Thursday, August 21, 2008

What is the moral of your brand story?


The art of brand building has been severally interpreted as a deliberate narrative of brand footprints through consumers’ binoculars in compelling stories organised like “Tales by moonlight”. You remember the now-rested series on the NTA network every Sunday evening.
They are a special kind of tales—they are well-crafted to transverse time as they build on themselves chapter by chapter and updated to respond to changing customers and transiting markets.

When a brand is expressed as a story, it allows for a coherent articulation of the various entities that enrich its relevance and deepen its meaning beyond an everyday commodity. A brand story identifies the core brand heroes (like characters in a movie), the structural context (hook, plot, and mood), the core message (defined values and point of view) and most importantly the dialogues between the various sub-units.

Brand Story is beyond your 60’ commercials, popular documentaries and slogans, it’s the unique and differentiating story that consumers cherish and relish as a result of their everyday engagement with your brand at every touchpoint.
A compelling brand story creates enduring affection, enrich the usage experience, sustains repeat usage that makes the brand a part of their lives and provide the bequeath to endow the brand from one generation to the next.

In reality, brands can become the collective reference point that unite our desire, forge our sense of choice and become a memorability trigger for the desired brand meaning.

However, at the core of the brand stories, is the moral dimension. The moral expression of a brand is the anchorage for brand’s sustainability because it defines the eternal truth on which the brand stands. They are the transformational appendages that give energy to every brand to outlive time and space. Like our collective experience during childhood, every story is only worthwhile if it ends with a good moral that the listeners can live by. I remember the several tortoise stories taught us contentment.

The question for our modern brand strategist is the need to truly test if there is any moral in our modern brand stories. Volkswagen Beetle’s taught us simplicity, Adidas advanced the cause of possibilities and MasterCard demonstrated many things that are priceless. Dove's new campaign says "dont try to become a model that doesn't exist"

Modern consumers are not just looking for products to buy, but moral standpoints that they can share and associate it because it’s beyond good BUYS, most times it’s the good GUYS.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your blog is very creative, when people read this it widens our imaginations.

Unknown said...

My mentor
This is very inspiring. The green revolutionsists and the positive response of Toyota type hybrid cars are indicative that propagation of the moral dimension can drive new product development.
When is your book coming out? we are waiting

Anonymous said...

Brand morality theory again!
You never stop to amaze me. Your MarketEmotion framework is now a rave amongst strategic business analysts post Dubai conference.
Keep it up . I am very proud of you.

Anonymous said...

Telling brand stories like "tales by moonlight" demands consumer innocence. Like the tales we believed when we were young, brand stories must appeal to the child in everyone of us. The simplicity, innocence and community experience

Gbenga said...

Thank you for your brilliant article. I have been doing some thinking on brand story myself and in the course of my research came accross a book by Douglas Holt titled "How brands become icons".It looks at the issue of the brand story from a slightly different perspectives. My understanding is that the author places successful brands as being at the point of help the consumers resolve conflicts (as in a story) between what they aspire for or desire and what the environment or society demands. It is an interesting read and I hope you take a look at it some time.
A question which I hope you would someday answer in your blog is case studies of how your theory on the brand story is deployed in brand strategy.
Thanks a lot and great work.

Gbenga

accelerate said...

"... brand stories must appeal to the child in everyone of us" = Femi Idris.

That's a fine support to what Bayo has creatively done. He's a master of his intents towards what the industry should focus more on. I hope to see many more 'brandvertisers' adopting this insight. It creates a new climate...

Omoaregba Chris