I love marketing.
 I hate marketing. Marketing can be annoying.
 But it can be meaningful as well.
 
 It can do nice things.
 Even good things. 
 The brand utility is an example. I hope this extensive guide inspires brands to do good. I originally wrote it in 2010. This is a new, updated version.


1. 2014
versio
n!
a useful guide to the
brand utility
ingmar de lange / mountview
@idelange

2. i love marketing.
i hate marketing.
!
marketing can be annoying.
but it can be meaningful as well.
it can do nice things.
even good things.
!
the brand utility is an example.
i hope this extensive guide inspires brands to do good.
!
i originally wrote it in 2010.
this is a new, updated version.
!
ingmar

3. part 1.
the background

4. in the old days, marketing made sense.
take a bakery in a small village.
!
the baker had a personal relationship with his customers.
there was a daily dialogue between them.
there was a shared context, everyone lived in the same village.
it was a special experience to visit the bakery.

5. the industrial revolution disrupted marketing.
the bakery turned into a factory, the village became a city.
!
the factory had no relationship with its customers.
there was no dialogue between them.
city life was anonymous, there was no shared context.
it was just about the product, there was no experience.

6. now marketing goes back to basics.
big brands behave like little bakeries.
!
they initiate personal relationships with their customers.
their marketing is less about sending and more about dialogues.
they create shared contexts with their customers.
they do not only offer products, but brand experiences as well.

7. scale
industrial
age
now
old
days
meaning
in other words, marketing makes a u-turn.

8. how can
i help you?
but brands tend to forget the baker’s main question.

9. the brand utility is about this question.
!9

10. part 2.
what is it?

11. products
are useful.
marketing has a split personality.
promotions
are intrusive.

12. it is a
promotion
the brand utility combines the two.
it is
useful

13. homeplus turns billboards into stores.

14. domino’s shows the status of your order to promote its delivery service.

15. amazon uses its advertising budget to subsidize a free delivery service.

16. the brand utility promotes a brand by helping people.

17. chevrolet offers test drives to stranded motorists.

18. nokia connects people by offering silence booths at music festivals.

19. ibm helps people with its billboards.

20. stiegl offers a free public transport ticket to curb drunk driving.

21. nationwide’s app helps you on the spot after an accident.

22. volvo’s app finds and locks your car, shows its data and starts the heater.

23. car2go’s app helps you to book, find and inspect your rental car.

24. klm uses twitter to quickly help its customers, 24/7.

25. tesla offers free charging for life to ‘model s’ owners.

26. offer a service
attract attention
spectacular
service
a brand utility is a combination of a medium and a service.

27. but again,
this approach is
not new.
!
it is marketing
back to basics.

28. michelin has helped you to find the best restaurants since 1920.

29. shell has offered extensive sets of road maps for decades.

30. part 3.
what is
the effect?

31. preference
a brand utility can increase brand preference…

32. …because a brand that helps you, is more likable.

33. sales
but it can also directly influence sales…

34. orientation
purchase
because a brand utility can remove purchase barriers.
!34

35. browse and buy at amazon while you are in a bookstore…

36. uber's app makes it easier to book a taxi.

37. albert heijn manages your shopping list, making it easier to buy groceries.

38. heineken’s bar approaches you, so you can buy a beer more easily.

39. tesco sells products at airports, delivered at your home upon your return.

40. purchase
usage
a brand utility can also stimulate usage.
!40

41. nike+ helps you to use the shoes you bought…

42. amex helps you to manage your receipts after your purchases.

43. eneco shows you how much energy you use.

44. in short, a brand utility can make a brand friendlier.
but it can also improve the customer journey.
!44

45. part 4.
why is it
popular?

46. reason 1: advertising becomes less effective.

47. brands try to get closer to consumers by helping them out…

48. …because you can’t always be funny, but you can always be useful.

49. nike is useful for you, every minute of the day.

50. reason 2. digital media can do so much more than advertise…

51. …apps and social media become service channels for brands…

52. …these service channels become very intimate…

53. …since digital services are very scalable, they become mass media.

54. in short:
digital services are discovered as a new form of advertising.
!54

55. part 5.
what does
this mean?

56. digital is changing the face of marketing.
!56

57. most products are alike, there are not that many reinventions.

58. EXPERIENCE
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
the best route seems to be the emotional differentiator…

59. EXPERIENCE
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
but digital creates great opportunities for basic reinventions.

60. EXPERIENCE
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
ebay reinvented classified adds.

61. EXPERIENCE
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
airbnb reinvents the hotel industry.

62. EXPERIENCE
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
netflix reinvents television.

63. EXPERIENCE
the experience
is added value
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
added value is
the experience
digital brands are successful with a functional differentiator.

64. EXPERIENCE
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
google introduced a search engine that was functionally better.

65. EXPERIENCE
SERVICE
PRODUCT
COMMODITY
facebook introduced a better social utility.

66. in other words, digital turns the marketing hierarchy upside-down.

67. DIGITAL AS A COMMODITY
DIGITAL AS A PRODUCT
DIGITAL AS A SERVICE
DIGITAL AS AN EXPERIENCE
now the basic differentiators have the biggest impact…

68. DIGITAL AS AN EXPERIENCE
it is not that difficult to create a digital experience for a brand.

69. digital offers many tools to quickly create a brand experience.

70. DIGITAL AS A SERVICE
a new, digital service is more challenging…

71. a digital service directly influences a brand’s business model.

72. DIGITAL AS A PRODUCT
the experienceeven greater when upside down. the product…
impact is economy is turned digital changes

73. this changes the core principles of the value chain.

74. DIGITAL AS A COMMODITY
the experience economy is turned upside digital commodities…
biggest challenge is to invent new, down.

75. digital reservation systems were so successful they became a necessity...

76. in short, digital makes it easier for brands
to make an elementary difference.
!76

77. part 6.
some tips

78. tip 1: make daily things easier.

79. kellogg’s helps you to lose weight...

80. starbucks offers one of the most successful mobile payment services…

81. simple shows how much you can still spend.

82. xbox claims to have the most responsive twitter feed in the world…

83. patagonia shows you how to repair your gear.

84. high involvement
travel
toilet
paper
beer
low
insurance
negative
positive
tip 2: for advertising, brand involvement is always the same…

85. high involvement
low
2. book
tickets
remove
frustration
1. make
plans
support
aspiration
3.arrange
practicalities
remove
irritation
4. share
pictures
support
fun
negative
positive
…for a brand utility, the involvement differs per step…

86. high involvement
support
aspiration
remove
irritation
support
fun
low
remove
frustration
negative
positive
…so study the involvement with your brand utility.

87. tip 3: check whether useful is really useful…

88. …your brand utility is useful when people would pay for it.

89. advertising effect
campaigns
brand utility effect
tipping point
both
combined effect
tip 4: advertising can be a catalyst for a brand utility.

90. but advertising should go back to basics and share usefulness.

91. shoe
run
tip 5: brand utilities are not about nouns, but about verbs.

92. tip 6: a brand utility should have six characteristics.

93. tip 7: the best brand utilities eventually become a commodity...

94. part 7.
round up

95. be useful
!95

96. more inspiration?
www.socialmedia247.net

97. thank you!
ingmar de lange
ingmar@mountview.nl
@idelange