Standing at the highest point in San Francisco, one can’t help breaking into a chorus of “I left my heart in San Francisco”. I’ve been there many times throughout the years and still get a thrill every time I visit whether on business or for pleasure. I’ve often said that I’d rather go back to the “city by the Bay” 10 more times than take one trip to a third world country. San Francisco is more than a city. It’s a brand. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t have a special feeling or relationship with the city. Thinking about it, shouldn’t a store or product have the same time of feeling toward its brand as well. Without a relationship, I always say, there is no brand. This is what the Heart of the Brand is all about. So much of today’s marketing is focused solely on the Truth of the Brand (i.e. the facts, just the facts) that the customer fails to have any feelings (good or bad) about that brand and sees it as just another storefront or product on the shelf.
The other night I decided to watch one of the top rated TV shows and take note of the commercials that ran both on the network as well as the local breaks. During that one-hour program, there were, by my count, 12 commercials and not one of them gave any reason beyond price/promotional deal or product facts for the viewer to consider purchasing the advertised product. So, where’s the branding? It seems like most advertisers have abandoned trying to build an emotional relationship with the customer and give him/her a distinguishable value that would convince them to buy.
There are exceptions and it’s no surprise that the companies that have a message targeted at the heart of the customer are the one’s who continue to grow their market share.
Publix food stores are a great example. First, the company runs really great stores that are clean, efficient, and staffed by generally friendly, helpful people. But when it comes to advertising, the company goes beyond its ongoing BOGO offers to remain price competitive by running commercials and offering mailings that remind us that having dinners and lunches with our families are important. Over Easter, while most food stores hawk their discounts on the Easter hams, Publix ran (for the second year at least) a 60 second spot that celebrates a family dinner and a special relationship between a brother and sister that tugs at your heart and builds a relationship with the brand at the same time.
The company does this all year by tying in important family gatherings with the benefits of shopping at a store that’s part of the family for years.
Crate & Barrel has grown over the years by providing a great shopping environment, with neat and exciting merchandise that translates to the home experience as well. It has assumed the role, over the years, as the contemporary customer’s lifestyle guide and makes one feel at home whenever he/she comes into the store. Their advertising has always been as cool as the stores making the merchandise come alive and relevant to the lifestyle of their customers. While their prices are competitive with all the mass merchants, the company realizes that it’s an emotional choice to shop there and it’s all part of being a welcome guest in our homes.
Walgreen’s recently announced that it was installing charging stations for electric cars in 150 of its Chicagoland stores. This is just one more step in the company’s commitment to providing the convenience that today’s drugstore customer expects when they visit the stores as many as 3-4 times per week. Whether it’s in-store medical clinics (that I have found to be really are professional and caring ) or pharmacy systems that really make filling and re-filling prescriptions almost effortless. To have a pharmacist call you personally to offer to go over all of your medications and give you an assessment and summary has nothing to do with $4 generics, but it has everything to do with keeping you healthy and keeping you as a loyal customer in the future. The stores are as promotional as ever, but when it comes down to it they know that their customers are need driven and they have to meet those needs consistently to reach the heart of the loyal shopper.
Home Depot has gotten back on the track that made it so successful over the years by providing helpful customer service in every aisle. On a recent trip to “just pick up a couple of things”, I was approached by a smiling, friendly orange-aproned associate making sure that I found what I needed and offering to help with any questions that I might have (and who doesn’t have questions when you’re at Home Depot? The company’s support of the Olympic athletes over the year is more than just a good marketing handle, it’s representative of the heart of this brand as a good neighbor and good citizen. The recent rash of tornadoes and floods have moved the local stores to action as the caring company to help you through really tough times.
Chrysler just announced a quarterly profit for the first time in over five years and I don’t think it’s because of their new relationship with Fiat or divorce from Daimler Benz. Besides appealing to its employees and U.S. customers as a Detroit-based company with great American standards, Chrysler has improved its messages in the media with a straightforward approach that gets to the heart of the customer a lot more effectively than another Toyotathon or factory rebate/$100 off factory invoice promotion. The company shed itself of many underperforming brands and dealerships and refined it’s assortment and the stores where they are sold to make it a pleasant experience to buy one of their cars.
McDonald’s is part of most of America’s dining experience every day. However, the recent performance in sales, I believe, is a result of tailoring its menu and service to today’s customer and making it fun to eat there again. From it’s competitive coffee shop offerings to tasty new entrée’s, they have gone beyond fast food to broaden their appeal to various day-parts and lifestyles. However, they continue to go after the heart of their consumers with their ongoing Ronal McDonald Charities and supporting community activities that make them a good neighbor as well.
Kohl’s is as aggressive as anyone with its promotional program that hits the customer 2-3 times a week. While I question sometimes whether this is overkill, their performance seems to justify the reliance on strong promotions. However, when you look at the power of their word-of-mouth advertising, you have to give credit to all of their other activities that go right to the heart of the customers. Kohl’s support of children’s hospital fund raisers and health education has endeared them to young parents who just happen to be their target customers as well. The company has expanded aggressively over the years but it has also made itself a good neighbor on a local basis and it’s paying off at the registers.
There are many examples and it makes you wonder why more advertisers don’t take note and start giving their customers a reason to like them rather than just be aware of the next sale event. Going after the heart of the customer just makes good business sense and is essential for a strong brand position.
COMING SOON. A new way to improve your branding can be found in a new book that I have co-authored with fellow NSA member and communications expert, Robyn Winters. The book is at our publisher and will soon be available on Amazon, Kindle and through our website. In the book we take a look at the four buying styles that all of us use to decide on what brands to shop, buy, and use. Then, we use these styles to help you implement a four-step process to develop a more effective brand. We think it’s a revolutionary way of thinking when it comes to branding and believe you’ll find it helpful in stimulating your brand’s market share.
More information will be coming soon and watch for a special offer to our friends and blog readers.
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