— Notes on Brand Planning Insights
Brand consultants, brand agencies, brand research, brand strategies... When these terms are seriously brought up by others, my originally calm mood instantly becomes inexplicably uneasy. I dare not speak recklessly, for I lack the foundation and qualification to do so. Nor do I wish to invite unwarranted insults; I have neither the disposition nor the "elegant interest" for it. As for today's words, they are merely intended to facilitate exchanges with friends who share similar interests.
When brand consultants become fortune-tellers.
Brand construction begins with the eight characters (ba zi) and five elements (wu xing). Corporate names, corporate culture, and corporate environment — all of these, according to brand consultants at this point, are fundamental basics. From the start of their involvement in brand research, they might claim that the corporate name lacks opulence, the corporate logo lacks international appeal, the corporate culture lacks comprehensiveness, and the corporate environment lacks elegance. All these factors seem to be absolute essentials in brand construction. After brand consultants manipulate these factors, the result is often a corporate name that’s half cryptic and half industry-specific, a corporate logo that’s half plagiarized and half similar, and a corporate culture that’s half standardized and half enforced. At this stage, the company, I imagine, should be half competent and half ambiguous.
Brand growth follows the principles of yin-yang and eight trigrams. Either yin or yang. At this point, our brand consultants' "divine predictions" dictate that once the cultural framework is established, advertising should immediately follow. It seems as though the advertising champion equates to the brand king. Even more interestingly, even when it comes to advertising, such brand consultants probably have little understanding of advertising strategy itself. They casually throw in terms like advertising research and market analysis. The large volume of text they produce ends up being nothing more than hefty invoices for our companies.
Brand management uses divination and lottery persuasion. When our companies enter the maturity phase of their brands, business growth tends to stabilize relatively. With 365 days in a year, if an uppermost sign is drawn, both sides rejoice, leaving no room for argument. However, when the company encounters a crisis, what these brand consultants do is merely explain the company’s poor fortune sign. Ultimately, it is still our companies that bear the brunt of the pain.
When brand consultants become fortune-tellers.
Thus, with yin-yang, eight trigrams, plus a hundred bamboo sticks, the secrets of the universe are revealed. Design packaging, practical cases, coupled with some Western theories, make brand success seem within easy reach.
By the end of writing this, I wonder if anyone else feels the urge to laugh. I think I would burst out laughing three times, albeit three bitter laughs. In truth, I never intended to associate brand consultants with our ancestral culture. The two have absolutely no connection. Yet, many brand consulting firms operate their businesses in this manner today, making it somewhat amusing. The road ahead is long, but I believe there will be brand consulting firms and companies that, in their exploration of brands, will not feel lost along the way.
The traditional Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching. Here, I wish blessings upon my family and everyone!
This article comes from:
A well-reasoned source www.zp-nmg.com