Brand: Another name for reputation.

or is it?

If you're well informed then you know that a brand today is more than just a name, logo, or symbol associated with a product or service.

In today's wacky time and age, a brand represents 100% the overall perception, image, and reputation that customers and stakeholders have about a company.

It's the embodiment of a company's reputation, built through the many interactions, experiences, and most importantly responses it gets presented over time.

But it's fairly easy to say that.

A more appropriate question would be:

How do we prove it?

How do we measure it?

or is brand reputation just a myth?

Let me explain with an example.

The OG Shark: Aman Gupta's Boat last week made a very bold claim by targeting one of the most loyal customer cults of the world: Apple Enthusiasts.

The head line read: Don't be a fan boy, be a boAthead!

Naturally with Aman Gupta's online sentiment, he was celebrated by the industry for being "bold", "saying it like it is" or "showing it to the big guy".

It really put his post from 2023 into perspective too!

Now this is clearly a great example of successful brand reputation and customer loyalty, right?

Yesterday, news broke that there was a massive leak in Aman's boAt! (pun intended)

And loyalists were suddenly overshadowed by the "real" sharks.

Customers.

This brings me to a well known saying in marketing:

If you want loyalty, get a dog.

IMO boAt isn't successful because of Aman Gupta's antics, or his celebrity status or the boAtheads.

Well at least when they began.

It's because it fulfilled two basic principles of brand growth very early on:

Maximized Distribution: boAt is available everywhere, from sim wale bhaiya's dukaan to now on your grocery delivery app.

Clear and Distinctive Branding: Easy to remember logo, name and color. It's in his username, ffs.

The lesson learned:

People buy products out of habit, not commitment.

So...brand loyalty, does it even exist?

Well in the perspective of the fickle minded Indian customer:

Loyalty is value.

And not the value that the brand promises.

All brands promise the moon.

I'm talking about personal transaction value.

I, as an informed customer know that I'll get better value for my money if I buy that 40inch TV during "Amazon's Great Indian Shopping Festival" or "Flipkart's Big Billion Days."

Now which pricing entices me the most, will win.

Till then my options can chill in my Wishlist.

How Brands Grow by Byron Sharp (a must read) outlines the 7 rules for brand growth:

1. Continuously reach all buyers of the category?(communication and distribution) – avoid being silent
2. Ensure the brand is easy to buy?(communicate how the brand fits with the users life)
3. Get noticed?(grab attention and focus on brand salience to prime the users mind)
4. Refresh and build memory structures?(respect existing associations that make the brand easy to notice and easy to buy)
5. Create and use distinctive brand assets?(use sensory cues to get noticed and stay top of mind)
6. Be consistent?(avoid unnecessary changes, while keeping the brand fresh and interesting)
7. Stay competitive?(keep the brand easy to buy and avoid giving excuses not to buy.

Our take:

Considering all of this, we understand that there's always two major perspectives to work on when we onboard clients seeking to up their top-of-mind game.

The scientific perspective: Strategies heavily depend on data, research, and analysis to understand consumer behavior and market trends.

It's allowed us to make data-driven decisions for the biggest brands in the country.

The Artistic perspective: And strategies are also to be packaged with creativity, imagination, and intuition!

It's only the innovative ideas that resonate with target audiences!

Finally, our predictions:

Trends are giving way to the rise of micro-trends.

And this shift needs nay demands a dynamic approach from brands, one that emphasizes agility and responsiveness to fleeting consumer interests.

You can't just be available on the shelves anymore!