a product called Gorilla Glass to raise awareness and preference for the brand now found in a wide range of consumer electronics. Even before reading or hearing a single marketing message, I’ll bet you can figure out the value this brand is promising.



Combine the name with strong visual imagery of gorillas using these products in a variety of business and leisure environments where the animals aren’t normally expected and you have a great example of brand marketing at its best.

A recent post on BRANDCHANNEL.com shows several examples of the introductory ads and product demonstrations used to launch this product. Read the full article.

It’s worth a few minutes of your time to review this story. When you can illustrate your brand difference with one simple, memorable symbol that everyone can understand, you start with a marketing advantage of priceless value.

If you want to talk to someone about developing this type of brand strategy for your new product, contact us today by e-mail or phone 903-534-5220.

Chipotle: Spanish For Burrito Brand Success

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When you look at everything stacked against it, the growth and profitability of the "fast-casual", ethnic eatery Chipotle Mexican Grill is another great lesson in brand marketing success.

Facing an environment characterized by rising unemployment, fewer dining-out customers, high concentrations of competitive restaurants and aggressive meal discounting by lower-end chains, the fact that Chipotle sales grew at all in 2010 is surprising. That their net income grew by close to 40% is remarkable.

In an article recently published on BNET.com, author David Phillips notes that rather than follow the markdown pricing and constant menu rotation of promotion-driven restaurants, Chipotle made a conscious decision to focus on sustaining its distinct food quality and customer experience. Their plan was to deliver maximum value for the customer's dollar.

It's a brand promise they put into words and actions every day. Employees are taught to honor the company mission statement "Food With Integrity" which involves serving food with an eye toward sustainability, great taste and high nutrition. And customers have responded by increasing both visits and dollars spent per visit.

Outbound and in-store marketing communications are designed to entertain and educate, featuring information about natural ingredients, support for local growers, healthy diets and fresh, zesty flavor to give potential customers substantial reasons to expect a uniquely enjoyable experience every time they visit Chipotle.

A true example of positive brand development and profit margin protection, the article details the company's continuing efforts to communicate its unique value and give customers and potential customers a way to further engage the brand.

Read more about Chipotle's exceptional approach and the results in the full article.

To talk to someone about helping you build a stronger brand, contact us today by e-mail or phone 903-534-5220.

Competitive Mistake #1: Following The Crowd

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You would think that as business gets more and more competitive, business managers would realize they need to create a bigger distinction than ever between themselves and their rivals.

Unfortunately, we observe far too many brands and companies unknowingly engaged in marketing practices that camouflage the defining difference between themselves and others.

The fact is there are many challenges to good marketing. And if you’re not careful, the very tools you could be using to set yourself apart may actually be applying the camouflage that’s hiding your greatest value.

Over the next few months we'll look at 10 common brand communication mistakes that can prevent potential business from recognizing you as a unique and credible solution provider. Here's the first:

Mistake 1: Following the crowd

Do you talk about the same set of features, use the same type of photography, give the same kind of examples and make the same exact media choices as your competitors? If so, you can't expect your audience to perceive your brand or company as significantly different or better than anyone else.

You look the same. Sound the same. Are the same for all practical purposes. And without a recognizable difference to motivate a change of behavior, your audience will continue to purchase the same brand they always have.

But there is a way to change the conversation from a comparison of indiscernible details and low prices to one of recognizable differences and lasting value? It’s by leaving the crowd behind and establishing your own brand clearly and distinctly.

To talk to someone about helping you remove the competitive camouflage and developing a difference-making brand for your business, contact us today by e-mail or phone 903-534-5220.

To read about the other 9 brand communication mistakes that can camouflage you from customers, click here.

Social Media: More Than Fans, It’s Feedback

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In the early days of Facebook, getting fans was the name of the game, but sheer numbers alone is no longer the measure of social media effectiveness – it's engagement.

Similar to the old comparison between “awareness” and “preference”, the value of having someone “like” you or becoming a “fan" once and never giving you another thought is far less important than developing an ongoing two-way dialog with them even if only occasionally.

In a recent article published online by Advertising Age, Irina Slutsky makes the point that what generates the most positive influence for marketers is not the total number of fans they have collected but what percentage of them they can encourage to become actively connected.

The article lists three ways to make Facebook participation more valuable.

1. Seeding Content - introduce ideas on subjects where you have a significant body of expertise so readers have the opportunity to recognize an issue they want to address and begin to view you as a resource to a solution. Such as healthy recipes from a food manufacturer, answers to common financial questions from a bank or even photos of interior design ideas from an architect.

2. Starting Conversations - connect one user to another so that the experience of visiting your page is beneficial and the expectation generated for future visits is positive as well. For example, posting user-submitted hairstyle questions for other users and staff hairstylists to address. Or it might be requesting and allowing comments on the best user pet stories on a veterinarian's page.

3. Get Creative - use this low-risk tool of user-interest exploration to build simple interactions that encourage more interest and trust over time. This could be a bridal boutique requesting their customers submit wedding photos featuring dresses purchased from the shop. Or a restaurant encouraging fans to help name a new entree being added to the menu.

Obviously there has to be an effort made in the beginning to build the user base to some reasonable size before starting to develop interactions, but the point here is that the value of Facebook and other similar social media tools is social interaction more than audience size.

And the best strategy of all is to use these social interactions to introduce, connect and continuously remind users of the core promise and value your brand offers. To reinforce what you are doing elsewhere and not to compete with it.

Read the entire article for yourself.

And if you're ready to begin building greater user engagement with your brand, contact us today by e-mail or phone 903-534-5220.