We have seen that branding is essentially the process of discovering and expressing clearly and coherently the uniqueness of a business. It is the starting point in a much broader journey in brand building. Once the idea of the brand is discovered, it must be made tangible at the level of the four vectors that support the construction of a brand:
1. Product & Services
2. Communique
3. Behavior of the organization
4th. The environmental environment in which the brand manifests itself
Of course, depending on the business category, each vector influences to a greater or lesser extent the construction of a brand. For example, if we are talking about a pharmacy brand, the construction of the brand is based on two vectors: the environmental environment and the behavior of the people serving. Conversely, if we talk about a classic bank brand, in an industry where products are similar and difficult for consumers to compare, the most important brand vectors are: the environmental environment (branches), brand communication and people's behavior.
Here is, in short, some information about the vectors that build a brand:
Product & Services
The construction of a product brand starts, as is natural, from the product. The product itself is the central vector in the construction of the brand. No matter how much you invest in other brand vectors, a bad product will not build a brand. Unlike other vectors, it is the product that can convey in a more concrete form the idea of the brand. That's because everything that has a tangible representation more easily transmits the message from the base to us. The central concern of product companies remains to keep intact the brand idea behind the product, to reaffirm it and value it throughout its lifetime.
Of course, if the product is ok and bases its evolution on a central idea, other vectors, such as communication, will also have a positive impact in the development of the brand.
Communique
Most of the time, businesses confuse branding with communication. As we have discovered so far, branding is more than that. Communication is only one of the building vectors of the brand and becomes important for certain categories of business. Food brands, for example, build their identity through advertising and massive promotional campaigns. The emergence of the Internet has most influenced this brand vector and has led companies to open the door to dialogue with their consumers. Thus, consumers not only receive messages from brands, but can respond in real time, take a stand against a brand's actions, relate to other consumers, and trigger massive movements for or against a brand.
Behavior
This vector constructs and reflects how the people of an organization relate inside the organization and with audiences outside (customers). It is the main vector in the construction of service brands: medical, business consulting, networks of specialized stores, airlines, banks, education, etc. So important is the human component in service brands that it is considered that people are, in fact, the brand for this category of business. People being the ones who through their behavior create the experience with the brand. Therefore, from the perspective of building a service brand, priority is the actions to accommodate the behaviors of people in the organization with the idea of the brand, to understand it and to act in its spirit.
Ambient
Brands in categories such as hotels, resorts, amusement parks and retail are strongly driven by the ambient vector. Of course, in the case of brands in these categories, communication and employee behavior are also important, but the environmental experience is decisive for the development of the brand.
They are product brands that complete the experience with the product, bringing it into an ambient environment that speaks to the personality and aspirations of the brand, such as cafes or automobiles. Exposing brands in a setting that enriches the sensory experience with them has been adopted from the earliest moments of the life of many brands. 100 years ago, for example, the Ford showroom reproduced the ambience of a middle-class American family and spoke in this way of entrepreneur Henry Ford's vision to democratize access to an automobile.
Questions for you:
1. Which of the four brand vectors (product, communication, behavior, environment) are the important vectors on which the construction of your brand is based?
2. Investing in your brand has been prioritized in the area of the specified vectors?
3. Have you made sure that decisions made in favor of one brand vector do not affect the performance of another vector? For example, how do you think BMW brand communication (“the ultimate driving machine”) will be affected by the introduction of the electric car? What could be the consequences?
4th. If you have a service business, have you considered including brand assimilation trainings in your specialized training budget? What do you do so that a good specialist in your team is also a person who behaves in accordance with what the idea of your brand conveys?
5. How do you manage to communicate with your consumers, fans of your brand, or even those who hate your brand? For example, Ikea has faced a wave of protests from its fans for calling for the closure of the website www.ikeahackers.net, whose purpose was to create new experiences with Ikea products. How would you have solved this situation?