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MEXICO
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
TOP 50 MOST VALUABLE LATIN AMERICAN BRANDS 2015
CREATING GREAT
BRANDS IN AN
EXTREME MARKET
Stating that in today’s
competitive and ever changing
market, companies must know
how to be distinct is a no-brainer.
It’s also obvious that, in order to
achieve distinctiveness, a correct
strategy and brand positioning
are decisive. But sometimes, it is
just not that simple.
GABRIELA LIJO
General Manager
Lambie-Nairn, Mexico
G.Lijo@lambie-nairn.com
Today we are more informed, more connected, and busier
than ever. Our society wants to do and have it all. We have
abandoned the old habit of living moderately and adopted
a life of extremes. We want to have lots of experiences and
live more intensely, but at the same time we want to have
the utmost happiness and peace. We want to be utterly
successful but we also want to have a better quality of life.
In this context, brands and branding will become even
more important than they currently are, since they will be
the ones guiding consumers through extreme situations:
understanding them, making their lives easier, and helping
them make better decisions. Brands are constantly
present in a number of already traditional activities, such
as smartphones, tablets, computers, television, and so on,
but little by little new ones are being implemented so as to
satisfy new senses like smelling, touching, or tasting, in order
to boost a memorable experience.
STRONG BRANDS
CREATE STRONG BONDS
Brands creating meaningful experiences will be the ones we
pay attention to, for they will be capable of establishing close
bonds with their consumers and thus continue being top
of mind. Only strong brands are capable of creating these
bonds: thinking otherwise is nonsense. Bearing this in mind,
let us review the characteristics that all successful brands
share, for those are the keys to creating the brands that will
survive in this extreme market.
First, we must take into account that, for any brand, a strong
brand strategy is a necessity rather than a luxury. A recent
study published by Lambie-Nairn together with Millward
Brown and The Partners has shown that branding is more
important than advertising as a brand value driver. Brands
with a strong strategy focused on the brand and weak
advertising had a 76% increase in value, while brands with
weak branding and strong advertising had a value increase of
only 27%. Take Apple, for example: it was #1 in the BrandZ
2015 ranking, and it is globally recognized because of its
unique brand proposition, its iconic identity, and a design that
consumers love. Its value has increased 67% since 2014.
A GREAT BRAND
MUST KNOW ITSELF
The brand must be directly related to the business strategy,
aware of the company’s objectives and its market, so as to
clearly understand what is it that it can or cannot achieve
in order to be credible when reaching its target audience. A
great brand must perfectly know its DNA, its brand code, and
the characteristics that make it unique and distinct from all
the other brands. When a brand is true to itself, it generates
confidence in consumers and thus it is capable of influencing
their behavior. This does not mean a brand cannot surprise
us, nor does it imply that its communication should be boring,
but that it must be clearly aware of how far it can go without
losing its own identity. For instance, the Krispy Kreme brand
surprised everybody with its acceptance of new technologies
and the creation of an app called “Hot Light”, which lets
followers know when and where fresh donuts are being sold.
A GREAT BRAND MUST KNOW HOW
TO INVENT AND REINVENT ITSELF
As mentioned above, a brand can and should surprise
us. To do so, it must be constantly evolving, it must be a
living being going beyond the product or service offered,
encouraging loyalty among consumers and turning them
into brand spokespersons, into its fans. Who doesn’t have
an acquaintance who, besides buying a car or a pair of shoes
from a specific brand, insists on our buying the very same
product? This is the way those brands become leaders within
their categories, to set trends that their competitors will have
to follow. Nike is a perfect example of a leading brand that has
transcended its category. Nike claims that “if you have a body,
you are an athlete”. Nike is a benchmark for athletes and in the
overall sphere of sports, not merely a sneakers manufacturer.
A GREAT BRAND MUST BE
CAPABLE OF GENERATING UNIQUE
EXPERIENCES AND EMOTIONS
In the end, it is not only about selling a product or providing
a service: a brand must always seek to establish a link, an
emotional connection with its target audience so that it turns
into a long-lasting bond. For example, Dove is perfectly aware
of its target audience’s needs and wishes: all those women
who do not feel reflected by magazines’ beauty standards.
By means of its campaign “for real beauty”, Dove managed to
create an emotional bond with its audience, becoming thus
something far beyond a personal care company.
A GREAT BRAND MUST
BE CONSISTENT
A brand is not just a logo, a word, or a slogan. When a brand
is coherent and consistent with its communication, everyone
recognizes it. This is why it is important to have a recognizable
framework, a visual image that leaves no doubt as to who is
addressing us, even if we are not looking at the brand. This
framework should be consistent regardless of the country
and the communication format or platform. Movistar is a
good example of this. Due to its distinctive elements, such as
the blue sky, the clouds, the typography used, and a rigorous
program by Lambie-Nairn, this brand is now recognized in all
the territories where it operates, with no need to be identified
by its logo.
A strong brand is authentic and humane, regardless of how
small or large it is. When a brand manages to speak in the
same language its consumers use, their connection is far
closer. This can be accomplished by being funny, intelligent,
understanding, or the like. We can think of brands such
as Google, which changes its illustrations every day, Red
Bull, which pushes the limits of human capabilities, or even
Beyoncé, with her 7/11 video that seems home-made.
A GREAT BRAND
MUST BE RELEVANT
Let us remember that the key to generating trust is to act as
consumers want and expect, that is, to understand what is
important to them. Therefore, a great brand must aspire to
be, by itself, whatever people want it to be, and try to generate
strong associations among the audience.
Established in 1976, Lambie-Nairn is a branding agency that
creates emotive and dynamic brands. Lambie-Nairn believes
that brands are capable of living at every touch point, even
when consumers are driving the brand interaction. By doing
this Lambie-Nairn creates brands that stimulate and establish
a stronger emotional bond with their audiences.
www.lambie-nairn.com
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