BRIAN WEBB BLOG

Imagine this… What if you were to highlight the details of a business problem to the executives of a particular organization… What do you think their response would be?

The CFO would likely say… “It’s a resource problem.”
Human Resources would likely say… “It’s a people problem.”
R&D would likely say… “It’s an information problem.”
Marketing would likely say…“Let’s double the marketing budget.”

While I fully advocate that marketing is an absolute necessity for any business or organization to thrive… more marketing isn’t always the answer. To be successful, any organization needs to have their ducks in a row. Marketing; however, is just one duck.

Better marketing is good. A better reality is even better. Evaluate your business, your service, your systems, your leadership, your marketing. Keep getting better at what you do.

Your brand is the perception your clients and prospects have of your business or organization.

Keep improving your brand.

James Carville said… “It’s the economy, stupid,” and helped to win the presidential campaign for Bill Clinton. This campaign relentlessly focused on the economy… and the results? Well… you know the rest of the story. Bill Clinton was the “economy” candidate. Focus won. Clinton won.

Here’s another example. Sears used to be America’s department store. Now… they’re a casualty. Consider their competitors though…

NEIMAN MARCUS - Stuff to die for.

WAL MART - Good stuff so cheap you won’t believe it.

BLOOMINGDALES - Shopping as entertainment.

Sears focused on everything, and ultimately nothing. If you do not have a focus, you may soon not have a business.

Your brand is more than a symbol. In the public’s eye, your brand is a warranty. It is a promise that your service will live up to its name, and perform. Your brand is even MORE important than a warranty. No warranty does enough, because no warranty compensates the warranty holder for the lost time, suffering, frustration and inconvenience.

Your brand is more important because it is the closest thing to a guarantee… that the customer will not need the warranty, and have to endure the claims process. Brands are even more important to service customers because few services have warranties, in part because most services are difficult to impossible to warrant.

How does one warrant that their legal advice will be certainly good… that a waiter’s service will be good… that a tax accountant will find every permissable deduction? Clearly, in most cases, one can’t.

Left without a warranty, the client has only your brand on which to depend. And depending on brands is just what service clients do. A service is a promise, and building your brand, builds your promise.

Brands are decision making shortcuts in a fast paced world. People will frequently choose a well-branded product or service that’s inferior and more expensive, over a non-branded product or service, that’s superior and 30% cheaper.

Think about it. Prospects trust brands. A brand is a promise… a promise that you’ll do what say you will do. Offer your clients a shortcut. Build and strengthen your brand.

Harry Beckwith shares the following true story in his book, Selling The Invisible.

Two men spent 7 years building a contracting company into a successful business. In 1995, a man came along and offered them $400,000 for the business. The company had no assets, employees, inventory, non-proprietary products or services, no accounts receivable, and no real estate.

The only assets were the name and client list.

It wasn’t the client list the buyer was after, since there was very little repeat business. In fact, repeat business wasn’t much better than a funeral parlor.

Moreover, the client list was only of any value at all if and only if the clients perceived, that in light of a transfer of ownership, that they would continue to receive the same standard of quality.

In other words… THE BUYER JUST WANTED TO BUY THE BRAND, after just 7 years of work.

A successful brand is money. Build your brand.

Please feel free to share your comments. I’m always thrilled to know if I’ve helped you, your business or organization in any way. - Brian

Mandy; an executive at Microsoft, is looking to potentially recruit the services of a business consulting company. She remembers that her long-time friend and contemporary in Chicago had previously recruited a particular consulting company for similar purposes. Mandy calls her friend in Chicago to inquire about her experience.

In speaking with her friend in Chicago, she replies to Mandy… “I was satisfied.”

Does her lukewarm response inspire Mandy to pursue, let alone recruit the services of this consulting company? No. Absolutely not.

Continue to better your services and the experience of your clients. Don’t fall victim to the Lake Wobegon Effect, by believing that you’ve already arrived… that you’re better than you actually are.

You can always be better. Probably much better. Relentlessly refine and improve your services. Be exceptional!

Please feel free to share your comments. I’m always thrilled to know if I’ve helped you, your business or organization in any way. - Brian

Every successful brand exhibits 3 critial qualities… direction, breadth and depth.

DIRECTION
Consumers tend to jump on bandwagons of successful brands heading up, and tend to leap off of failing brands heading down. What direction is your brand headed?

BREADTH
Coke Cola is the world’s “broadest” product brand, and McDonald’s and the United States Army are the two broadest service brands. Branding expert; Harry Beckwith, submits that the breadth of a brand is an enormous asset. It implies the service’s wide-spread acceptance and continuous satisfactory performance over the test of time.

DEPTH | APPLE & MICROSOFT
Harry shares the following illustration in his book, The Invisible Touch. On an airplane in route to Microsoft headquarters… a researcher surveyed the fellow passengers by asking the following question… “What do you think of when you think of Microsoft?” Almost everyone answered with the same associated response…

“1. Big, 2. Rich fellow (Bill Gates), and 3. Techies.”

These consistent definitions illustrated the weaknesses in Microsoft’s marketing arsenal. Their brand has no more than a neutral meaning. It has no depth.

On the other hand… the same passengers were asked the same question about Apple. Their answers were…

“1. Creative, 2. Fun, 3. User-friendly and 4. Pretty cool.”

Apple’s brand has exceptional depth, and a meaning that others aspire to. Apple might lack the “breadth” of Microsoft, but clearly has more “depth.”

IN DEVELOPING YOUR BRAND, ASK THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

1. What do you want your brand to represent?

2. What attractive and desirable qualities should your brand embody?

Once you’ve determined what your brand is to to represent to your clients and prospects… embed that meaning into everything your company or organization does… from the sign over the door, to your website, to your email and print marketing, to the person answering the phones, to the service and support your company offers.

Please feel free to share your comments. I’d be thrilled to hear from you.

I can’t even remember how many instances in which a prospect shared with me, that the reason they called us… or selected our company to call from a list of our competitors… was sheerly because of our name. They just had to find out more about LOUD! Creative Group.

“I saw your company listed in the Houston Business Journal, and I had to find out more about the company with a name like LOUD! Creative Group.” said a recent prospect.

Why do Fortune 500 companies pay over $35,000 for a name? Because names make a company’s first impression. First impressions are crucial, and convey much of the little information about you that the prospects have.

Think about it for a moment… It’s not a gear shift… it’s a “Magnesium Paddle Shifter.” It’s not just water… it’s “Propel Fitness Water.” It’s not just a family diner… it’s “The Cheesecake Factory.” It’s not just an electric razor… it’s the “Braun Contour.” It’s not just hand soap… it’s “Tranquil Mint Aromatherapy.” It’s not just a personal computer… it’s a “Quad-Core Mac Pro.” Clearly I could go on and on, but I think you’re getting the point. Whether you’re naming your company, your organization, your service or your product… names matter.

In his book; “Selling The Invisible,” Harry Beckwith articulates this very well. He suggests that you put your name to the “Information Per Inch” test. How much valuable information per inch does your name imply?

A wonderfully named San Francisco based company perfectly illustrates the “Information Per Inch” principal. “NameLab”, a company that specializes in naming products. With lighting speed, NameLab’s name suggests the company takes a near scientific, analytical approach to developing names… something distinct in its industry.

Beyond that… the freshness and slight whimzy of the name also suggests the companys capacity for creative, right brain thinking. “NameLab” conveys a powerful double meaning to its prospects… with an excellent information per inch ratio…

Ask yourself… If you needed a name… Whom would you call first… Names Inc., The Name Company, or NameLab?

A week later… which comany’s name would you remember? Give every name you consider… the “Information Per Inch” test.

Please feel free to share your comments. I’d be thrilled to hear from you.

Martin Sklar; Vice Chairman and Principal Creative Executive Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) created 6 commandments, or rules for building and space design, but they also apply to your identity and marketing efforts… everything from your lobby to your letterhead and print collateral, from your website(s), to your email marketing.

They are as follows:

COMMANDMENT 1: Wear your guest’s shoes. Never forget the human factor. Keep your marketing and environment personable.

COMMANDMENT 2. Create a weenie… a visual centerpiece that draws people to it.

COMMANDMENT 3. Avoid Overload. K.I.S.S.

COMMANDMENT 4. Tell one story at a time.

COMMANDMENT 5. Avoid visual contradictions. Maintain a consistent identity.

COMMANDMENT 6. Keep it up. No crumbs, no loose threads, nothing.

Your environment and marketing tools are crucial to your client’s experience. Make yours exceptional!

Harry Beckwith cites in his book “What Clients Love…”

“Your space; a key element of your packaging, does more than project how special you are. It reminds your clients of how special they are.”