"Your brand is not your business"

 “Your brand is not what you say it is, it is what people agree it is”, a statement that we all should remember given by Mr Paul Bailey, Strategy Director, Halo. He had a session at ZEE Melt 2020, an annual marketing, advertising, and communication event that was held on 3^rd and 4^th September this year in the virtual platform.  Mr Bailey had a session where he spoke of shaping brands with associated memorable moments.

The first thing I thought was important, is to be able to seek attention. In this era of cheap internet, data is widely available, and a consumer goes through a lot of it, but why would he pause and look at your content it is just like others? You have to have unique content, or way of presenting it, you have to have the ability to seek attention.

The second was to make sure they remember your brand.  Business can somewhat initiate how it shows a brand, but the reputation, the pros and cons, is how the customers perceive it to be. But you can have a great strategy and creativity, that encourages the desired reaction. You have to create it from the audience’s perspective. Mr Bailey explained that associated memorable moments means a brand is shaped through a series of moments that people remember and associate with one another. We have to create a set of identifiable elements, that people recognise instantly as you. These can be anything from sound, logo to the shape of the product, he said.

The third thing was to be clear about your value and stand. “Say one thing, say it well and say it often”. Speak up about social issues. Take your stand and make sure you keep it. The world is watching and you can’t be silent. It will have an impact.

The final thing I will remember is that creativity is the one thing that is the driving force. You might have content, but the ability to show it creatively is what sets you apart. He ended the entire explanation by saying that “the biggest brand challenge is not sales or loyalty or conversion. It's being noticed. Repeatedly noticed. Constantly coming to mind”. I am sure all the participants would have understood its point because he beautifully connected the dots. Like now it connects to me about what he meant when he said the brand is not the business.