We hear it all the time, so let me, dear friends, give you the answer.
Before I do that, let’s reflect for a minute on the most valuable brand on the planet: Apple.
Countless entrepreneurs and CEOs point to Apple as the model. “We want to be like Apple.” Yet, they don’t do anything Apple did to be successful. What they are actually saying is they want Apple’s success and revenue. Maybe they don’t say Apple, per se, but they will point to other brands that have the success and revenue they aspire to. And still, countless entrepreneurs and CEOs won’t do the things Apple, or Brand “X,” did to become successful.
So when this conversation comes up, here’s the things I always point to when discussing Apple’s success: it’s the piece everyone ignores, yet it is what helped them get there, and you can’t say “We want to be Apple” without doing it.
Steve Jobs was a marketer to his core. Not a CFO or a data person. No offense, but these people live in the past, using historic info while attempting to do visionary things, all while looking backward. Good marketers are visionary, optimistic, and we love the data too —not to set vision, but to get feedback, while we insist on looking forward, not back. A marketer led Apple.
Still, Steve Jobs didn’t do it alone. He had Jony Ive at his side, Apple’s creative director. Great creative directors are good marketers. I speak from experience. Apple had its two most important roles filled with marketers, both obsessed with vision AND brand. Think about this. The two highest and most critical roles at the world’s most valuable brand ever were held by marketers obsessed with marketing and brand building.
Apple isn’t the only inspirational brand to do this. In fact, the ones who are winning all do it. (For example: Braun before Apple, IBM, Dyson, Disney, Sony, Porsche, Coke, BMW, Chanel, Gucci, and I can go on…) Every brand you see consistently succeeding views marketing, including sales, creative, customer experience, and brand building, as the most important areas they can control, and they invest heavily in them. Beyond marketing, everything else is less important.
Back to the question. What is the ROI of brand building?
Not prioritizing brand building or doing it as cheaply as possible results in a zero ROI. Why? Because no one associated with your brand will feel proud and excited to be a part of it. They won’t talk about you, recommend you, or evangelize, and you won’t see any good reviews or testimonials. You can’t grow market share when no one has heard of you or cares about your brand. Customers may even hide the fact that they buy from you. Now, marketing costs a lot more. Popularity isn’t purchased or handed out; it is earned.
However, investing in and prioritizing brand building builds brand and reputational equity. Committing to building a brand that you, your team, customers, and community are proud to be a part of builds reputational equity. Because they will evangelize, repeat buy, recommend, gift, and proudly rep your brand. Your customers can become your greatest marketing assets, spreading the word and preaching how being a part of your brand makes them feel good. And just like with all forms of equity, reputation equity translates into currency. Real $$ friends.
Apple is obsessed with earning the reputation it desires, from Jobs & Ive to today. That’s brand building. And to reach your potential as a company, you must do the same.
