brand purpose answer_the_question_lets_act_positively

ISSUE 01 - DECEMBER 2015

BRAND PURPOSE - ANSWER THE WHY QUESTION & LETS ACT POSITIVELY | 1

BRAND PURPOSEANSWER THE WHY QUESTION& LETS ACT POSITIVELY



W hen talking about successful brand, most of us in blink mention names like Coke, Starbucks, Nike, Apple, Facebook and Google,

just to name a few. There are reasons for loving one particular brand. Some people expressed that “I feel excited when drinking Coke” or “Starbucks makes you so comfortable as if you were in your living room” or “the more I wear Nike products, the deeper I fall in love with sport”. They not only provide tangible products but also give a hand to build up customers’ lives. By not being just simply brands but being inner friends of customers, these brands have grown sustainably and strongly. Starbucks retains the largest coffee company and retailer chain in the world; while Coke stays the No.1 world beverage brand. Apple and Nike always tell us the most aspirational stories.

Obviously, these brands play meaningful roles to everyone as “making life happy”, “connecting friends”, and “empowering me to do training”, much beyond functional benefits of products like refreshing, or awaken up, or dry-fit sport gear. How broad and purposeful they are! These brands have gone beyond WHAT their products or services can offer and given the reasons “WHY THEY ARE MEANINGFUL TO AND CAREDBY CONSUMERS” from which they define their BRAND PURPOSES. The brand purpose also gives insightful direction for corporation’s activities. Nike’s brand purpose inspires it to create solutions for customers to be professional athletes such as Nike+ Fuelband and App for managing exercise regime. Coke always surprises worldwide audiences with creative marketing campaigns, while Starbucks satisfies consumers with coffee time experiences.

We usually wonder whether Brand Purpose is relevant in Vietnam context where customers are thought to be “simple shoppers” who just focus on product’s functions. In my POV, the answer is a definite YES. Starting the fact that to based on the 4 following factors.

Consumers

Besides basic needs, the final goal of every human being is to earn a bright and happy life. Young people have great exposure to the civilized movements such as “Ve di Vang oi” campaign to secure dogs, “Kien Tao Nhip Cau” program to build bridges for rural areas, Earth Hour and wild animal protection. These movements somehow affect attitudes and behaviors of consumers and motivate them to support meaningful practices to society and their lives. Gradually, those things also influence the way customers judge the brands and appreciate brands meaningful rather just only selling for money.



Brand Values

Fundamentally functional benefits does hold anymore, 62% consumers in urban and 60% consumers in rural downgraded to lower price products if they don’t see clear value for paying expensive and consumer loyalty has dropped regularly from 80% in 2010 to 73% in 2014. Functional benefits are marginally differentiated; the emotional connection with consumers, in many cases, defines consumers’ purchase behaviors. This emotional connection can just be established when brands understand and speak customers’ inner voices such as believes, tensions and values. It means that brand’s social point of view (POV) is important to touch the heart of customers, sometimes more than brand’s point of difference (POD).

Media Landscape

With 80% Internet penetration in Vietnam, the one-way message that brand advertised tries to influence consumers cannot lead the way they judge brand’s values. They are wise to observe and judge the brand through a number of perspectives conveyed in social point of views, in store activities, product and service quality, public management and influence, and crisis management, and corporate social responsibility. Brands hardly keep their secrets because things are more transparent and sharable via social network that happens 24 hours and 7 days round. Hence, managing brand today is far more important than just doing advertising. It requires holistic and consistent approach to strategize and build brand to build strong and long-term connection with consumers. It requires always-on communication to engage with consumers. To do so, brand requires its strong values and purpose along with its holistic communication platform to have consistent and trusted conversation with audiences. One way advertising is too narrow for brands to approach consumers. Please remember that only 65% of audiences wants to share negative news while only 50% of them wants to share positive messages.



Marketers Accountability

It sometimes comes as our surprise that consumers talk and think the way we have tried to tell them. There is no debate that marketing overtime has strong influence on consumer’s minds, and social and cultural behaviors. Then we marketers better choose to influence them positively via setting right values, encouraging healthy behaviors, and igniting good purpose.

This is a reason why The Purpose Group encourages purpose-driven brand building and helps brands to create products and services which positively build up customers’ lives. By doing this, brands will be meaningful to consumers and gain their trust and long-term supports and grow sustainably.

Giang NguyễnGroup DirectorThe Purpose Group

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