Distinctive Brand Assets: 11 ways to fully harness their potential (Part 1)
Distinctive brand assets (DBAs) are a hot topic. 100% of marketing directors agree that DBAs are an important driver of growth in our brandgym research, with 87% rating them extremely important. Furthermore, 95% agree that the role of DBAs has become more important in the last four years. However, very few brand assets are truly distinctive, with a mere 15% getting a ’gold’ rating in research by JKR and IPSOS.
This year’s set of new year cards suggest 11 ways to fully harness the potential of brand assets to drive growth, brought to life with inspiring examples This week we look at the first five inspiring examples, with six more following next week.
1. DON’T SACRIFICE DISTINCTIVENESS LIKE INTEL
Intel have said their new identity is “…a signal that Intel is entering a new era”. To make it look more modern, they have removed their famous ‘swoosh’ icon. But now the logo looks like plain and similar to many others. Distinctive asset testing shows that flattening the logo has reduced recognition and attribution. If you want to be perceived as modern’, then do something contemporary, don’t just change your identity – or you might lose more than you bargained for.
2. SOUND DISTINCTIVE LIKE JUST EAT
Just Eat is a pan-European takeaway delivery service brand who developed a sonic jingle “Did somebody say ‘Just Eat’?” for their ads. When they expensively hired top global music stars Snoop Dog, then Katy Perry, to front their campaigns, they crucially got them to re-interpret this jingle rather than create something new each time. The result is marketing gold – it has become a meme in popular culture and shared endlessly across social media driving both awareness and preference.
3. BE CONSISTENT OVER TIME LIKE NIVEA + LIVERPOOL
Nivea Men’s partnership with Liverpool FC is now in its 8th year. “When something works so well…keep doing it.” said Andrew Rawle, ‘Most Effective Marketer of the Year 2023’ for Marketing Week. This brand partnership makes strategic and business sense, rather than just being a ‘cool and available’ sponsorship deal. It drives brand awareness (via the huge Premier League fanbase), positive brand sentiment (via ‘Dear Liverpool’ CSR initiative) and sales (via direct product advertising)
4. AMPLIFY ASSETS ACROSS THE MIX LIKE PHILIPS SONICARE
Philips Sonicare carried out Iconic Asset Tracking that identified its ‘patented sonic technology’ claim as an iconic brand asset. The global brand team successfully integrated the asset at every relevant consumer touchpoint driving distinctiveness and gaining share versus Oral B, its number one competitor.
5. DON’T DITCH DISTINCTIVE ASSETS LIKE SURVEY MONKEY
Despite having brand name popularity on a par with Google, Survey Monkey changed its name to Momentive in 2021, in an attempt to more effectively target enterprise clients. However, the company soon saw the downside of ditching the distinctive name and symbols it had spent 20+ years building. The brand change was reversed in 2023.
Look out next week for the final six inspiring examples to help you fully harness the potential of distinctive brand assets to drive growth. If you would like the set of postcards to share with your team, just reply to this email.
