How to Build a Better Brand

Marketers must keep messages short, energetic, and simple By Maria Minsker

You know it when you see it; a good brand message is hard to forget. From Apple's understated logo to Subway sandwich shops' "Eat Fresh" slogan, companies that strike marketing gold have something in common: brand messages that are clear, memorable, and, perhaps most important, simple. Too often, companies get caught making the same mistakes and falling into the same branding traps, forgetting to follow one of the most basic principles of advertising-keep it simple.

"One of the biggest problems that brands have to deal with is fluff. Consumers are constantly seeing and hearing ads and, eventually, everyone reaches a point when they become numb to it," says Tim Riesterer, chief strategy and marketing officer at Corporate Visions. "Brands have got to keep things simple, and they've got to keep things clear."

It is in the spirit of simplicity and clarity that we offer the following nine brand messaging tips:

Avoid buzzwords. A major mistake, for example, is relying too heavily on buzzwords that are not only overused but also vague. "Everyone wants to be part of a major trend, whether it's being a 'big data' company, a 'slow food' restaurant, or a 'mompreneur.' The problem with relying on these buzzwords to define you is that the more popular they become, the less impact they have.... This doesn't mean you can't use popular category phrases at all. Just use them sparingly, and pair them with words that differentiate you and pack a unique punch," Leyl Master Black, senior marketing director at public relations agency Sparkpr, wrote in a Mashable post.

Posing as simple words that everyone knows, buzzwords are actually very complex and vague in meaning. They're so widely used that they tend to take on additional meanings and, moreover, start to mean different things to different people, Riesterer suggests.

Say no to lingo. Using too much lingo can produce a similar effect, according to Roger Hicks, director of client services at Current 360, an interactive branding, marketing, and advertising agency. "There are clients so entrenched within a particular industry that they assume that everyone speaks at least a bit of their jargon. Wrong! SEO, APY, RDC, API, and TVL are not benefits, they're acronyms. Your brand message should be written for your consumers and not for your colleagues," he says.

Focus on the customer. A fatal flaw common to failed brand messages is that they don't have enough of a focus on the customer. "Some clients have a very rich history of success. That's great. However, content should not be about you, your business, or your industry. It should be about your consumers, their lifestyle, and their aspirations-how you make their life better, play a vital role in their lifestyle, and help them reach their goals," Hicks says.

Target. While marketers often craft messaging around what they believe to be the most important features of their product or service, it's necessary to shift the focus to looking into what's actually important to target customers.

"Blast marketing can tend to feel like spam, especially when brands build their marketing campaigns by thinking about a demographic without an accurate representation of how that demographic actually behaves," Craig Davis, CEO of marketing firm Relewant, says.

"Marketers have this idea about what certain people like, but too often, they're wrong. Brands need to spend time thoroughly researching and understanding their target audience before developing their marketing campaign. Only then can they have a targeted enough approach to be relevant to customers," Davis says.

Simplify. Targeted doesn't have to mean complicated, Davis affirms. "We've noticed that email marketing campaigns that have three to four words in the subject line perform significantly better than campaigns with longer messages," he says. "Something can be targeted without being wordy."

Prevent "whiteboarditis." In addition to deciding what their customers want to see in a brand message, companies need to determine what they want to say. "When you fill a conference room with senior managers for a messaging session," Black says, "it's not unusual for everyone to have a different opinion about what the company does, accompanied by a strong need to be heard.

"The problem with this approach," she adds, "is that it often results in statements such as this one: 'Our mission is to help innovative leaders in the CPG industry increase the velocity of their business and drive engagement with their social communities to inspire meaningful change.' This mission statement is likely suffering from 'whiteboarditis'-the inflammation that occurs when someone crams everything from the whiteboard into one sentence."

Energize. The mission statement and brand messaging go hand in hand, Riesterer agrees, and both should be clear, focused, and brief. Both should also be full of energy. "Messages should be short, strong, and verbheavy," he says. "You want to pack a lot of punch into a very short bit. This is where catchiness comes from-this is what excites an audience and makes a message memorable."

Don't overdo it. While it's important for messages to have energy, there is such a thing as too much excitement. Current 360, for example, cautions its clients against becoming what Hicks calls Passion Bruts, and conveying product information in a way that sounds too gimmicky and disingenuous. "The Passion Brut is so convinced that his product is so spectacular, he assumes that everyone else shares his passion and yearns to know more. And why wouldn't they? It's a robe and a blanket!" he jokes. "Seriously, while we dream of one day landing the Snuggie or Slanket accounts, we always recommend that creating interest precede conveying information."

Make it portable. Lastly, because brand message simplicity plays such a crucial role in not only drawing customers in, but also turning them into brand advocates, brands that don't devote enough attention to message portability suffer.

Many companies generate business through word of mouth, Black suggests, so messaging needs to be portable enough for their customers to spread the message and "brag" about the brand to friends.

"One way to check [for portability] is to try boiling your messaging down to just one or two sentences, creating the same type of'logline' Hollywood uses to sum up a movie or TV plot, such as 'A young man and woman from different social classes fall in love aboard an ill-fated voyage at sea,"' Black adds. "Your logline should give people an idea of what you offer and provide some sort of hook to stimulate interest. Once you've got your logline, go back through your marketing copy and make sure these simple messages come through loud and clear. You can also use the logline itself in your marketing materials, on your Web site and social media properties, and in conversations with customers and prospects."

The key, Black reiterates, is keeping it simple: "If you can't tell your story in fifty words or less, chances are your customers won't be able to either."

"THE LITTLE BLACK DRESS" OF NOTEBOOKS

A brand that exemplifies a near-perfect blend of simplicity, originality, and utility, Moleskine is at the top of its game these days. The company boasts more than $200 million in annual sales and reports roughly 35 percent growth per year. The brand, most famous for its understated, black leather-bound notebooks, is simple, elegant, and a stationery staple-it's "the little black dress of notebooks," says Ken Carbone, the cofounder and chief creative director of the Carbone Smolan Agency, a design and branding company.

"A simple message fuels the brand's resonance and consumer loyalty. [Its] mission is built on four pillars: imagination, travel, memory, and personal identity. Everything about Moleskine's retail presence is built to reflect the four core characteristics," Carbone wrote in a blog post for Fast Company.

Moleskine currently produces 300 products that are distributed in 62 countries-impressive numbers for a small company that just recently grew to only about 100 employees between the Italy and U.S. offices. As the company continues to grow, one of the most fascinating aspects about its advertising campaign is that there is none-at least not in the traditional sense.

The brand doesn't need to spend money on advertising because it's so iconic, Carbone maintains, and it has become so iconic because it never spent money on gimmicky ads. Instead, the brand made a name for itself by identifying its two main target audiences-those focused on creativity and the artistic side and professionals who want to get things done-and presenting these two groups with a solid product, offering it in places the two are likely to frequent.

"The company leverages word of mouth and their special editions designed for institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art and events like the Tribeca Film Festival and the Montreaux Jazz Festival. These have proven to be successful collaborations and offer beneficial exposure to their customers and a revenue source for the company," Carbone says. "Free advertising [also] comes in the form of'sightings.' Moleskine enjoys what I call brand anonymity, allowing their products to become props in films and TV. Their classic black notebook blends into the background yet can't be missed. Their journals have appeared in films such as The Devil Wears Prada and The Motorcycle Diaries, and on the series C.S. J."

Despite its lack of traditional advertising, the company excels at brand messaging and marketing. "To 'amplify' their brand, the in-house Moleskine team is doing everything right," Carbone says. For one, the company has a solid Web presence. Its Web site offers animated videos that bring the company's products to life and incorporates interactive components, including a beta version of its travel aid MoleskineCity and its official blog, Moleskinerie, Carbone explains. "For a predominantly analog brand, [it has] a comprehensive social media presence; an unprecedented 75,000 Facebook fans far exceeds that of the competition," he says.

The brand has also created a traveling exhibition called Detour, which features notebook creations by internationally recognized artists, architects, film directors, graphic designers, illustrators, and writers. The show, curated by Raffaella Guidobono, has to date been to eight cities worldwide. "These initiatives do more than advertise; they help Moleskine define its brand," Carbone explains.

As Moleskine's initiatives come together, the brand thrives, despite the tech-loving audience that is its market. "Moleskine</org> sees its function, design, and aesthetic appeal as complementary tools for these popular technologies. Moleskine is a category leader because it speaks loudly with a soft voice," Carbone asserts.

"Its ubiquity is contrasted by the humble way its logo is blind stamped on the back of each book, saying 'this book is all about you, not us.' The colorful band, or fascetta, that wraps each product is easily removed, like a drawn curtain on a stage that allows the performance to begin," he adds. "These are all masterful ways that Moleskine connects with its customers, ensures their loyalty, and is recognized for its creativity."

FRUGAL, NOT FLASHY

While it certainly can't be accused of spending very little on its ads, insurance giant GEICO keeps advertising cost-efficient and simple, demonstrating how practicing restraint can often prove to be more profitable than depleting a massive ad budget.

"For a lot of companies, a big advertising budget means a big advertising campaign. That in and of itself is not a bad thing, but when a big campaign means a complex, flashy message that's more about a celebrity endorser than the product or brand, that becomes a major issue," Riesterer says.

Despite spending $921 million on measured media last year, according to the Ad Age DataCenter, GEICO is careful about the way it spends its money. The company's budget efficiency stems from its smart use of consumer data, Riesterer believes, which enables the company to use its advertising funds intelligently. "This is why they can keep their advertising so simple," he says. "Because they take the time to analyze their customer. And their customer, they determined, doesn't like or need flashy campaigns. Their customer just wants to save money, and GEICO tells them how they can save money.. .in every ad."

'Ihe company's attention to consumer data isn't new; before the Internet, GEICO used to send out millions of pieces of mail to potential customers, tracking any and all interest. Though the company has evolved with the times and shifted its focus from direct mail to phone to Internet and, eventually, to mobile and portable devices, the principle has remained the same.

The company has used its famous tagline, "Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance," for almost 20 years. And the message hasn't gotten old-since it first came into use, the slogan has been tweaked little in recent years and has become so iconic that it now simply states: "Fifteen minutes could save you.. .well, you know."

"The message is simple, clear, and to the point. When people think of car insurance, they think of it as a necessity," Riesterer explains. "They think, T don't want to buy this, but I have to. What can this company offer me that will make me want to buy this product that I don't even want to buy?' And the answer to that is simple: savings."

With a product like insurance, there isn't much to look at. GEICO and other car insurance companies can't show consumers their insurance policies or demonstrate how one is better than another in their ads. In these situations, Riesterer asserts, you can't avoid relying on catchiness. "All car insurance companies offer the same product: car insurance. There are different rates and options, but ultimately, it is what it is. It can be a challenge to sell something that isn't there, and isn't unique," he says.

Still, GEICO has found a way. From the grumpy gecko, bombarded by calls from customers mistaking his number for GEICO's, to the more recent "Happier Than a...." singing duo, the company has found creative, funny, and memorable ways to convey its simple brand message to the public. One of the company's more recent video ads, featuring a camel with the tagline "People who save money on car insurance are happier than a camel on a Wednesday," was incredibly popular on social media. The "Hump Day" video ranked as the fifth most shared ad on social media in the second quarter, according to Unruly Analytics.

With a firm grasp on advertising, the company has performed incredibly well in 2013. According to projections from SNL Financial, GEICO is on its way to surpassing Allstate as the nation's second-largest car insurance company. Its no-nonsense approach to creating advertisements that its customers will enjoy has proven to be cost-effective and profitable, and its simple yet smart and frugal ads have been instrumental in keeping costs down, which is the very reason GEICO continues to offer low prices.

"Virtually unchanged for two decades now, GEICO's message has always been simple. That's why it hasn't had to change-because it works," Riesterer explains. "Companies can definitely learn a thing or two here."

Brand messaging shouldn't solely depend on how much money a company has to spend on advertising. "A large, wealthy company can't afford flashy, gimmicky advertisements and campaigns for the same reason that a small, budding company can't. Because it's not about the money here," Riesterer says. "These types of campaigns don't work unless there is a simple yet strong foundation to stand on-a simple message that resonates with consumers."

"Marketers have this idea about what certain people like, but too often, they're wrong "

"A simple message fuels [Moleskine's] resonance and consumer loyalty."

Brands that don't devote enough attention to message portability suffer.

"All car insurance companies offer the same product.... It can be a challenge to sell something that isn't there, and isn't unique."

Associate Editor Maria Minsker can be reached at mminsker@infotoday. com.