Getting the hump this Christmas

I hope you’ve had a successful branding year, the economic crisis notwithstanding, and I wish you all a very successful and fulfilling New Year.

Regulars from the past few years will know that instead of sending business Christmas cards and gifts I have a tradition of buying a gift (of which I hope you will all approve) from the Oxfam Unwrapped Christmas catalogue.

So I do hope you’ll forgive the absence of a BSG card or gift just for you, and enjoy the thought that a number of families rather less affluent than us will be enjoying the benefits of this year’s gift… a rather magnificent camel!

As Oxfam explain, camels spit, bite and are notoriously bad tempered, but they just keep going and there’s no better transport for desert-dwellers. Camels also keep giving; nutritious milk, calves and even dung for fuel and fertiliser. They’re local, they’re vaccinated and they have the hump. In a good way.

Merry Christmas.

New date and lower price for my Build A Brand In 30 Days open course

I’m delighted to announce a new date and new, lower ticket price for my course Build A Brand In 30 Days, devised specially to accompany my book of the same name.

A number of solo entrepreneurs and business students have asked for a half-day course at a more accessible ticket price: so tickets now start at £125 plus VAT for Early Bird bookers!

This is a content-rich half-day learning experience giving you:
* A thorough and practical grounding in brand and branding
* Content-rich learning you can put into practice immediately.
* A clear path to developing a brand that is distinctive, compelling, authentic and sustainable.
* Understanding and skills in crucial brand elements including: purpose, values, naming, positioning, customer experience, narrative and more.

This unique short course brings brand and branding powerfully to life for marketers and non-marketers alike, whether you're an entrepreneur or part of a larger organisation. In the most challenging environment of recent memory, your brand is your most valuable business asset. This course could be the best training investment you make all year.

All delegates receive a copy of my Build A Brand In 30 Days book plus an exclusive DVD of my TV series The Brand Effect.

To book: call today on +44 (0)1603 305800, or email info@brandstrategyguru.com (Max 60 delegates).

Early Bird Price: Just £155 plus VAT (£125 for charities, students and sole-traders) for all bookings received before December 31st 2009.

Standard Price: £195 per person plus VAT (£165 for charities, students and sole-traders).

Date: Tuesday May 11th, 2010 from 9.00am to 1.00pm

Venue: London's coolest location Wallacespace St. Pancras.

Includes: Course notes, book and DVD, plus a superb networking breakfast and lunch.

Red flag for Woods' brand

After the revelations documented across the tabloids in recent weeks, is the Tiger Woods brand permanently damaged? I don't think so... and here's why:

1. On the Tiger Woods brand itself
I think he and it will recover, (and frankly I don’t think it will take more than a year or so) because he's not just a high profile sportsman, but one who is genuinely liked and admired by millions of people. He has, you might say, put a lot of brand in the bank, which is what brands need when they hit a crisis. If he’s careful now then all that stored brand value will see him through. His income in terms of sponsorship will suffer for a while, but brand Tiger is far from finished. He’s just too great a sportsman and too admired a figure for that.

Actually I would go so far as to say that, whilst I’m not condoning his actions, he is now clearly a more rounded and more ‘human’ personality. If his brand had a weakness before it was perfection. He was perhaps a bit too good to be true. Now we know he’s just a bloke with flaws. That’s sort of reassuring. I think, if anything, in the long run he will prove to be a richer brand as a result, especially if he can reflect on and accommodate this new aspect of his character.

2. On the response of sponsors
America is the kind of country where a moral response is expected from companies, so he is bound to have sponsors dropping him, reassessing contracts etc.. but I think the smart ones will look long term rather than short and be careful not to try and look 'holier than thou' by disassociating themselves. He didn’t kill anyone after all. We admired him because he’s a great sportsman. Now he is being judged by different standards.

3. On the issue of high profile celebrity brand sponsorship…
I think both the corporates and the celebrities can be accused of wanting to have their cake and eat it. The companies want the glamour by association with the celeb hero but they also demand a kind of inhuman perfection. They therefore always run the risk of their chosen people turning out to be human after all. Shame on them for their hypocrisy and moralising I say. Meanwhile the celebs want the money that the sponsorship deals bring, and they doubtless know exactly what’s expected of them when they take the cash… but of course they then ask for ‘privacy’ and to be treated as ‘people’. So my sympathy for the celebs doesn’t stretch very far. Both parties think they can have everything their way. I think the reality of commerce and life is that they can’t.

In summary, the high profile celeb brand endorsement game is a dangerous one. Not so much a pact with the devil, more a pact with flawed human beings. Woods will recover, but it’s going to be messy and hypocritical and rather horrible to watch for a few months to come. Of course the real winners here (in the most unpleasant way) are the tabloids of the world, whose stock in trade is shame.

Remember: Build A Brand In 30 Days now available to pre-order

Build A Brand In 30 Days is published by Capstone in April 2010 and available for order now on Amazon (other book sites are available) or direct from me. Just drop me a line to info@brandstrategyguru.com

Perfect for entrepreneurs and anyone running a small business or organisation as well as marketing specialists, the book explores branding through 30 key steps. Packed with in-depth exercises and concepts that are both accessible and challenging, Build A Brand In 30 Days will enable your brand to punch above its weight.

Trademark slang

'Maccy D's’ is a slang phrase that has been used widely in the UK for many years when referring to McDonald's, only now it has been officially adopted by the fast-food chain who have secured a trademark for the term. Maccy D’s is what’s known as a ‘slang brand’ and although some marketers have tried to create their own versions, such as Pizza Hut ('The Hut') and Southern Comfort ('SoCo'), these have shown little sign of catching on outside the adverts.
A recent Marketing article posted online listed its top 20 slang brands, which included ‘Beemer’ for BMW and ‘Marks & Sparks’ for Marks & Spencer and then asked readers for their own terms, which generated some dispute over Easy Jet’s slang brand with suggestions including 'Squeezy Jet', 'Sleazy Jet' and 'Queasy Jet'! Can't see any of those being officially adopted by Stelios any time soon though...

Mending broken China

The Chinese government has launched a new branding campaign to try and improve the image of China’s manufacturing sector and the "Made In China" label. "Made in China" has regained its negative connotations recently due to the public revelations of poor quality and deadly oversights in making everyday products – such as the tainted milk scandal that caused the deaths of at least six children and made 300,000 ill. According to the China Daily newspaper, the campaign is intended to demonstrate that "Chinese companies work with overseas firms to produce quality products.”

Putting up a fight

With supermarkets increasingly encroaching on other retailers’ territory by offering the same goods at lower prices, the response could be to reduce existing prices in-store, reducing profits and perhaps cheapening the brand? Or to maintain prices, hoping for better times to return, and, in the meantime, lose customers who may never come back? Considering these two equally unpalatable alternatives, some decide on a third option and launch a ‘fighter brand’ - a lower-priced offering introduced by a company to take on specific competitors. One such example is John Lewis, who has launched a value homeware range specifically designed to compete with Tesco and help defend its 'Never knowingly undersold' slogan.
Although attack may be the best form of defence against the competition, potential pitfalls of fighter brands include distracting companies from their core business on a strategy that is often loss-making, as well as cannibalisation. Most fighter brands are created explicitly to win back customers that have switched to a low-priced rival. Unfortunately, they also have an annoying tendency to acquire customers from a company's own premium offering!

Paying a premium for discounting?

Big discounts on festive goodies being promoted by supermarkets are rife at this time of year – with price slashes devaluing supposedly premium goods like Champagne and whisky as a way to help get shoppers through the door and persuade them part with their cash. However, the recession has intensified the practice as consumers switch between stores and products to find the lowest prices. With brand loyalty so low more household labels are relying more heavily on discounting this Christmas to win over consumers.
As the strongest exponents of price promotions, supermarkets have often required the brands they stock to engage in discounts. However, they stand accused of building their reputations as low-price retailers at the expense of the brands they stock, which get trapped in a downward spiral of discounting. Lower prices lead to less investment in marketing and development, and brands risk becoming commoditised and damaging their brand equity. Just like the post-Christmas detox, it could prove difficult for brands to break the habit.

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