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Marketing guru: From small acorns, big brands thrive and survive
What does a tree have to do with growing big brands? According to my favorite marketing guru, Al Ries, lots.
In his recent book, The Origin of Brands, Ries offers up a metaphor from Charles Darwin in the form of the great tree of life, akin to the great tree of brands.
Just as trees branch and diverge and new growth may eclipse other parts of the tree, so too will competitors come along to try to dominate the marketplace and block out weaker opponents.
In Ries’ comparison to life’s great tree, he offers several examples, such as the branch known as the telephone, which diverged to become cordless phones, headset phones, cell phones and PDAs that now serve as an all-in-one phone, computer and personal assistant
An example of a dead branch is the typewriter, which is the category the computer came along to practically wipe out. Ries’ point is that to become a successful brand and survive in today’s competitive arena, brands must dominate and block out the competition, rather than just think about how to win new customers.
A brand must become first in its category to thrive and that is most often accomplished by branching into a new category.
As Ries puts it, “big companies see things the way they are. Entrepreneurs tend to see things the way they could be.” See the possibilities and be the first to get there; think smart, plan well and be consistent.
An example of that approach is the high-end coffee market that Starbucks has defined and delivered so well. They are easily the market leader in that category and the leading brand among other aspirants, such as Caribou Coffee. (Caribou Coffee does give Starbucks a good run for the money in large markets like Atlanta, ones big enough to have brands competing for a high-priced cup of java, but it isn’t Starbucks.)
Another example is the fitness club craze, which offers the workout express, where you go for x number of intense 30-minute sessions with a clear program and your desired results in mind.
Two businesses that come to mind are Curves and Shaping Concepts; both fill a need for today’s overtaxed individual to try and stay fit, in spite of time constraints.
These types of clubs continue to grow and are eating into traditional health clubs with the “come and go as you are” approach.
Curves aims more at women and Shaping Concepts at both. As a result, they both have a niche to fill and, using good “brand-smarts,” should continue to succeed.
These examples demonstrate that the marketing environment, predominately external in focus, is ever changing. To adapt, survive and grow, winning firms devise a solid strategy to guide their marketing efforts along a continuum in response to changing market conditions, like new competition or economic pressures that lead a company to create new products and in some cases, altogether new categories that didn’t even exist before.
The technological revolution alone has given rise to an incredible array of categories and leading brands, such as EBay for online auctioning, Amazon for online purchases and Microsoft, which leads the personal computer software category and is the world’s No. 2 brand.
Locally, companies like Blackbaud, BenefitFocus.com and Automated Trading Desk all found a niche, born of innovation and technological advancements, that have allowed them to thrive in their categories and to experience growth based on brand leadership and innovation—both through advanced technology and through entrepreneurial vision.
Stay alert to the possibilities, and remember that good branding (and good branching) based on a solid position, nurturing and lots of light, will last despite outside obstacles and branches that threaten to block them out.
Good brand strategists hold on as the earth rumbles and the rains come, knowing that on the other side, green pastures, beautiful forests and bold new opportunities await.
Elizabeth L. Boineau runs E. Boineau & Company, a Charleston-based strategic marketing communications and public relations firm. E-mail her at eboineau@eboineauandco.com.
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