Step 5: Transition Brand From Functional To Aspirational
By Mark Dresdner
Welcome back guest blogger and Friend of Bauman (FOB), Mark Dresdner of Stratapult Advisors. This article is the fifth in a five-part series on developing a successful branding strategy.
Brands that have the highest profit margins are typically the ones where the brand triggers aspirational benefits in the customer’s mind. Getting to this coveted place requires the brand to climb the hierarchy of human needs, as show below. Ascending the hierarchy of human needs requires a brand to fulfill the foundation needs through operations and marketing.
A brand can be a powerful means of standing out in a crowd—aiding healthy market share and profit margins. Creating and deploying a brand strategy is a company-wide effort. Branding is not the sole responsibility of advertising, but rather a wiring of the company’s DNA. A successful brand strategy typically involves the following steps:
- Segment the market and identify target customers
- Position the brand
- Create and deliver the value proposition
- Make the value proposition real in customers’ minds
- Transition the brand from being functional to aspirational
Are there opportunities to enhance your company’s brand, and hence accelerate revenue profit growth?