“We Live In the Golden Age of Brands”
--by John D. Moore The BrandPro Brand Development, marketing communications, coach and consultant brandpro@jdmpromotions.com www.jdmpromotions.com
Drive down any street, interstate highway, or country road and it becomes apparent. The days of mom and pop convenience stores, restaurants, gas stations, donut shops, hardware stores and most of individually wrapped, small town, small business enterprise is in rapid decline. It seems like all parts of our life has become franchised….what we eat…what we wear…where we shop…even what we watch on television. Brands and familiar names are the marketplace winners. It seems that we always choose from things that we already know.
How many times have you heard the comment, “I’ll go with that one. I’ve heard a lot about it”?
Even the internet isn’t immune. Do you trust some search engine you don’t know, or do you use Google, Yahoo, or one of the other major names? I thought so.
Brands, and the names we feel comfortable with, overspread our lives. We make our shopping and buying decisions based, at least partially, on the brand name factor. The power of a brand name extends far beyond our normal day’s need fulfillment activities. We choose a movie that has a known actor or actress. We buy a ticket to a sporting event based on the desirability of the teams. We even vote for our politicians based upon their “brand.”
We choose where to buy, when to buy, and how to buy, based on the drawing power of brands. Ever wonder why department stores have winter clothes on the rack immediately after the 4th of July? They want you to buy their brand (the store), the brands they carry (products), on the timetable they want (sooner than later), and at the terms they promote (early bird specials.)
And when it’s all said and done, they survey us to reinforce the brand name and indirectly reward us for “making the right decision.”
Brands define the world we live in. Ever wonder why one shopping mall looks like another? What developer in their right mind would load up a mall with stores that nobody has heard about?
Brands also provide a huge impact on our self esteem. Got to have that big SUV, sports car or import! Nobody is immune to the power of a brand.
All these factors inherent in a strong brand mold our buying patterns and motivations. A solid brand name has a better chance of not only surviving, but winning, in the marketplace. That makes it tough on small businesses. Not a very even playing field do you think?
But all is not lost for small businesses. The hope lies within the concept of brand names and branding itself. What?
Brands imply different degrees of value that appeal to the varying and shifting self interests of the consumer. Branding is not only a science but an art as well. A small business can build up a name for itself by finding the niche to serve and doing it well…products and services.
And when that success is strong enough then the small business, the mom and pop operation, will spread outward from the center and become a local brand, then a regional brand, and finally another solid brand name we see everywhere in America.
After all that’s normal. We do live in the Golden Age of Brands.