You can’t amplify something that isn’t there. Good marketing plays a major role in motivating sales and consumer love by expressing what a brand stands for. But it can have a powerful multiplier effect if the core idea around the brand, ie its proposition, is strong, genuine and meaningful to the target audience.
We’ve been analysing the world’s most valuable brands across the first 10 years of results from our BrandZ Top 100 to define, for the first time, what’s driven those that have grown their value fastest. It was a turbulent decade by anyone’s standards and the answer is that they have all combined a brand proposition that consumers see as distinctive and unique with creative communication.
These top risers – which include Apple, Nike, BMW, Coca-Cola, IBM, FedEx, Ikea, Colgate, Chanel and McDonald’s – achieved a combined value growth of 168% over the 10 years. This compares with a 27% increase for those brands consumers thought had “excellent advertising” but a weaker brand proposition.
Advertising alone struggles to deliver value if the brand proposition is not clear and meaningful. A strong proposition, however, stands pretty well on its own. In our study, the value of the brands that focused on this rose 76% over the 10 years, even where they didn’t have excellent advertising. Having a great story is the most important thing, even if you perhaps don’t tell it as well as you could. Combine the two and it’s like rocket fuel for the brand.
These fast-growing brands have excelled at refreshing their message within a consistent framework that reflects their core purpose, with management systems that ensure an integrated brand experience across all activities.
Take Apple, currently the world’s most valuable brand, with growth of 67% since last year. It has promoted the quality of its user experience while providing excitement in the form of new, transformative products.
The second most valuable car brand in the world, BMW, has focused communications on its superior driving experience, emphasising this with adverts that showcase its heritage. It has done this while catering to new consumer desires – for example, responding to the demand for vehicles that combine high performance with environmental responsibility with the BMWi hybrid.
Coca-Cola’s popular Share a Coke campaign reflected its purpose (#choosehappiness) while taking it in an innovative direction. At the same time, it strengthened the core brand idea by unifying four product variants under its iconic masterbrand and amplifying this with campaigns including one celebrating the centenary of its famous contoured bottle. Coca-Cola is number eight in the BrandZ Top 100 ranking.
So how can brands achieve that perfect partnership of proposition and communications?
Be clear on what the brand means
The big idea around the brand itself is more important than the big idea behind your marketing campaign. According to our analysis of the BrandZ Top 100, the magic ingredient is “difference” – the ability to define yourself as something other than your competitors. The 50 brands that score highest on difference grew their value by 124% over 10 years, while those in the bottom 50 (also strong brands) boosted their value by just 24%.
Good performance no longer helps a brand command a premium or keep customers returning. When people need a clear reason to choose one product or service over the next, being different becomes more important. A point of difference can be found in product functionality, but also in the brand experience and communications.
The vital thing is that it reflects a purpose that’s inspiring and relevant to consumers. Then, suffuse that meaning and difference through all parts of the organisation and manifest it in everything you do. If you don’t live the brand purpose, why should your customers believe in it?
Articulate the purpose creatively
Do this with one voice, across every point at which the consumer touches your brand to build a seamless experience. Testing and evaluation can help you understand whether the proposition is being expressed and consumed in the right way in the marketplace. Use these insights to quickly adapt your message.
Even the best communication is, by itself, often insufficient. While advertising can drive brand value by influencing purchase decisions and building perceptions that lead to sustained loyalty, this is only possible if there’s a strong proposition and identity at the heart of the brand. Without it, even the best campaign is powerless.
Amanda Phillips is UK head of marketing at Millward Brown
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