Thursday, March 18, 2010
How the Econonomy Is Affecting Brands
I'm working on a response to a branding/brand-licensing article for the April issue of Royaltie$ (a trade magazine that covers the licensing and intellectual property rights industry). The journalist is interested in the world of brands and branding. He is focused on the current state of brands in the marketplace, what effects the economy has had on brands and how consumer opinions on brands may shift as the economy recovers. He also wants to cover the rise of private label during the recession.
As a professor who teaches branding at the graduate school level and as someone who runs a branding agency, I definitely have some thoughts on these topics. So here are goes:
1. Many brands are suffering in today’s marketplace either because there are insufficient marketing budgets to keep awareness levels where they need to be or because they represent the types of products or services that do not jibe with a weak economy.
2. Certain brands like Walmart have actually grown in this economy because they saw a brand positioning that was spot on. They talk to the public in terms of “providing excellent value” when people want it more than ever and they leverage their own brand by advertising well-known brands that they can offer at a lower price. Target has followed this lead and seems to be getting stronger as a result according to one of their buyers I spoke with recently.
3. As for private label, these products are price-driven and will always do well in this kind of economy. The question that should be asked is “Will they still be around after an economic recovery?” Some will, but most won’t.
Hope these thoughts help you in your marketing planning.
As a professor who teaches branding at the graduate school level and as someone who runs a branding agency, I definitely have some thoughts on these topics. So here are goes:
1. Many brands are suffering in today’s marketplace either because there are insufficient marketing budgets to keep awareness levels where they need to be or because they represent the types of products or services that do not jibe with a weak economy.
2. Certain brands like Walmart have actually grown in this economy because they saw a brand positioning that was spot on. They talk to the public in terms of “providing excellent value” when people want it more than ever and they leverage their own brand by advertising well-known brands that they can offer at a lower price. Target has followed this lead and seems to be getting stronger as a result according to one of their buyers I spoke with recently.
3. As for private label, these products are price-driven and will always do well in this kind of economy. The question that should be asked is “Will they still be around after an economic recovery?” Some will, but most won’t.
Hope these thoughts help you in your marketing planning.
Monday, March 08, 2010
ABC-Cablevision Dispute Causes Pain
Last night, I had the pleasure of being interviewed for a segment on the ABC-Cablevision controversy for CBS Network News. I was literally walking out of church when I turned on my cell phone and got the call. I had to go home, change clothes and do some quick fact-checking online and be at CBS studios on the West Side all within two hours. The fun part about the interview (thanks to a very smart producer named Kim) was that we had to do two versions - one if the NYC black out would continue throughout the evening and another if a deal was struck to air the Academy Awards to Cablevision's 3.1 million subscribers in New York and other parts of the Metropolitan Area. Needless to say, it was a good thing that we did the alternate version because the show was aired twenty some odd minutes after it started.
It was (and is) my opinion that this kind of squabble will happen again. It will happen around a major television event where the ratings are large and it can happen in any part of the country. The pattern has been set and people know how to create the controversy to their best advantage.
It's really a shame that it happens at all. Television used to be free, an American privilege or right that we didn't have to pay for. When the news hit that there was going to be a blackout, stores that sell digital antennas (priced from $9.99 to over $150) were packed. Once again, the hard-working consumer felt some economic pain by being forced to buy something that was unnecessary or pay more to change their cable system. A local Best Buy had lines around the building before it opened yesterday morning. They sold every digital antenna in the store. Verizon's FIOS reportedly got a lot of good reaction to their $75 discount to sign up right away. If there was an opportunity to make money out of this contract dispute (which started to get ugly), you bet someone took advantage of that opportunity.
I was once a trustee on a public broadcasting network. When I learned that HDTV was being mandated to convert its production to all digital by a fixed date and the commercial networks were to follow soon thereafter, I predicted something like this was inevitable. It got to the point where I stepped down from the Board as a result.
Regardless, it's here and will not change. The only thing that will change is that more situations like this will happen again. To see the clip, cut and paster the link below.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://cnettv.cnet.com/cable-wars-continue/9742-1_53-50084591.html&ct=ga&cd=UjY7fP4xnSg&usg=AFQjCNGDImfhRKr6NB08i3Y44ReXwxmPtQ
It was (and is) my opinion that this kind of squabble will happen again. It will happen around a major television event where the ratings are large and it can happen in any part of the country. The pattern has been set and people know how to create the controversy to their best advantage.
It's really a shame that it happens at all. Television used to be free, an American privilege or right that we didn't have to pay for. When the news hit that there was going to be a blackout, stores that sell digital antennas (priced from $9.99 to over $150) were packed. Once again, the hard-working consumer felt some economic pain by being forced to buy something that was unnecessary or pay more to change their cable system. A local Best Buy had lines around the building before it opened yesterday morning. They sold every digital antenna in the store. Verizon's FIOS reportedly got a lot of good reaction to their $75 discount to sign up right away. If there was an opportunity to make money out of this contract dispute (which started to get ugly), you bet someone took advantage of that opportunity.
I was once a trustee on a public broadcasting network. When I learned that HDTV was being mandated to convert its production to all digital by a fixed date and the commercial networks were to follow soon thereafter, I predicted something like this was inevitable. It got to the point where I stepped down from the Board as a result.
Regardless, it's here and will not change. The only thing that will change is that more situations like this will happen again. To see the clip, cut and paster the link below.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://cnettv.cnet.com/cable-wars-continue/9742-1_53-50084591.html&ct=ga&cd=UjY7fP4xnSg&usg=AFQjCNGDImfhRKr6NB08i3Y44ReXwxmPtQ
