By Lolu Akinwunmi
Ask many people what makes a great brand and chances are most will mention its logo, colours, slogan, typography or advertising. And they are not entirely wrong. These are certainly important elements of branding. But they are not the brand.
A brand is something much deeper. A brand is a promise. That promise defines what customers expect every time they encounter the brand: product, organization, politician, country etc. It is the assurance that the product will perform, the service will satisfy, the politician will deliver value, and the experience will justify the customer’s choice. While a logo may help people recognise a brand, it is the promise that makes them trust it.
Think about some of the world’s most admired brands.
When you hear Apple, you probably do not first think of the half-bitten apple logo. You think of innovation, elegant design, intuitive technology and products that simply work.
When someone mentions Coca-Cola, the famous red script is rarely the first thing that comes to mind. Instead, people associate the brand with ice cold refreshment, happiness, celebration and shared moments.
Amazon has built its reputation around convenience, reliability, speed and customer obsession.
Nike stands for inspiration, performance and achievement.
In each case, the logo merely identifies the company. The real brand exists in the expectations customers carry in their minds long before they make a purchase. This is why branding is fundamentally about trust. Every buying decision involves an element of uncertainty. Customers cannot be absolutely certain that a restaurant will serve an excellent meal, that an airline will depart on time, that a bank will provide efficient service, or that a new smartphone will perform as promised.
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What reduces that uncertainty is confidence in the brand. People do not simply buy products or services. They buy confidence. That confidence has been earned because the organisation has consistently delivered on its promise over time. Imagine if you were thirsty and bought a bottle of Coca Cola and as you took you first sip, it began to taste very bitter. What would you do? Your expectation is refreshing, pleasant taste and not a bitter taste.
This explains why strong brands are often able to command premium prices despite the availability of cheaper alternatives. Customers are frequently willing to pay more for certainty than they are for features. They know what to expect, and that predictability has value.
Unfortunately, many organisations still confuse branding with visual identity. They spend enormous resources redesigning logos, refreshing colour palettes, producing glossy brochures and launching expensive advertising campaigns. While these activities are important, they cannot compensate for a weak or broken promise:
A beautiful logo cannot rescue poor customer service.
A brilliant advertising campaign cannot permanently disguise poor product quality.
An impressive corporate identity cannot overcome repeated customer disappointment.
Eventually, customers judge organisations not by what they say, but by what they consistently do.
This is where marketing communication meets operational excellence:
Marketing creates expectations;
The organisation fulfils, or disappoints, them.
The strongest brands understand that branding is not the exclusive responsibility of the marketing department.
Every employee contributes to delivering the brand promise. The receptionist, customer service representative, delivery driver, accountant, engineer, salesperson and chief executive all shape the customer’s experience of the brand. In reality, every employee is a brand ambassador.
Closer to home, organisations such as GTBank and MTN have built strong reputations because customers generally know what to expect from them. Their brands have become valuable not simply because they communicate effectively, but because they have repeatedly delivered experiences that reinforce the promises they make. Conversely, history has shown that once organisations repeatedly fail to meet customer expectations, rebuilding trust becomes an uphill task. Customers may forgive an occasional mistake, but they rarely tolerate consistent disappointment.
That is perhaps the most important lesson in branding. Brands are not built by advertising alone. They are built by consistently keeping promises.
The next time you admire a company’s logo, remember that it is only a symbol. The real brand exists in the confidence, trust and expectations it has earned in the minds of its customers. The strongest brands are not recognised because they have the most attractive logos. They are recognised because they have become trusted promises.
A logo introduces a brand
A kept promise builds the brand.
The marketplace remembers not what organisations claim, but what customers consistently experience.
‘Lolu Akinwunmi
The MarCom Strategic Series (MSS)
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