Brand Power

I was recently asked how important is Brand Power today, and does it really exist in the age of almost infinite access to information, open communications, with instant price comparisons and direct consumer access to a broad range of alternative suppliers and distributors.

My belief is that brands are more important than ever, for three reasons:

• Firstly, the compexity of the world means that few of us really understand the functional product features of a mobile phone or a computer or a car. How many people would recognise a 3G phone from a 2G phone, or a dual core processor from a single core processor just by looking at the inside of the device? So, we have to judge between competing product quality claims, working out which to trust by what we already believe about the brand. Brands that are highly trusted gain economic advantage and competitive power over those that are not.
  
• Secondly, in the developed world at least, levels of affluence mean that most people can afford products that meet an adequate functional specification, so choice becomes more influenced by intangible image attributes. It is what the brand says about you to the set of people that you want to impress that drives preference in many categories.
• Thirdly, many people are increasingly concerned about authenticity and provenance. The provider becomes as important as the product - so provider brands become as important as their product brands. These provider brands are under great scrutiny, so need to behave ethically and truly live up to their public claims. Toyota's leadership in hybrid engines and the Co-operative leadership in Fair-trade products probably has positive influence over people who do not necessarily drive a Prius or only buy fair trade coffee.