Re-thinking the value of branding

The pendulum continues to swing and it must soon be on its way back to the middle. For a few years through the 1990s, there was no talking Corporate Communications without talking Branding. Everything was about the Brand. It’s not surprising that this trend lined up nicely with the tech boom. One day, you might have heard of a company name for the first time. Within a week, that name was everywhere you looked. Branding was king and there were millions upon millions of dollars thrown at the idea of The Brand.

The pendulum began to swing when a high level of public awareness, meaning a well established brand, didn’t automatically link to strong financial performance. As cracks in financial results began to show through, it also came to light that companies were assigning a dollar value to their brand awareness. That probably wasn’t ultimately as shocking as the problem of companies claiming revenues that they didn’t really have, but the result was the same. The value of the Brand was just as suspect as the value of the revenues.

It now seems that the pendulum is off to the other side. Airlines were often used as case studies for brand management. But in North America, a number of major airlines are resolving financial crises by outsourcing their short-haul commuter flights to other airlines. Recently, I purchased a flight on one major airline and never once saw that airline’s name on any part of the trip. The airplane was from a different airline I didn’t recognize and even the ticketing had different information. The irony was complete when this subcontracted airline thanked the passengers for choosing that air carrier. Did we? I wouldn’t know how to choose that airline if I tried. If airlines are not paying attention to branding, then the pendulum has definitely gone as far as it can go.

Having the public recognize a name -- and perhaps an accompanying logo -- and associate that name and logo with a distinct reputation is valuable. When a number of companies in a sector appear to have very similar attributes, a customer or investor will choose the name that it recognizes and with which it has a positive association. That is value, and it can even be measured. 

But ultimately, communications covers a number of areas and expertise, of which branding is one. And in that one area, like all areas of communications, quality and consistency are key. But add to those key factors the issue of "appropriate." Pay attention to brand, in terms of reputation management, and ensure that efforts in branding, media relations, investor relations, marketing and internal communications place a high priority on quality, consistency and an appropriate balance based on corporate objectives.