3 minutes and 3 seconds. That's all it takes to learn from the best investor on why Brand is the most important driver of business value. If you're debating if, why or how investing in Brand building is right for your company, look no further than this compilation of Warren Buffett quotes from interviews over the last 50 years on why investing in Brand is the single most important thing you can do.
While in the day-to-day of operating a company, it can seem foolish to invest in this mythical, hard-to-define thing called "Brand".
However, if we listen to the most successful judge of fundamental business asset value over the last century, it's clear that a strong Brand is the most important thing.
Here are the 5 topics, the 5 takeaways and the best quotes from the video
5 Topics:
1. Why Brand is the most important moat?
2. Why Brand is the most important driver of business value,?
3. The tangible benefits of a strong Brand in terms of pricing power,?
4. Maintaining margin and shelf space in retailers, and?
5. How a strong Brand is the only thing that can fend of inevitable competition.
5 Takeaways:
1. Brands are Moats
2. Single Most important thing he looks for are defensible Moats
3. The main Moat is Owning a Position in the consumer's Mind
4. A durable moat, driven by a strong Brand enables?
?a) sustainable Pricing Power (AKA the ability to not need to discount)
?b) the best defense against competition?
?c) leverage in the Brand <> retailer relationship?
5. Ultimately, Brand is the best driver of durable Profits
The Best Quotes:
On Brand:
1. "Brands are moats"?
2. "A strong Brand is really potent stuff."
3. "[The Moat] can be because...of its position in the consumer's mind...that it has this moat around it."
4. "So you've got to protect a Brand, you've got to enhance it in every way. You've got to get a promise in people's minds that gets delivered that way."
On the Importance of Moats:?
1. "What we're trying to do is we're trying to find a business with a wide and long lasting moat around it, protecting a terrific economic castle."?
2. "In essence, that's what business is all about."
On Brand and Pricing Power:
1. "The single-most important decision in evaluating a business is pricing power. If you've got the power to raise prices without losing business to a competitor, you've got a very good business."?
2. “You can measure the strength of a business over time by the agony they go through in determining whether a price increase can be sustained.”
3. "It's not a great business when you have to have a prayer session before you raise your prices a penny."
On Brand as defense against competition from other Brands and retailers:
1. "The Brand has to stand for something in the consumer's mind because, in the end, the retailer may want to shift to a house Brand."
2. "I remember when Sam Walton sent me the first six-pack of Sam's Cola 20 years ago. And believe me, Walmart has plenty of power, but so does Coca Cola and the Brand."
