Brand Architecture

All marketers are enamored with buzz words and lingo. I am not immune. But for metaphor's sake, bear with me as I discuss Brand Architecture, the blueprint for brand building.

I'm not sure who coined this phrase, but it hit my radar around 1997 as I was working with Randel (Randy) Ransom at Coke trying to deploy a new brand positioning on FANTA into 142 countries around the world. We found out quickly that a positioning statement alone was insufficient to communicate brand strategy. Since then, I have found that this is true regardless of the geography or team size. Partners need additional guidance in HOW to bring a positioning statement to life in their functional area (advertising, point of purchase, media, etc). And if you aren't working with partners, then YOU need to do this work for yourself to map out how each marketing element will be used to establish the positioning.

The problem is that even well crafted positioning statements leave a fair amount of room for interpretation or misinterpretation as the case may be. To ensure consistent execution across functions and countries, we took the additional step to build-out a robust brand architecture that included activation strategy and example tactics across the core elements of the marketing mix. This gave business partners an overall, and specific, view as to how we intended to "activate" the brand.

In this blog, we have already tackled the foundational elements of a brand architecture, specifically functional benefits, emotional benefits, brand character and positioning statement. But a complete architecture extends into an activation strategy for each element of the marketing mix. In my experience, these strategies are often used as the creative brief for each functional area.

In my next post, I will introduce a simple template for activation strategy that ensures alignment to objectives and positioning strategy.

Simple Template for Brand Positioning Statement

There are a variety of valid templates for building brand positioning statements. Below find one we used at Coca-Cola that I have modified through the years. The template is just a starting point, a recipe that almost begs to be modified to suit your tastes. That said, starting with a template ensures that all the basic ingredients are in place and that any omissions are purposeful.

Here’s the simple template:

For (insert consumer target), (insert brand name) is the (insert competitive set) that provides (insert benefits) because only (insert brand name) has/does (insert reason to believe the benefit).

• Consumer Target: Who will use this brand (I’m purposely saying “use” not buy.) Think demographically and psychographically.
• Competitive Set: This is the product category(s) that consumers will primarily evaluate when choosing your brand. Be as narrow as you can.
• Benefit: Functional and/or emotional benefits need included here.
• Reason To Believe / Proof: Why I should believe the above benefits.
• Brand Character: I have found it works best to weave character statements into the benefit and/or the reason to be believe sections. If insufficient, at another line that states brand character.

Examples:

• For large frame runners, New Balance 993 is the no-nonsense, performance running shoe that let’s you run pain-free. That’s because New Balance 993 with Abzorbs Cushioning is built to handle the pounding of a large frame runner so your knees and angles won’t have to.
• For dissatisfied, middle-class Americans, Barack Obama is the presidential candidate that provides hope for a better life because only Barack Obama will bring real change to America. That’s because Barack Obama can be trusted to break down racial and class boundaries that favor the rich enabling everyone to enjoy the richness of America.

In closing, let me repeat from my previous post that positioning statements are written for business partners (creatives, sales people, engineers, marketers, etc). This is not a consumer communication. Focus on getting the language concise and clear, not clever.

Give it a try with one of your favorite brands like Starbucks, Nike, etc.

Brand Positioning Statement

The brand positioning statement is written to clarify your strategy and align all internal and external business partners. The positioning statement is the fulcrum of your strategy and the extended brand architecture. It sets a clear direction that all brand activity must align to. I cannot over emphasize the importance of the positioning statement. Everything in this blog thus far has only prepared us to write the positioning statement. Everything that follows will tie back to the positioning statement.

When I was a kid we had a board game called Pente. Pente's slogan was "moments to learn, a lifetime to master". Such is the art of creating positioning statements. I don't really know anyone great at writing positioning statements. Inevitably it's a trial and error, grind it out process. But for those that get it right, there is exponential reward! In the next post I will introduce a simple format for positioning statements. It will take moments to learn, and in my experience, a lifetime to master.

But before we get started, a couple of pointers.

• Audience: You are writing the positioning statement for business associates (creatives, sales people, engineers, marketers, etc). This is not a consumer communication.
• Concise: The fewer the words the better.
• Clarity: The language cannot leave room for interpretation, it must be 100% clear, free of jargon and hype.
• Positioning vs Positioning Statements: Don't lose site of the fact that positioning statements are ASPIRATIONAL by design. They are not current state. That said, the aspiration must be rooted in something that is obtainable and reasonable. Brand positioning is current state in CONSUMERS' minds (not the marketer's mind). Brand positioning is where you are, brand positioning statements are where you want to be.
• Choosy: Great positioning statements make tough choices. They narrowly focus and avoid the temptation of overly broadening the benefit or consumer target.
• Perseverance: Plan on this taking a while. They must be meticulously crafted, refined, checked and tested with the audience. This isn't a one day project nor should it be. This is the central load bearing wall for your brand architecture. Take the time and get it right!

Ready to write? We will attack that next time!