Brand Relevance: Making Competitors Irrelevant - always yours

CREATING BARRIERS 283
the one that will leverage all forms of loyalty in the future. The
more bodies there are connected to the brand, the greater
the power of all the drivers of loyalty. If, however, the offering
is evolving and natural barriers to competitors exist, a go - slow
approach may be appropriate.
Because of the long - term strategic importance of loyalty, it is
worthwhile to develop programs to enhance and protect it. The
most basic need is to simply deliver on the brand promise, but
there is much that a firm can do in addition. A loyalty program,
for example, may be used to support a natural customer affinity. A
new serve - yourself frozen yogurt store, for example, can cement
local enthusiasm with a loyalty card that allows a customer to
earn free deserts and, additionally, provides a tangible link to the
brand. Another tool is to manage customer touchpoints, times
when the customer interacts with the brand, to make sure the
experience reinforces the loyalty. Particularly important touchpoints
occur when customer problems arise, because these represent
contexts in which the relationship can be strengthened or
placed at risk. The advent of social technology means that the
extremes of customer satisfaction have the potential to be multiplied
manifold. Dramatic incidences of dissatisfaction, in particular,
can get traction in the social media space and explode.
Owning a Compelling Benefit or Benefits
Many of the new categories or subcategories are defi ned by compelling
benefi ts that attract customers and provide the basis
for subsequent loyalty. How do you own a compelling benefi
t beyond owning a technology or capability? Four routes are
to develop an aura of authenticity, to become a moving target, to
develop visible credibility, and to fi nd a branded differentiator.
Delivering Authenticity
A brand that claims authenticity and can paint competitors
as opportunistic copiers will have created a signifi cant barrier.
People are inclined to be loyal to an authentic brand and even