How to defend your Brand against cheaper competitors.

In times of economic downturn and heightened cost-of-living pressures, consumer behavior tends to shift, with private label products gaining more market share. However, some brands are able to retain consumers and market share better than others. So why is this?

Some brands have a deep emotional connection with their consumers, and consequently ride out these tough times better than other brands. Hoever, even these brands face tough competition from private label products. So what can we do about it

1. Emotional Connection: Brands that have successfully built emotional connections with consumers are more likely to retain them during tough economic times. These emotional connections are built through consistent branding, messaging, and positive experiences with the product. Understanding your brands emotional DNA and hence the essence of your brand is key.
2. Consumer Belief: Consumers' belief in a brand is driven by their emotional experiences rather than rational evaluations. It's not necessarily about whether the branded product is objectively better, but whether consumers believe it to be better based on their emotional attachment to the brand.
3. Understanding the Emotional Journey: Brands that understand the emotional journey consumers go through when interacting with their products can strengthen consumer belief. This involves understanding how branding, communication, and product experience work together to create a unique emotional experience for consumers.
4. Identifying Improvement Areas: By focusing on the emotional journey, brands can identify areas where they can improve to strengthen consumer belief. This could involve enhancing certain aspects of the brand experience or ensuring that key elements of the brand experience are not diluted.
5. Psychological Understanding: Brands that understand the psychology behind consumer behavior and emotions can better differentiate themselves from competitors. This understanding allows brands to tailor their messaging and experiences to resonate more strongly with consumers.

In essence, during times of economic hardship, it's crucial for brands to focus on building and maintaining emotional connections with consumers. By understanding the emotional journey consumers go through and continuously improving the brand experience, brands can retain consumers, protect their brand against commoditisation and even command a price premium despite the presence of cheaper private label products.

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Chris Lukehurst is a Consumer Psychologist and a Director at The Marketing Clinic:

Providing Clarity on the Psychological relationships between consumers and brands

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