THERE is an analogy which Wilson Chew frequently uses to debunk a common myth about branding. 'The brand is like a nail, and marketing is like the hammer,' said the CEO of B2B (business-to-business) branding specialist StrategiCom. 'You put the brand on top of someone's head, and you use the hammer, which is marketing, to drill the brand into the mind, to generate recall.'
Mr Chew, who has authored two books on branding, reckons that many SME owners may associate branding with advertising and promotion - often requiring a slick facade or an expensive media campaign. While the two are not mutually exclusive, the wrong impression about what branding is truly about is preventing many SMEs here from leveraging it as a strategic tool.
The observation is echoed by Mark Budden, managing director of branding agency DesignBridge. He noted that there has been rising interest and enquiries from SMEs about branding strategies, but not enough are using it to drive business.
'They believe brand development is a cost when really it's an investment,' said Mr Budden. 'In other words, if you invest wisely you will realise a return in improved sales, awareness, equity or even value, for example.'
In reality, branding is about positioning and differentiation. It is a message about what a product, service or company stands for. In his book Transforming Your Business Into a Brand, Mr Chew defines it as 'To a customer, a brand is simply an idea you own in their minds'.
That 'idea' could be descriptive attributes, a set of visual symbols, or an association with an experience. What is important is the message must be consistent and aligned with its business processes - everyone from the CEO to the front line officer must understand the brand and carry out their function in a way that will reinforce the positioning.
'The branding process is an ongoing challenge, to ensure that all facets of an organisation continue to live the brand,' said Acacia Design Consultants creative director Kelvin Ng. 'Only someone like the CEO can provide the vision and supply the leadership to feed the process. When responsibility for branding is relegated to the communications, marketing, public relations or external affairs departments, the brand more often than not loses its focus and potency.'
Contrary to what many think, branding can be applied to B2B businesses as well. Branding consultants BT said many of their clients are B2B companies, including engineering firms and industrial product suppliers. Also, it does not cost a bomb to clinch a mind space.
'I don't think an SME can afford a lot of money but I also don't think it takes a lot of effort to try and at least find some of the reasons behind the brand, such as your positioning and differentiation,' said Mr Chew. 'Once you've got the brand right, then you can start thinking about what communication platforms you want to use, which is most cost effective, and balance that against your budget.'
Consulus Cato Partners, a regional brand consultancy firm, has many suggestions for SMEs on a tight budget. 'What is great about being an SME is that you have time to build personal relationships with the customers,' said Consulus Cato Partners director for strategy development Lawrence Chong. 'Personal e-mails to ask how they are and to share what's up with your business require dedication. . . I find it interesting that people like to engage in e-mail marketing strategies but forget that at the very heart of brand building is fostering human relationships.'
Mr Chong added that word of mouth, an up-to-date corporate website or a blog can be effective channels too. In fact, the advent of the Internet has greatly halved the time needed to build a successful brand to five to 10 years, compared with 10-20 years previously, according to StrategiCom's Mr Chew.
Funding support may also be obtained through the BrandPact programme jointly administered by IE Singapore and Spring Singapore. With a kitty of $20 million, it helps finance companies' brand development projects with internationalisation in mind. Since its launch in April 2005, $17.7 million worth of co-funding support has been disbursed and 6,702 companies have benefited from it.
Interestingly, DesignBridge's Mr Budden noticed that SMEs in Singapore tend to start thinking about branding only when they venture overseas. A more crowded market and more sophisticated competition landscape are pushing them to stand out more distinctly. Another factor is the inclusion of younger management members, especially in family businesses.
'A new generation of sons and daughters are taking over from our first and second generation of business leaders,' added Mr Chong. 'They are well educated and understand the importance of strategic branding to differentiate themselves by transforming the company.'
But with the economy slowing, are such times appropriate to discuss branding? All the consultants seem to think so.
'There is a positive correlation between share of voice and market share,' said Acacia's Mr Ng. 'If businesses are able to embark on branding initiatives when market activity from competitors are relatively low, they will be able to gain better leverage from branding campaigns and secure a stronger position in the mind of stakeholders.'
This article was first published in The Business Times on December 30, 2008.
