The Importance of Branding

Michael La Kier

Board Member & Marketing Committee Member, The Coca-Cola Company Family Federal Credit Union

What is a brand?• Definition

– Representation of a bundle of goods and/or services “sold” to consumers

Why create a brand?

• Importance– In a world of clutter, branding

can represent a point of difference

Importance of branding to

The Coca-Cola Company• Beverages are just beverages, right?

• Critical element to:– Create an emotional

connection– Build an on-going

relationship– Create order from

chaos

Services vs Product Marketing

• Intangibility of offering

• Services “consumed” immediately

• Employees an integral part of the experience

• Bottom line: services more difficult to brand and market

Putting the principles into action

• Desire to create a better, clearer identity and have a POV

• To be more than just an ‘alternative to a bank’

• To play up our point of difference