The critical missing component of marketing is to find the soul of a brand

Ruchi Gunewardene busts the myths of marketing and identifies the critical component for success

The traditional view Marketing theory teaches students that the customer is the key stakeholder and should be central in marketing decision making, whether it be in developing a new product, creating a new campaign or making sure the product is made available in the right place at the right price.

While this is indeed true, in the real world, it is only partially so.

In pursuit of theory, we often get caught up in stereotypical marketing jargon such as ‘brand awareness,’ ‘brand positioning’ and ‘customer proposition,’ forgetting the business we are in and why we’re in business – which is to realise positive financial outcomes.

The brand is often not viewed in the context of the business. As a result, we pursue the myth of building brands through communications, resulting in advertising agencies, digital marketing companies and brand managers venturing on a creative expedition to find an idea or a catchy tagline as the solution.

This is a common occurrence, be it for the launch of a new marketing initiative, rebranding exercise or even branding the country.

Fiscal responsibility is abandoned as corporate managers pursue this elusive goal of growing the business through communications, having been bewitched by a slick presentation.

The alternative view The other way of looking at this is to view brand building not as a communications exercise but instead, to assume that there’s no marketing budget and rely on operational capabilities to build the brand.

With this mindset, we’ll stop trying to figure out what we want to say, or what messages need to be developed or what creative route will engage customers. Instead, we will begin to look inwards at ourselves to understand who we are, what we’re good at, how we have succeeded and what more we can do for our customers.

We’d also look at how we should motivate our employees so they can be our brand ambassadors, and begin to engage with customers by saying (communicating) and doing (customer service) the right things.

This introspection drives us to understand our heritage (i.e. where we have come from), core strengths (what we do better than the competition) and opportunities, which enables us to understand how we’ve succeed thus far.

In search of the soul This deep dive into the soul of the business unearths a wealth of information, which should be the foundation for building a brand on which would hinge everything that we’d do first and only then communicate.

When looked at in this way, we would start considering what tangible services are on offer and the real value provided to customers. Unless there is a fundamental tangible benefit, why do we need to exist at all? And what is our purpose to be in business?

Unless we can truthfully answer these questions, it would be best not to invest any further. We then begin to consider our employees, the front line staff with whom customers interact every day; and consider how employees in turn can succinctly define what they’re offering. We need to establish an emotional connect that is truthful and believable about the company they work for.

These are the fundamental ingredients to build an enduring brand – by building the brand from the inside for the benefit of customers on the outside.

benefits of this approach The benefit of adopting this approach is that we begin to act on what we believe, which is a powerful and compelling way to build a brand. It’s not about making a claim that is half-heartedly delivered to customers; instead, it shifts to action before promises are made.

With this mindset shift, marketing resources aren’t wasted on communications campaigns that do not deliver what they say and change the messaging in pursuit of that elusive creative idea.

By first searching, and then finding the soul of the company and defining it as a blueprint, we begin to establish an enduring system on which marketing can take place.

The brand as an asset This approach shifts the narrative from communications to actions that a business would undertake.

An enduring and strong brand is an asset, as its actions are based on beliefs in order to create customer loyalty. The brand is built every day through small and large initiatives the company takes across the entire business.

There are a few brands in Sri Lanka that have got this right.

Dialog, which leads the 100 Most Valuable Brands table, is one. The brand’s enduring platform is about bringing the future today.

Brandix, which stands for providing inspired solutions to its customers, is another. And MAS is driven on innovation, which it embraces by being courageous and open to change. These two B2B companies did not build their brands on expensive marketing budgets; instead, the focus was on what they do best to create a more enduring platform for themselves.

Finally, there is the well-known Motha brand, which has been long loved in Sri Lanka, and is all about making simple everyday moments more delightful and fun.