MARKETING
BY H. JEFF WARR, JR., PH.D.
FIVE STEPS FOR BUILDING A BULLET-PROOF BRAND
ACADEMICS AND MARKETERS HAVE BOUNCED ALL OVER THE MAP WHEN IT COMES TO DEFINING THE TERM “MARKETING.” SOME OFFER A NARROW DEFINITION, CITING THAT IT IS SIMPLY SELLING A PRODUCT OR SERVICE. OTHERS DEFINE MARKETING BROADLY, NOTING IT IS EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS AFTER A PRODUCT OR SERVICE IS PRODUCED UP UNTIL THE TIME IT IS PURCHASED AND USED BY A CUSTOMER OR A CONSUMER.
I routinely ask my clients (and prospective clients)
how they defi ne marketing. I never get one of the above defi nitions. Most give me a “home-made” defi nition and it’s remarkable how similar they are. In my 30+ years of teaching and consulting I have found that business operators working across the spectrum, from global mega- brands to small businesses, from those off ering expensive durable goods to those off ering a simple service, all seem to defi ne marketing with tactical terms -- promotion, advertising, public relations, personal selling, customer relations, etc. However, one word has popped up within the last few
years and is being used with increasing frequency. That’s the term “BRAND.” Defi nitions of the term “brand” are even more varied than the defi nitions of “marketing.” The term has become so popular that, as with “marketing,” most everyone has his or her own defi nition. Some people I talk with believe that the two terms mean almost the same thing. That’s not the case at all. There is a critical diff erence. To use research language, marketing is at least part of the cause. Brand is the eff ect. The reality is that no matter how large your company is and what products and/or services your company
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off ers, your company has a “brand” even if you have not consciously managed and marketed your company in an attempt to create that brand. This is because your brand does not exist within your company or even within your marketing messages. Your brand resides in the brains of your customers, consumers, prospects and other stakeholders. It’s what people think about your company and the products and services you off er.
WHAT DETERMINES YOUR BRAND? Marketing people like to believe they are the ones that determine a company’s brand. And to some degree, they are right. But there is much more involved. In reality, your brand is only partially impacted by your marketing plan, advertising, press releases, sales promotions and all the other messages you distribute to those you want to infl uence. These traditional marketing elements at best only create an image and may, if successful, stimulate trial. Face-to-face selling is also part of that mix. But there is so much more. Your brand is impacted by all of your company’s marketing plus the experiences people have with your company. Let’s use a simple example. Imagine a new restaurant opens in your city. You, the potential customer, encounter a variety of messages telling you how wonderful this new
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