“Build it and they will come.” That’s what many brand owners think. Producers and retailers hope that cash infusions, quality products or glitzy retail environments, and a marketing campaign are going to result in fame, fortune and fandom.
Hope isn’t a strategy.
Glitz, glamor and gimmicks are short lived memories, and will not result in an indelible brand identity. The best way to get a cult status for a sports and outdoor brand is to employ a tactic of disruptive branding. Employ a surprising and fresh strategy and follow through.
There’s real potential with so many consumer and retail brands—that ought to be rock stars—so why don’t they make it to the top? The answer: too much competition and way too much sameness. It’s up to the game changers out there to step up to the plate; to change the world or stand apart from it. What’s at stake: making a huge mark or accepting mediocrity.
This is all about finding the very heart and soul of the brand, the true differentiator, and shining a spotlight on it, by conveying this difference to your customers. . But it doesn’t just happen. There needs to be a collusion of ideas and key identity component to come together. Think: synergy. We’re talking a soulful, one-of-a-kind branding and positioning. Bought into from the C-Suite, trickled down to every employee,leading to a seamless, holistic brand strategy and all-encompassing design strategy. One that covers packaging, marketing communication, advertising, promotions, and store environments. All in unison. A mesmerizing brand voice to its fan cult.
All of it leading like the Yellow Brick Road to a magical Oz of unforgettable customer experiences. The kind that turns customers into rabid fans (read: fanatics.) The kind that creates buzz that spreads like wildfire, attracts more fans and forms a religion around the brands that get it right.
The Difference Between the Average Yoga Clothing Brand and Lululemon
Why aren’t scads of yoga gear brands as hot as Lululemon? Yoga’s hotter than hot; most yoga brands are not. Why is that? Lululemon’s selling pricey yoga apparel and gear. Sure. But the focus—like a laser beam—is on total customer experience. Hosting yoga classes (retail environment as an ongoing destination) filled with yoga fanatics and moms dabbling in the art. But it’s the way Lululemon does it. Weekly classes are free just like the “gift” of well-being to its fans. Local yoga teachers preach the Gospel of Lululemon to their flocks.!
Lululemon’s holistic brand wears its heart on its sleeve and bares its soul: inspiring and invigorating its fans, who need and want Lululemon and consciously make it a lifestyle choice. Translation: they totally identify with the brand. They belong. They’ve formed a special community with like-minded souls, themselves rabid fans: it’s a cult.
This is so basic, so human and so universal; it makes us wonder why many totally ignore it.
Cabela’s vs. the Myriad of Discount Sporting Good Stores
Then there’s Cabela’s, the self-described “ World’s Foremost Outfitter of hunting, fishing and outdoor gear” with a unique brand, offering unforgettable experiences for outdoor enthusiasts. Its retail stores are destinations and worlds of their own. Museum-quality displays of wildlife, large aquariums, indoor mountains, and archery ranges educate and entertain; meccas for a cult of outdoorsmen who share experiences and knowledge with each other. And with informed, avid staff who share their passions and help them to outfit for their next outdoor adventures. The story-telling and the legend grows. There’s the magic.
The unique brand experience is seamlessly delivered in retail company catalogs, online and now in specially designed mobile apps. There’s the science behind the magic. As the Cabela Cult moves to new outdoor experiences, the brand is everywhere the cult is. The legend grows…
What’s best part about the Cabela’s brand?
The remarkable, fanatical devotion to consistently deliver the brand vision of its founders—since 1961. How many outdoor brands have that staying power? We all know the answer to that question. Moral of story: got a great brand that delivers extraordinary customer experiences? Maintain it. And keep on sharing it with your loyal fan base through strong stories, meaningful symbolism and well designed experiences.
So your brand isn’t Lululemon or Cabela’s. What to do?
Should other brands become imitators of the leaders? Never. Every brand is one of a kind. Getting to the heart and soul and projecting it in a unique brand voice: it’s a galvanizing call to fans. Digging deep and telling the story turns fans into a brand cult. But only when fully engaging them in memorable experiences: that’s what makes magic. It’s all done with the science of branding and the art of design. Coming together–in perfect harmony.
Diana Fryc
For Diana, a fierce determination to pursue what’s right is rooted in her DNA. The daughter of parents who endured unimaginable hardship before emigrating from Eastern Europe to the U.S., she is built for a higher purpose. Starting with an experience working with Jane Goodall to source sustainably made paper, she went on to a career helping Corporate America normalize the use of environmentally responsible products and materials before coming to Retail Voodoo.
You’d think that when it comes to sports and outdoor merchandise, packaging would pack a punch. But we’re just not feeling it. Can’t even bear to look at the sea of wimpy, tired-looking packaging examples out there that trying to drown consumers with feature and benefit claims. So much packaging to refresh; so little time to get it done before the products they contain—and their brands—fail.
Rather than pointing to failures, we’d rather focus on packaging that’s gone from tired to inspired hoping that brand managers might reconsider their own packaged products and take them from bland to grand. Caveat: adopting the latest graphic design ideas and pretty imagery might give packaging a face-lift but as we all know, that’s only skin deep. Refreshing a packaging system is about more than proving one’s design chops.
The brand has to be at the core of new or refreshed packaging to be meaningful. To speak with an authentic voice. To clearly illustrate why it’s unique. To engage consumers and hold them in thrall. The right packaging has the power to do all of this. But first it has to appeal to customer emotions quickly and convincingly prompting purchase and loyalty. In the case of sports and outdoor gear, it’s crucial to capture the most emotive elements that tie the customer to the activities themselves via packaging. As marketing researcher Martin Lindstrom points out: aligning fans’ emotions about favorite sports and aligning them with sports-related products triggers the same response in the brain and cements their importance and desirability by association.
The Universality of Archetypes
Brand implementation based in an archetype has great power. Archetypal brands have compelling stories that are universally or globally understood, memorable, and persuasive in their appeal to specific consumers who become emotionally invested in them. Storytelling is as old as mankind, yet there are only a small, finite number of universal themes, so it is crucial for brands to first identify themselves by archetype and then to weave a unique story within that framework. For example, there are a number of cult brands that are based on magician archetypes, but there is only one Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap; only one Disney.
They have unique stories based on their founders’ visions. Those visions grew as posthumous chapters were written that began to weave their founder’s unique point of view and history into brand’s new frontier. Even with new, invented landscapes Dr. Bronner’s and Disney magician archetypes success comes from being so single-minded that they are willing to ignore everyone for whom the brand’s core values and belief systems don’t resonate. Instead of trying to be all things to all people, they have built their brand by focusing on a small, but dedicated group who value what’s important to the brand, and who strongly believe that, through and with them, dreams do come true.
Lindstrom daringly declares that this has the same effect as religious imagery for fans. Preach on, Brother Lindstrom!
Revitalization comes in different forms: repackaging the blasé and ineffective that’s already out there; rethinking the utilitarian turning it into something more; reimagining the way the entire category is packaged for better functionality. When it comes to sports and outdoor activities having the right gear to achieve performance goals matters. So why doesn’t the packaging that’s selling the gear perform?
Case in point: LIV Organic
The USDA certified energy recovery drink for athletes had a good product. But its original packaging didn’t do anything to sell the product or brand. In fact, it worked against it. Since organic drinks don’t feature neon, artificial colors, they fade with light exposure. Even worse: a non-descript bottle structure and generic-looking labels did nothing to reinforce the brand, merely stating: “Organic Sports Drink” under the brand identity, followed by the flavor. A package refresh was needed.
LIV Organic’s original packaging might have passed for artifically flavored juice drinks.
We love the new packaging. Shrink-wrapped sleeves over PET bottles are color-coded to flavors while protecting the integrity of the product. The sleeve literally has sports written all over it. Action verbs like “pedal”, “score”, “pump”, “swat” and “rappel” tell the story at a glance. On the bottom of each label: “Re-fuel”. Enough said. Genius. The newly designed package structure is easy to hold and drink from, even in the midst of activities. Yeah! Now consumers see all the good stuff about this branded product at a glance—in a few seconds flat. That’s all the time brands have to make an impact on retail shelves, so how cool is this?
LIV Organic’s new packaging makes a promise that the recovery drink inside will get you back into the action.
Speaking of cool, who saves the packaging after purchasing new athletic shoes? What happens to shoe boxes? They end up in the recycling bin. PUMA reimagined the utilitarian with more sustainable packaging that would prompt reuse. Now its athletic shoes come in box bottoms that get tucked inside of a reusable “clever little bag”. Lidless is beautiful. So is the bag in brand signature red with white puma. This makes us wonder: why hasn’t this solution been thought of before? Every time consumers reuse the bag they’re walking ads for PUMA. Nobody sees the packaging until they buy the product but everybody sees it afterward. Think of the buzz this can generate. This works: love it.
Puma’s Clever Little Bag is a great example of packaging innovation that gives the container an afterlife.
Athletic and outdoor gear packaging brands ought to be champions of innovative packaging. After all, they’re all about innovating products, even the most basic, so why should packaging lag behind? Perfect example: what’s exciting about fishing line? Pretty mundane, huh? Not to Pure Fishing of Iowa. Its Berkley brand NanoFil fishing line is pretty innovative: minimum diameter, maximum strength, it was awarded top new product overall at ICAST 2012, the world’s largest trade show for sports fishermen. Now for the best part: innovative new packaging. A twist-off blister is caught between two paperboard halves with a flange. This allows fishermen to replenish line on a fishing reel and easily return the rest to the package for future use on additional reels. No impossible-to-open clamshells. The package is easy to open, stores the product and allows consumers to recycle each portion: paperboard and blister very easily. The graphics on pack separates the man from the boys, too. This is terrific translation of branding on the package.
Berkley’s NanoFil follows the notion that form follows function.
Better functionality for basic, heavily purchased needed products? Yes! Creating brand preference among consumers and turning them into fans? Yes! Rocking an entire category and taking ownership of it? Priceless.
David Lemley
David was two decades into a design career with a wall full of shiny awards and a portfolio of clients including Nordstrom, Starbucks, Nintendo, and REI. His rocket trajectory veered when his oldest child faced a health challenge of indeterminate origin. Hundreds of research hours later, David identified food allergy as the issue and convinced skeptical medical professionals caring for his child. Since that experience, David and Retail Voodoo have been on a mission to create a cleaner, healthier, more sustainable food system for all.
Customers don’t care about the products you’re selling. They don’t care about your promotions. Your advertising doesn’t cut it, either. Stores must get out of the 20th century mind-set that they’re places of commerce. Forget about focusing on selling stuff. Consumers are moving away from “mindless to mindful consumption”. They’re spending their money with organizations who’s core brand values align with their own. And what resonates is when those values are embedded in a 360 degree experiential design strategy that’s fully implemented and adhered to.
Compelling research by John Gerzema in his book “Spend Shift” points out that a paradigm shift is well underway. What customers are interested in; what they’re craving is a great experience. The promise of one doesn’t mean much; fulfillment is all that matters. It’s no accident that consumers are going online and into brick and mortar store that offer tangible value and deliver on their promises of great experiences.
Shoe Fetish
Everybody knows how strong the retail shoe business is. Energized by growing customer interest and gross margins of up to 50%, Macy’s, Saks and Barney’s among other notable retailers are adding significant square footage to their shoe departments. Besides delivering more designer footwear, how do retailers plan on wooing customers to their stores versus the competition? Macy’s Herald Square flagship store plans on adding a champagne and chocolate bar, designer shops-within-shops and are you ready for this: shoe closets similar to those found among the well-heeled (pun intended) in SoHo. Really?
Here’s the thing: Macy’s efforts to create memorable experiences among shoe shoppers should be applauded. But what values are they based on? Wooing customers with champagne is a cool idea, but where’s the core value of at Macy’s in every department? Is this enough for the retailer to convince customers that its brands fit their lifestyles, meet their expectations and are extraordinary from top to bottom?
Want proof of a retailer that gets it? Zappos.
Zappos leveraged its uber-successful footwear business for women, expanded to men’s and children’s offerings and now the online retailer has moved into apparel and accessories. All without having a physical retail presence. How did they do it? Core brand values. All spelled out and lived by every day in every way by every employee to each customer. That’s how an e-tail business took well-established, long-time retailers back to school. Zappos openly talks about the WOW factor. Delivering for the customer in an unconventional way. Above and beyond expectation. Every time. Being a little quirky and making it fun. Getting to know the customer and making their experiences the best in the business. Making sure the culture is on board and clued in. Zappos totally focused on its core values from the very beginning—and sticking to them.
No one should be amazed at Zappos’ success. Their passionate, creative approach that’s flexible and open to change while remaining grounded in a well-designed retail strategy ensures their continuing success—unless they stray from their winning formula. And here’s the kicker that other retailers need to take note of as they expand their shoe departments: Zappo’s will continue to take significant share all because of the way they live and breathe their core brand values. It all translates into great experiences for the customers who have formed a tribe around their favorite retail brand.
Drill Down to Those Values
Many brands start off well but through the years they lose sight of their core values. They don’t stand for anything. They make promises that they simply don’t keep. Customers become disenfranchised and disenchanted. The magic is lost and the customers begin to leave, searching for retail experiences that deliver values aligned with their own and those elusive great experiences. But here’s the good news: retailers can make magic again. By drilling down to the values they’ve lost and realigning them to every aspect of their business: employee-facing, customer-facing and stakeholder-facing, they can regain trust and confidence. They can leverage that to become the cool place to shop again. But none of this can be left to chance. To be successful, an experiential strategy has to be ingrained into every aspect of the operation by design.
Drilling down to the core enables brand owners to get to the very soul of their businesses. When core values are delivered with clarity, simplicity, a compelling brand story–with maniacal focus and consistency. These values become enshrined as a sacred brand promise; a promise that is always kept. For retailers, for any business, this concept is a game changer because a commitment to delivering brand value always leads to great experiences for the customer. And great experiences turn customers into brand zealots.
It’s hard work to deliver a simple, compelling message but it’s essential for success.
There are too many marketing messages and too much noise—all unrelated to core brand values these days. Consumers are tuning it all out. Unique selling propositions come from alignment to simply articulated core values that are highly differentiated and unique. The USP comes from that one thing that the retailer delivers better than any other in a superlative, memorable and tangible manner. The one thing that puts them into a category all by themselves: that makes them the “one and only” for a targeted group of consumers. All advertising and marketing should be rooted in that and nothing else. When these values are delivered to the customer via a well-planned, well-executed experiential strategy it brings retail brands to life.
Mojo Hides in the Basics
As previously stated even the best can get away from their roots and have to get back to basics. But the magic can be recaptured with insights, hard work and a plan. Foot Locker was a retailer that had lost its mojo when Ken Hicks took the helm in 2009. Sales are up nearly 19% since 2010 with nine quarters of growth. Foot Locker is on track to realize $6 billion in sales in 2013 which would be its best year since the company took in $5.7 billion in 2006 before plummeting to $4.8 billion during the recession.
How did Hicks do it? In an interview with Footwear News in March 2010, Hicks basically outlined the new strategy for Foot Locker. He spoke about transitioning the brand to make it more relevant to the athletic consumer (getting back to its core value proposition) versus sneaker boutiques, department stores and e-tailers: “Our goal is to be the leading global retailer of athletically inspired shoes and apparel. . . making sure we’re taking care of our customers by converting higher, taking care of our associates so they’re inspired to engage the customer and give them an exciting experience. Having been in general merchandise for a bit of my life, it’s like a decathlete: you can shot-put, you can run a sprint, you can high-jump, but you’re never as good as the shot-putter, the sprinter or the high-jumper. We’re the specialty store here, and we’re going to beat them all on shoes.”
Ken Hick’s plan:
Refocus on the retailer’s top customers: young males between the ages of 12-20 and running joint events with the likes of Nike like “House of Hoops” to push high-end, very profitable sneakers.
Up the number of employees in the stores to offer expert advice, fit and service.
Merchandise highly profitable sports apparel in the front of the stores with footwear.
Respond to trends and focusing on running shoes more than its former mainstay basketball shoes due to shifting consumer demand.
Seamlessly integrate Foot Locker retail stores and website.
Offer the best assortment and value to the customer for athletic shoes and apparel.
Ken Hicks: “We’re going to be the place to go. If you need a sneaker, you’re going to think of Foot Locker.”
Translation: We’re going to be the one and only. We’re going to own the business. Hmmm…if they stick to their core, they might even take some sneaker share away from Zappos.
This is a challenge to retailers in every category: are you ready to change the world? Get to the heart and core value of your brands. Live them so that you can deliver game-changing experiences to your customers day in and day out. Create your own cult of brand zealots.
What will you do to disrupt your entire market’s scene?
David Lemley
David was two decades into a design career with a wall full of shiny awards and a portfolio of clients including Nordstrom, Starbucks, Nintendo, and REI. His rocket trajectory veered when his oldest child faced a health challenge of indeterminate origin. Hundreds of research hours later, David identified food allergy as the issue and convinced skeptical medical professionals caring for his child. Since that experience, David and Retail Voodoo have been on a mission to create a cleaner, healthier, more sustainable food system for all.
So many retailers are at a standstill. They often blame it on a sluggish economy. But is that the problem? Consumers are spending. Maybe they’re more judicious about it, but they are buying. If they’re buying less in some retail stores than they used to, there’s a problem. And it usually boils down to a number of maladies: a brand set adrift, a loss of relevance, less than delightful customer experiences, experiences that don’t match up to the hype created by marketing campaigns or a little to a lot of each.
When this happens, retailers sometimes opt to do nothing thinking they can ride out the situation. Others decide to rebrand. Both of these choices are at opposite ends of the spectrum. Doing nothing is never a good idea. Any retail brand that is in a holding pattern or losing ground needs help; problems don’t go away by themselves and remedial action is necessary.
There are assets associated with retail brands, especially those with heritage, that have value and they shouldn’t be discarded. By doing consumer research to assess equitable assets, retailers can be returned to reinforced core brand values if they’ve gone adrift, and made more responsive to customers’ needs and current trends. Discarding assets that customers value is a terrible idea. Rather, it’s important to leverage them as the starting point to rebuild. This is what a brand refresh or revitalization is all about.
It’s never wise to throw the baby out with the bath water, unless the retail brand has so little value left that it has to undergo a total rebrand or it will go out of business. We all know of retailers that have lost focus of their brands along with relevance. Some have tried to revitalize or rebrand with excellent results while others have had dismal to catastrophic results. Ann Taylor succeeded. Sears has not.
A total rebrand may be unnecessary and might do more harm than good. Revitalization might just be the answer.
There are assets associated with retail brands, especially those with heritage, that have value and they shouldn’t be discarded. By doing consumer research to assess equitable assets, retailers can be returned to reinforced core brand values if they’ve gone adrift, and made more responsive to customers’ needs and current trends. Discarding assets that customers value is a terrible idea. Rather, it’s important to leverage them as the starting point to rebuild. This is what a brand refresh or revitalization is all about.
It’s never wise to throw the baby out with the bath water, unless the retail brand has so little value left that it has to undergo a total rebrand or it will go out of business. We all know of retailers that have lost focus of their brands along with relevance. Some have tried to revitalize or rebrand with excellent results while others have had dismal to catastrophic results. Ann Taylor succeeded. Sears has not.
Refreshes & Rebrands: Who’s Done it Well & Who Hasn’t
First, let’s acknowledge that some retailers remain rooted and true to their brands. They’re in tune with their customers, delivering strong brand experiences, anticipating customer trends and staying ahead of the competition so they remain viable. They’re constantly tweaking their brands in a smooth and consistent manner so that major overhauls are unnecessary. These retailers think constantly about helping consumers live their lives better. Their values speak to their customers’ values. New product offerings and services keep pace with the customer; they’re relevant. More than anything, they consistently deliver on their brand promises. As a result, their customers are more than loyal; they’re brand zealots. They can’t imagine a world without their favorite retailer. Their success speaks for itself. Think Nordstrom, IKEA, Whole Foods and H&M.
A Brand Wreck and a Brand Refresh
Talbots
Other retailers, once dominant among their constituents, have lost their way. Talbots, the Massachusetts-based retailer has made more than its share of mistakes in recent years in its attempts to revitalize its brand. Firmly branded as a retailer for women over the age of 35 for decades, Talbots decided to expand its retail footprint to include apparel stores for men and children, as well as apparel for these demographics in its catalogs. After trying to make it happen for a few years, the retailer closed these divisions out.
Talbot’s had always been perceived as a retailer providing updated classic apparel to mature women. The retailer then decided it should revitalize its brand by trying to cater to a younger clientele. The move made no sense. Younger women couldn’t envision themselves shopping at Talbot’s and have plenty of age-appropriate options. Yet, younger clothing styles appeared, mixed in with apparel for its mainstay customer, alienating the mature women who had always turned to Talbot’s. To make matters worse, cheaply-made, ill-fitting apparel replaced high quality, timeless clothing styles that fit mature women correctly. Instead of making itself relevant to the next generation of 35+ year olds, the retailer went after an audience it couldn’t hope to win over. Bloggers have discussed uneven customer experiences within Talbots retail stores; some have been strong and others quite disappointing. Add to that, the retailer’s website continues to present problems with frequency when customers try to make online purchases. With major disconnects and issues at every customer touch point, Talbot’s may not be around much longer.
REI
On the other hand, when Seattle-based co-op REI needed help, it was understood that the retailer had extremely loyal members and the brand had equitable assets. At 70+ years old, REI was failing to attract younger customers, which an outdoor retailer must do. REI called on retail brand design experts to research its problems and address them in a comprehensive, 360 degree manner. REI’s brand was revitalized with a new brand identity and positioning, visual branding system and customer acquisition strategy. The logo was updated along with store planning, exterior trade dress, packaging, apparel and gear marking systems and the brand standards manual. Nothing was left untouched. Most importantly, with C-suite cooperation, internal branding initiatives including employee training and an Employee Rewards program were instituted. Customer-facing initiatives included a new member loyalty program, improved catalog program, REI gift card program and bank card marketing strategy. Nothing was skin deep about this brand revitalization. End result? A marked growth in new customers, sales and locations; record profits; all without alienating its established customer base.
Rebranding Miss and Hit
Radio Shack
Radio Shack is a perfect example of a retailer that clearly misdiagnosed its problems and responded to them with the wrong solution. Unfortunately, the retailer had not kept pace with the customer. It looked old and tired losing business to competitors that offered trendy tech products and a better experience. So the decision was made in 2009 to rebrand. Unfortunately, it wasn’t well thought out or executed. Nor did it seem to be well researched. End result: the retailer changed its name from “Radio Shack” to simply “The Shack”, which sounds like a teen hangout for Rave parties. As bad as that was, the name change was clearly a marketing gimmick since the brand identity and store names remained the same! Merchandise assortments remained largely the same except for an expanded cadre of cell phones that could be purchased at Wal-Mart. That didn’t do anything to change the retailer’s image into something hip and cool, either, even though “The Shack” was meant to convey those values. The core in-store shopping experience didn’t change for the customer; it didn’t match the hype.
This whole exercise was skin deep doing nothing to revamp Radio Shack to entice new customers; it did alienate existing ones. Simply put: there was nothing authentic or believable about this rebranding effort, so it failed abysmally. The whole thing was a farce and consumers knew it. They also knew that if they wanted innovative tech products, a memorable experience and an aligned brand, the Apple Store was the place to go.
Instead of promising a total rebrand, which it clearly did not execute, Radio Shack would have been wise to bring in experts to assess whether a refresh or total rebrand was in order and then to make certain every aspect of the brand was touched and brought into alignment. By updating its core offerings with some exciting proprietary choices to reflect its customers’ current needs and by delivering on its brand promise with great customer experiences, Radio Shack might have started to turn things around.
Target
A total rebranding effort was undertaken in the late 1990’s by Target with very different results. The retailer had been branded as a discounter, competing directly with Wal-mart and K-Mart on price. The Target C suite recognized they simply couldn’t beat Wal-mart at that game; it was time to reposition, rebrand and own unique positioning. The turn-around was dramatic. “Cheap chic” resonated with fashion-conscious consumers. “Tarzhay” became a haunt for middle class and affluent consumers who touted the fact they could purchase Michael Graves designed teakettles and Isaac Mizrahi fashions at bargain pricing.
Stores environments became reflective of the new Target attitude. Advertising employed Andy Warhol-like pop culture photography and splashes of color and yes, the Campbell soup can was feted in ads. Shops within store with “only available at Target” apparel from noted fashion designers supports the retail image. Unique licensing deals and limited time offerings are relevant to trends and impress consumers that Target is far from staid; this is a retailer that’s on the move with plenty of newsworthy, changing merchandise.
Retailers that have found success have made the consumer the core of their strategy. They’ve gone after unique, ownable positioning and remained true to their core brands. They’ve worked to deliver on the brand promise every day. But many of them have done it with help. For successful turnarounds outside resources should be tapped; people who objectively conduct brand and consumer research without bias; who can present a sound, comprehensive strategy and tactics. It’s a major undertaking and no aspect of the brand can be left untouched. Experts work collaboratively with the C-suite to make it happen.
Without a 360 degree redesign, a refresh or rebrand is doomed to failure. It will not only fail to be effective; it will expedite the demise of the retail brand since consumers will be presented with a marketing proposition that isn’t authentic, makes no sense and does more harm than good. Executed poorly, a refresh or rebranding causes confusion among existing customers and fails to woo new ones. Marketing gimmicks are superficial and retailers who think they can turn things around in this manner are simply deluding themselves. Just remember the golden rule: “anything worth doing is worth doing well.”
Full disclosure: REI was a client of ours and we were happy to collaborate with them on the brand refresh mentioned in this article.
David Lemley
David was two decades into a design career with a wall full of shiny awards and a portfolio of clients including Nordstrom, Starbucks, Nintendo, and REI. His rocket trajectory veered when his oldest child faced a health challenge of indeterminate origin. Hundreds of research hours later, David identified food allergy as the issue and convinced skeptical medical professionals caring for his child. Since that experience, David and Retail Voodoo have been on a mission to create a cleaner, healthier, more sustainable food system for all.
Quick: how many new brand extensions made an impact on you last year? Can’t remember many, if any, can you?
That’s the problem.
So many new products come out and fail; So few are memorable. Even fewer are hits.
It’s just too tempting. That’s why brands repeatedly go out on the proverbial limb and extend their brands. The problem is that it’s ill-advised to extend brands without answering fundamental questions first. “What is the #1 ownable aspect of the brand in consumers’ view?” Then: are there logical reasons for wanting to extend the brand? What are they? After all, it has to make sense to the company involved or it surely won’t make sense to consumers.
What many people perceive as brand extensions are in reality, line extensions. If an established brand adds a new variety to its existing assortments, it’s a line extension. Brand extensions take an established, well-recognized, respected brand into an entirely new category or categories of consumer products.
6 Reasons for Considering Brand Extensions:
Finding logical categories to expand the brand’s footprint. Ocean Spray is a great example. Leveraging its cranberry business into the juice category and the snack category with Craisins were both logical moves and they’ve paid off.
Creating a new category that makes so much sense consumers marvel that it hasn’t been thought of before. The Tide To Go stain removing pen that treats spots no matter where consumers are is a perfect example.
Leveraging the equity of a respected brand’s assets and raising its visibility to more consumers. Harley Davidson’s biker boots and apparel are a winner for both bike owners and wannabes.
Expanding the business with products in viable categories when sales are mature in existing ones. Kellogg’s Special K is a great example of a brand that leveraged the idea of losing weight from cereal to cereal bars, shakes, waffles and crackers.
Reducing potential risk and lower costs of entry since going to market with a recognized brand is far easier than trying to build a new one from scratch. There’s inherent trust among consumers which is a major asset. Crayola is a brand that went from being a crayon company to a provider of paints, markers and creative play sets for kids.
Ability to utilize the company’s expertise in branding, marketing and advertising and sharing these resources for the fledgling brand extension until it gets established and merits its own dedicated team.
By making rational assessments and tapping into consumer research, potential mistakes that can possibly harm or dilute the parent brand can be avoided. There are plenty of examples of brand extension failures; some of them embarrassing the most powerful of consumer brands. Who remembers Richard Branson’s powerful Virgin brand’s failures: cola, jeans, liquor? Thankfully for the company the brand name is so strong that its brand extension flops didn’t damage it. That’s a rare phenomenon when a brand has experienced a number of failed extensions.
While the Virgin brand offers consumers more value, more enjoyment and an unwaveringly high level of customer service and satisfaction, it could not break into categories where it didn’t seem to “belong” in consumers’ eyes. Or in categories where powerful brands already dominate: Coca Cola, Levis jeans, Smirnoff vodka. Extensive research would have uncovered that.
7 Dangers When it Comes to Brand Extensions:
Stretching a brand that doesn’t have an ownable asset other than its brand name. There are high recognition brands that have considerable value but don’t “own” a specific asset in consumers’ minds. As a result, their brand extensions often fail. Xerox found that out. The brand is synonymous with “copiers”, not high tech. Repeated attempts to launch high tech office products and office networks failed.
Stretching a brand with an ownable asset too far. Does anyone remember Bic underwear? What is Bic’s ownable asset? The concept of “disposable”; that’s why pens, lighters and razors work for the brand and underwear was a total flop.
Not assessing what is truly ownable to the brand and then leveraging that in appropriate categories. A Harley Davidson cake decorating kit? Really? What on earth does that have to do with the rugged individualism, freedom and celebration of the open road embodied by the brand?
Launching without consumer research: finding out whether consumers will accept the brand in a specific category is crucial. Do they associate the brand with the category or not? Is it acceptable to them or not? That’s how Hershey’s launched a chocolate milk product: research.
Getting into incompatible categories in consumers’ view. LifeSavers soda? Is it obvious why this brand extension was a bomb?
Getting into categories that are so dominated by other brands, it is hard to gain traction. Heinz is almost synonymous with condiments and food. When the company decided to stretch its brand to bring cleaning vinegar to market, it went up against major players in the cleaning category. It didn’t make sense to consumers, either. So it failed.
Diluting and eventually destroying the brand by extending into too many categories, often via licensing agreements. Dior. Period.
As is the case with everything else, there have been solid successes and spectacular failures when it comes to brand extensions. Jello pudding snacks, Arm & Hammer baking soda toothpaste, Starbucks coffee liqueur and Planter’s peanut butter make sense so they’ve done well. But does anyone remember Pond’s (of face cream fame) and its ill-fated launch of toothpaste? Of course it bombed! How about Coors spring water? And Colgate, the oral care company’s foray into frozen entrees? Anyone can easily see why these brand extensions failed.
The moral of the story
Some of the best brand extensions include retailers’ store brands from Starbucks to Macy’s and retailers in all channels and sizes.
As long as the retailer has a loyal following, and an ownable brand there’s no reason why well-planned and developed brand extensions can’t be successful.
Retailers’ brand extensions appear in every category from apparel and hard lines to packaged consumer products. But they, too, have to make brand sense. And they have to have appeal to the customer because every category is crowded with competitive products. Otherwise, they won’t succeed.
Getting brand extensions into meaningful categories is only the first step. Labeling, hang tags, packaging and advertising—each consumer touch point has to carry the message and the brand forward. Brand extensions can be risky and even major brands have experienced failure, but the rewards can be great. It just takes asking the right questions, doing the research and making sure that extensions align with the ownable assets of the brand.
Best advice to brand owners: don’t go this one alone. Get expert help and advice. Too much is at stake: no less than the health and well-being of the brand.
David Lemley
David was two decades into a design career with a wall full of shiny awards and a portfolio of clients including Nordstrom, Starbucks, Nintendo, and REI. His rocket trajectory veered when his oldest child faced a health challenge of indeterminate origin. Hundreds of research hours later, David identified food allergy as the issue and convinced skeptical medical professionals caring for his child. Since that experience, David and Retail Voodoo have been on a mission to create a cleaner, healthier, more sustainable food system for all.
No amount of discounting, promotional activity, sweetening incentives in loyalty programs and streamlining the purchasing experience will cajole the customer into a relationship with a retail brand that isn’t relevant to them. Aren’t retailers working these angles with varying degrees of success these days? It’s obvious that customers are wary—and weary—of all the hype out there.
No retailer can buy friendship (please “like” my brand on Facebook and open a credit card account with me for advance notice of special sales, blah-blah-blah) or goodwill. Relationships are a two-way street. They’re built on core values and fundamentals that lead to trust. If a retailer’s core values don’t have meaning or heaven forbid!–ring hollow because they don’t deliver on their promises; or if those values don’t align with the customer’s, that retailer is not going to succeed. So let’s forget trying to cultivate relationships and instead focus on what needs to be done so that relationships will naturally happen.
Core values lived up to by every employee every day and in every customer, interaction delivers on the brand promise. Now that’s relevant. Demonstrating respect for the customer and doing business ethically matters as much as it ever did. Actually: scratch that. It matters more than it ever did since there’s a routine breach of trust these days. Honesty, authenticity, transparency coupled with great service and empathy make customers sit up and take notice: these things, unlike a sea of merchandise, are in short supply. Add to this a constant effort to make the shopping experience responsive to trends and relevant to the way they want to shop and the customer will be positively giddy.
That is the Power of Relevance
The beauty of achieving it is that it renders every competitor and comer irrelevant. Think about that for a moment. When customers are given a reason to believe—to enjoy shopping experiences with a specific retailer based on shared values and trust, there is no need or desire to shop elsewhere. Relevance leads to brand adoption: this retailer is an integral part of the customer’s life, what it offers is important and it occupies a space in the heart and mind that no other brand can dislodge and occupy. This retailer has been chosen due to compatibility and isn’t that the basis of all beautiful relationships?
So Much for Euphoria
Now down to work. Research uncovers a great deal about the customer, their perceptions and what they find relevant. Finding out what matters most to customers, helps retailers to reposition if necessary or to reconfirm the core values that lead to trust. Then, they can tweak assortments and merchandise in a more meaningful way and streamline policies and procedures to improve shopping efficiencies. By catering to the way in which customers shop, by delighting them and surprising them with the unexpected, by curating assortments for a more local flavor, by appealing to the senses in a delicious way (ooh—let me count the ways): the retail experience can be elevated into a real treat rather than a same-old, like-every-other-retailer approach.
Too many retailers are developing strategies and tactics that have nothing to do with customer expectations. Corporate dictates and accounting-driven rather than customer-driven trends and merchant-based initiatives based directly on customer responses are the prevalent way of doing business and retailers wonder why they’re losing relevance? So, please, let the accountants and finance people do what they do best and let the C-suite involve buyers, visual merchandisers and employees from the sales floor to the back office focus on instilling and representing clear values consumers are aching for.
Don’ts and Then Dos
Caveat: please don’t imitate another retail operation. Rather than emulating the most successful retailer in the space (remember: there is only one Starbucks and no other coffee shop can steal the mindshare they own) it’s important to carve out a unique niche. Too many retailers are copying rather than being themselves. What clear value do they offer to consumers? Hmmmm, we can’t answer that question, either.
Too many retailers worry about the competition rather than addressing their own shortcomings and stumbling blocks to becoming relevant. Why not “do it right” and make competitors worry instead?
Too many worry about the loss of business to ecommerce.
According to the Wall Street Journal, while significant and growing, online sales account for 8% of total retail sales in this country. While customers love the ease of shopping online, brick and mortar retailers are the ones keeping customers away—not the Internet.
That’s a shame. Customers would want to shop in retail stores more often and spend more of their money on purchases in physical environments if they were able to feel confident that the brand promise is consistently delivered on. That their values are mutually shared. That their trust will not be violated, for any reason, ever. That their needs and wants as customers will always be anticipated and catered to.
Dynamic environments filled with wonderfully curated and merchandised selections surprise and delight customers and literally fill all five of their senses making them eager for more. Retail can and should be a theater-like experience. Customers like to look at, touch and feel, try on and enjoy the atmosphere. They like to share it with friends. Enjoying the shopping experience: now that’s relevant!
In the end, the relevant retailer fulfills a yearning customers have. It gives them a sense of belonging as they share their favorite brand with other devotees. No other retailer matters. Impossible dream? No. Every retailer has the potential to achieve the ultimate relevance for its customers, from start-ups to emerging and mature operations.
All it takes is commitment, determination, and a little hard work. Retailers need to ask themselves if they want to muddle along in the middle of the pack, irrelevant and in a slow decline or rise to superstardom? Question is: will they rise to this challenge?
I’ve thrown the gauntlet. Who will pick it up?
David Lemley
David was two decades into a design career with a wall full of shiny awards and a portfolio of clients including Nordstrom, Starbucks, Nintendo, and REI. His rocket trajectory veered when his oldest child faced a health challenge of indeterminate origin. Hundreds of research hours later, David identified food allergy as the issue and convinced skeptical medical professionals caring for his child. Since that experience, David and Retail Voodoo have been on a mission to create a cleaner, healthier, more sustainable food system for all.
Economic limbo cannot erase the fact that we live in a world where cars start the first time, phones are addictive and the gourmet coffee, is well, gourmet. Only the Unaware offer products or services they deem good enough to a world where everyone can get anything they want almost anywhere.
Today’s consumer is looking for you, the brand steward, to provide them with a self-actualizing experience. And while this needs to be orchestrated carefully, take heart, ending up in branding purgatory doesn’t happen overnight. It comes after a lifetime of refusing to be saved. Sadly, for every good thing we can do, there are many more actions we take either purposefully or by happenstance, that simply don’t contribute anything worthwhile to the brand’s presence, personality and strength.
So what can the faithful do to avoid such a fate? Keep a watchful eye over the Seven Deadly Sins of Brand.
Ennui is essentially boredom brought about by prosperity: an unwillingness to investigate, evolve and challenge or do much of anything. It has killed many great brands while their executives scatter to new, unsuspecting organizations, secretly scratching their head in wonder that their former co-workers were unable to learn new ways to gain market share. It begins something like this, “No one can touch us. We are superior in every way!” Then subtly evolves to something more like this, “We are number one and always will be. Now we are bored. Enough about me, why don’t you tell me what you think of me!” And finally it ends with, “Ugh, why bother?” The opposite of this sin is a firm belief in one’s offering, a willingness to deliver what’s promised and strength of conviction.
“That’s not my department” echoes in the halls of an organization that is has succumbed to this sin. These Sullen Pagans do not understand that functional silos are barriers to innovation, not just in brand marketing. In Driving Growth Through Innovation, Robert Tucker says that one of the reasons innovation has not become embedded as a key driver of growth and profitability in many organizations is because it has been limited by functional and divisional silos within companies. The responsibility for innovation has been limited to R&D or senior level Strategic Planning Pagans who do not feel it necessary to speak to, let alone share ideas with others. I find it fascinating that functional silos are a bi-product of the Quality Movement. Today, thanks to ISO9000 and the like, quality is everyone’s responsibility. This needs to be the goal for innovation and brand stewardship as well.
Advertising can be summed up in one word: impotence. No amount of advertising is going to have the psychological impact today that it did on previous generations. It doesn’t have the same function it used to and yet is still purchased by brand owners in exchange for the false hope of cultural relevance. If advertising worked like it used to, two well-known Bankrupt Pagans would still be recovering from the pulled muscle they got when high-fiving their agency partner for successfully copying a competitors “celebutant” television campaign (because they would have raked in cash). Mervyn’s and Linens ‘N Things long enjoyed high top-of-mind awareness, but apparently never got the memo: awareness no longer creates preference. Preference lives in the human heart, where brand matters most. If advertising worked like it used to, two well-known Bankrupt Pagans would still be recovering from the pulled muscle they got when high-fiving their agency partner for successfully copying a competitors “celebutant” television campaign (because they would have raked in cash). Mervyn’s and Linens ‘N Things long enjoyed high top-of-mind awareness, but apparently never got the memo: awareness no longer creates preference. Preference lives in the human heart, where brand matters most.
Girls Gone Wild Apparel, Humane Society Dog Lovers Wine Club, Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper, and my favorite as listed on Brandweek, Hooters Energy Drink. There is a special place in Hell for the avarice and the fraudulent, regardless of whether they are malicious or just confused. Egad!
This sin belongs to the Short-term Gluttons who are quick to reduce prices in order make the sales number look good on their watch, so they get their bonus. They already have their eyes on the door, not long-term brand success. The mistakes that kill brands are the mistakes you sometimes never realize you’ve made. And when you do realize them, sometimes it’s too late. Unless you are the low-cost producer, you cannot sustain your brand on price cuts and discounts. In fact, companies frequently cause irreparable damage to their brands by discounting. Consumers will pay more if they feel they receive an added benefit or value with the higher price—even in a recession.
Decision by committee is often an exercise in mediocrity. Not standing up for a single, ownable position is pretty common business practice today. Trying to please everyone will result in creating a brand nobody will hate (vs. a brand people will love). If you work in a culture where you may get your head chewed off by your management team for not using a traditional laddering model or the appropriate shade of navy blue on your PowerPoint deck, then standing up for a radical new idea isn’t likely to be considered an asset. Bad news: unless you want to just put in your time on the mediocrity train, then you may wish to consider your options (while you still have them).
We all use them and hide behind them. Afterall, nobody ever lost his or her job for mentioning David Aaker’s Brand Personality Scale to help demonstrate the case for change. And where would we be without the Brand Pyramid? In Strategic Brand Management, Kevin Lane Keller’s pyramid reminds me of Dante’s gates of Hell– while I am captivated (and a bit frightened) by the inscription, I know that true understanding of it lies in the netherworld below. And you guessed it, a guru called Brand Architect has tackled Below The Pyramid. It’s really a great example of virtuous marketing pagan adding to the buzzword stew.
Bottom Line
Marketing guru-ism without an actual business objective (where your job is on the line) is really only theory. I am tired of theory. I want visceral creative, human communication. And this, thank Goodness, is why you, Dear Reader, hire people like me.
David Lemley
David was two decades into a design career with a wall full of shiny awards and a portfolio of clients including Nordstrom, Starbucks, Nintendo, and REI. His rocket trajectory veered when his oldest child faced a health challenge of indeterminate origin. Hundreds of research hours later, David identified food allergy as the issue and convinced skeptical medical professionals caring for his child. Since that experience, David and Retail Voodoo have been on a mission to create a cleaner, healthier, more sustainable food system for all.
Great brands live and move at a high rate of speed almost indiscernible to the naked eye. Just as we can’t see individual frames in a movie that move quickly and seamlessly as they tell a story, so it is with powerful brands.
Mass exposure alone doesn’t connect; we tune out what isn’t relevant. Experiences connect consumers to brands. Rich storylines connect. The aspirational, deeply held cultural truisms, and core values connect.
One of today’s hot brands, Burton is a great example. Burton taps into snowboard culture so effectively that the brand has become legendary. The company website is chock full of videos, interviews and insights from some of the best snowboarders in the world. Their insights lead to creating new snowboards, experiences and a special culture. The stories and videos they share connect their customers together in an aspirational global community. It’s not only selling products, but a lifestyle.
The next time you think about what will nurture your brand, perhaps let your fans tell the story, and with that set loose a culture of story tellers to build a culture and fandom around your brand.
Diana Fryc
For Diana, a fierce determination to pursue what’s right is rooted in her DNA. The daughter of parents who endured unimaginable hardship before emigrating from Eastern Europe to the U.S., she is built for a higher purpose. Starting with an experience working with Jane Goodall to source sustainably made paper, she went on to a career helping Corporate America normalize the use of environmentally responsible products and materials before coming to Retail Voodoo.
David was two decades into a design career with a wall full of shiny awards and a portfolio of clients including Nordstrom, Starbucks, Nintendo, and REI. His rocket trajectory veered when his oldest child faced a health challenge of indeterminate origin. Hundreds of research hours later, David identified food allergy as the issue and convinced skeptical medical professionals caring for his child. Since that experience, David and Retail Voodoo have been on a mission to create a cleaner, healthier, more sustainable food system for all.
