Seared into your memory.

Many years ago, people realized that some scotch whiskies were better than others. Upon learning this information, distillers began charging more money for whiskies from certain regions, distilleries and whisky makers. In order to signify and certify that the whisky was from a certain creator or region and, therefore, could be trusted as worth the extra money, distillers branded their names and marks on the barrels. The idea of branding was born.

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Misunderstanding the role of the brand is common. The scotch distillers used a brand as a representation of whatever process, history, reputation, region, quality and personality added value (and profit) to their whisky. Today, however, the concept of a brand is too often focused on a logo or name rather than the associations that give those things a meaning. Brands function by lending familiarity, likability and associations to products. Consumers use brands to develop a sense of trust for certain products and to increase the efficiency and satisfaction of their purchases. Familiar products are trusted more than unfamiliar products. Likable products are trusted more than unlikable ones. Brands associated with specific consumer needs are trusted more than brands that are not specific. These three elements—familiarity, likability and association—are often referred to as the equities of a particular brand.

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Familiarity, or awareness, functions by giving consumers a level of comfort. Consumers often do not want to take the risk of buying an untrusted product, so they select a product they have heard of. Awareness also functions in a hierarchy. Consumers are more highly aware of some products than of others, and products with high awareness often get more consideration in purchase than those with low awareness. Likability furthers the comfort of consumers by suggesting a degree of empathy and understanding on behalf of the brand toward its purchasers. Consumers often report that brands they like “get me” or “understand.” As emotional involvement in ownership of a product increases, the effect of likability becomes more pronounced. Associations function in the role of brands by creating links between the brand and different ideas, uses, features and characteristics. Associations provide for a brand’s differentiation from or congruity with other categories and are often the reason consumers buy a product.?

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For the first scotch drinkers, the brand on the barrel meant you could trust the product would deliver for the price you paid. It was that simple. So what happened? Well, for starters, corporations happened. The first scotch was made by individuals, but, in time, organizations formed to pool resources and exploit efficiencies of scale, meaning the name and brand of the whisky could command more money. And so corporations did what corporations do; they tried to find all the ways they could squeeze more money out of the original resource. They launched variants of the brand, such as a less expensive version of the whisky. And then an ultra-premium. And then products that weren't whisky at all but perhaps a line of port under the same name. Excuse my wild whisky story, but heed the lesson. In the company’s process of leveraging what it rightly viewed as an important asset, it slowly destroyed the value-enhancing properties of the brand. A mechanism that once told people they could trust a particular whisky was now trying to sell them anything possible with the same brand.

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Here’s the rub. Because people trusted the initial whisky maker, the consumer would likely give a higher degree of trust to a category of unknowns (like the port). In such a case, the brand equity would transfer and increase the value of the port. Such a scenario pretty much typifies the current way organizations manage brands and appears to affirm that brands should be stretched over everything. You might look at the situation and say, “Why not leverage the asset? It’s what companies do.” You’d be right, if categories existed in a vacuum. Here’s what really happens. As the scotch maker extends into both cheaper and more expensive variants within the category and creates other products under the same brand, specialists begin to develop. All of a sudden another scotch brand only concerns itself with scotch. Consumers conclude that a brand that specializes must be better, and the new brand corners the upscale part of the category, leaving our once proud distillery selling rotgut to the bargain hunters and a port wine with a scotch name. That is, until a port specialist moves in with the same results as with the scotch. The brand’s equity has eroded. The company might as well be selling generics at this point.

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If this all sounds crazy, try replacing our scotch maker above with General Motors. Replace the brand name with Chevrolet and replace scotch and port with giant SUVs and compact cars. This is how the trust in brands is destroyed.

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Trust is a basic mechanism within our need to acquire goods. We need things we cannot simply grow or produce ourselves. At the same time, we have resources that others need. We must carefully exchange our resources for the things we want and need. Two thousand years ago we swapped a clay jar for a goat, and today we plunk down $50,000 for a car. We need to trust that we are going to get what we pay for. That’s where the promise comes in.

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The Promise

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The first brands had to make really clear promises. The brand on the outside of that whisky barrel promised that your money would be well spent on a good-quality product. In essence, you’re not going to get ripped off. The promise is the pitch. Many great brands start with a great promise. Five Guys Burgers and Fries promises you’re going to get a great, old-fashioned, quality hamburger without any clowns, Asian salads or playgrounds. BMW promises you’re going to have a great ride (both with the driving experience and with everyone gawking at your car). Apple’s MacBook promises to let you feel like you are doing something entirely more important and creative than anyone else.

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The Trust

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The trust is all the things we do to help increase confidence that the offering will deliver on its promise. It comes from every direction. It is the message in the ad and the color of the floor in the retail store. It is the sports sponsorship, charity involvement, makeup of the management, brochure design, types of TV programs the commercials are run during and the price of the product. It is everything.