If this business were split up, I would give you the land and bricks and mortar, and I would take the brands and trademarks, and I would fare better than you.
- John Stuart, former CEO of Quaker Oats
How does one determine the value of a brand? While it’s difficult to put an actual monetary figure on it, consider this. Nike has the ability to embroider their logo on $5 t-shirts and sell them for $30 a piece. In this situation the value of the brand far exceeds the value of the commodity itself and there are countless other examples of this principal in effect.
Beyond the obvious financial implications, brand reputation is a key factor in customer loyalty and 3rd party advocacy, which is an incredibly powerful tool in growing a business. Certain brands are able to inspire such an impassioned following that their consumers gleefully spread the gospel of their brand to their friends and family and social network connections, creating a much more genuine and effective form of advertising than any multi-million dollar campaign. Today a recommendation from a friend through facebook or a stranger via an online review has become a much greater factor in the completion of a sale than anything a company can put out themselves. This of coarse makes the reputation and relationships built with customers through online channels vital to building a strong valuable brand.
How you go about building these relationships will be unique to every company, but I will share with you a tip I learned from Gary Vaynerchuk, when I had the opportunity to hear him speak at the Art of Marketing conference in Vancouver this year. Gary is famous for growing his family owned liquor store from a 4 million dollar business into a 45 million dollar business primarily through online channels like Twitter and by creating his own video podcasts. Gary tells us that Twitter is more about listening than it is about speaking. At this moment there are a multitude of conversations happening online that concern your brand or your area of expertise. By using tools like search.twitter.com, you can find people interested in your product or your expertise and engage them in conversation. This doesn’t mean a sales pitch. It could mean free honest advice or a casual chat with someone with similar interests. The point is to create a presence in the online world, to establish and grow your brand and to be involved in the conversations that are happening right this minute.
