Dave Knox, a Brand Manager at a major CPG company, feels that it is tough to be a Brand Manager these days. After all, people looked to brands that delivered functional benefits like “better tasting” or “longer lasting.” They heard about those brands through a handful of media vehicles like TV, magazines, radio and billboards. Those days are gone. What people want out of a brand has changed dramatically over the past several years. While functional benefits still play an extremely important role, consumers want a brand to stand for something more than just “best tasting.”
The full story at Hard Knox Life:
http://www.hardknoxlife.com/2009/04/29/a-brand-managers-call-for-change/
Javier von Westphalen 6:28 pm on April 30, 2009 Permalink
Good post Dave. I agree with Dave. This is the age of Social Branding. Brands are becoming humanized and social. We are learning how to co-create and lead a brand with its community. As Dave mentioned, consumer experience expectations have changed. Brand managers need to bringing brands to live by continue interaction and engagement, Zappo comes to mind. New technology is giving them a voice and amplifying what customers always have done- positioning a brand and sharing their experiences with family, friends and now brand managers. The challenges for the future is bringing brands essence and personality live beyond imagery, tag lines, associations, etc. Social branding is how we should think about the BM future.