Brand Audience: Bored or floored?
June 20th, 2010 § 2 Comments
The other day I posted about how important stakeholders are in the place branding process. Now chances are, if you found my blog, you already know the huge role that audience plays in any branding or communication effort. But here’s the thing, in branding the audience is so essential that they are the brand. If your audience doesn’t buy your brand, then they wont live it. And if they won’t live it, other people won’t catch wind of it. And if it isn’t being lived or spread, it’s dead.
This is troubling to some people– especially people who have dedicated their time (or even lives) to brands that have failed– because your audience is not always apparent. You may not know who they are, what they look like or what they want, and that makes failing very easy. If your audience doesn’t like your brand, it could mean back to the drawing board. Sometimes the brand needs some tweaking and can be re-released. Sometimes the brand is dead and a new approach needs to be taken. In either of the cases, your audience should be the one behind the wheel, telling you what route to go and why. Here’s an interesting post on the differences in branding, albeit not place branding, between Microsoft and Apple. Why does one brand struggle while the other flourishes? I’d say its the understanding of the audience.
This idea of audience plays an important role in our own lives, as well. Personal brands are something that have been coming up more and more in recent conversations, especially with the job market the way that it is. Your personal brand is becoming a way for you to open doors, or close them, and should be given the same type of consideration as a place brand or product brand would be. It is important to take your stakeholders into perspective when building a personal brand, because you never know what is coming next. You may think that it won’t matter that you posted pictures of binge drinking (buzz word) on Facebook until you don’t get a job because of it. Or that you ranted and raved in the comment section of a blog until you find out that blog is written by a client. You get the idea. Brands are meant to be enjoyed, lived and spread. Stakeholders are the medium through which that happens. Do right by your place (product, etc.) AND your audience in most any branding situation, and success will follow shortly behind.
Want to talk about social media? No thanks.
June 18th, 2010 § Leave a Comment
I am sick of talking about social media. There, I said it. Yes, I realize the irony of a post that talks about not talking about social media. But seriously, why must we talk about social media as if it is the only communication channel ever created? It is not the only one, and it is not always the best. I think that every webinar I get invited to, and every marketing magazine I receive is innately focused on social media. Get over it, people. Its old news. Social media is free and widely used. Some marketers have had success, some haven’t, and ROI is not ever going to be what your CEO wants to see. So this is my call to make your social media move, or move on.
Sure it has its merits, but come on—it is not the be all end all. For one, social media is not right for every person or brand. It depends on what kind of entity you are representing and how your brand is positioned in the marketplace. Maybe you represent a more conservative brand that builds a reputation on clean and consistent offline communication. Your customers may have chosen you for that reason, and I for one think that social media is a mistake in that case. It isn’t useful, your customer will not be looking for you there and you will most likely not be able to keep up with the insane amount of work that social media can create.
I realize the above situation is becoming more unique as the days pass, and that social media is an important part of some brand’s communications plan. That said, I still think that when it comes to social media you need to decide what is right for your brand and execute. Do not sit and talk it over for a month, because you could weigh the merits for two months, or two years. Form a plan (there are plenty of research materials) and then go with it. Use your common sense as to what is appropriate to post, but do not be afraid to go down a road that is less familiar. Test new ideas and be prepared for the conversation, but also be prepared for the lack of conversation. There is no guarantee that people will care what you have to say—just an opportunity to make them care about it.
This is my challenge to you, reader. Next time you discuss social media in your marketing/branding/place branding strategy meeting simply tell your peers it’s time to move, or its time to move on.
Three lessons from Times Square
June 17th, 2010 § Leave a Comment
Place branding is not like branding candy. With candy, you need to make sure that kids want to eat it. If kids want to eat it, management will like it because it increases sales. If it increases sales, stockholders will like it because they get more money. Get the picture? WIth a place, however, there are many more stakeholders and those stakeholders are not all in the process for the same goal. This is a delicate balance, and sometimes things that seem to be a great fit for one group may be a terrible cause for concern in another. Enter Times Square. Some may not know this, but Times Square is a great story of place branding success for NYC–but, ask any New Yorker how they feel about it and you’ll most likely hear another story. What lessons can we learn from place branding in Times Square?
1. Place branding is a catalyst for change. Times Square was seedy and run down before the 1980′s, when the mayor took it in his hands to make it a cleaner and safer neighborhood. The tool he used was not a shovel, it was legislation. This (among other factors) changed the landscape for the better. The results? 26 million visitors a year.
2. All parties need to be involved. While I think that the transformation has been hugely successful, there are many New Yorkers who do not feel this way–trust me. Why is this? Because not everyone was considered in the branding process. The mayor did not ask the locals what they wanted for their neighborhood, and while many of them might have wanted change it could be that change (and the rising prices it caused) that drove them out of the neighborhood all together. Locals are key when branding, because if locals do not believe the brand then no one else will. A major point of concern for locals is the ”disneyfication” of their neighborhoods. “It’s a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.” Well guess what, locals do have to live there, so check with them to get their input.
3. A brand is only as successful as the product. You may be fooled to buy the candy mentioned above one time, if the slogan is catchy. But when you eat that candy and it tastes like a foot, you are not going to buy it again, no matter what the wrapper says. This is also true in place branding. A place must refelct its brand or people will start to catch on and find the next best thing. This is an ongoing process. Once you are brand worthy, it takes maintenance, you must work at keeping what you have earned. Just because a brand is built, it must not be left to wither.
Overall, Times Square is an interesting study in place branding, as well as tourism and American history. Many of the triumphs and problems faced here are commonplace in any place branding endeavor. And it just so happens that if you work for change and you keep it up, your brand will speak for itself.
