‘Don’t let the modern world frighten you’, says Unilever ANZ CMO on effective brand building
The chief marketing officer at Unilever Australia/New Zealand urged marketers not to fear the modern world and its multiple platforms, saying millennial values like “authenticity” and “transparency” were key to building a brand.
John Broome “authenticity” and “transparency” key
Speaking in the session ‘Brand Building and How to Win the Trust of Your Customers’ at Mumbrella’s Retail Marketing Summit, John Broome, Unilever’s CMO, said aligning with consumer values was essential for big brands hoping to compete effectively in the modern market and consumers would “reward” brands for building and fostering relationships.
While marketers face challenges with building their brands through multiple channels, Broome told marketers “don’t let the modern world frighten you.”
“Understand how you reach your audience and tailor the message according to the channel, but think about how you actually reach them,” he said.
The comments were made following a YouGov presentation led by Patrick Corr, Co-CEO APAC, YouGov, which revealed that 31% of Australian customers named brand customisation as what mattered most to them, while 37% claimed to have no brand loyalty whatsoever.
The YouGov report, which included 1,200 consumers across Australia as well as data from YouGov’s BrandIndex, indicating customisation of a brand – meeting the individuals needs – was particularly important in the clothing and fashion sectors, at 43% and 40% respectively.
Other results showed inconsistent quality and price as the main reasons Australians switch brands, while poor customer service was a key reason in the fast food category.
“People actually want to know how it’s happening. Where did it come from, and does that align with my own values?”, Broome said.
“We’re in a world today where small companies are growing faster than big companies and if we want to compete then we have to deliver to those consumer expectations.”
Jee Moon, vice president of marketing at Luxottica said the most “instrumental” piece for marketers to remember was that “helping identify the thing that the brand can really stand for is in brands really understanding the customer.”
“It’s getting down to defining them literally as an individual person.”
Moon: “Helping identify the thing that the brand can really stand for is in brands really understanding the customer”
Moon said tightening the narrative and the definition of customer was key.
“The tighter the narrative, the more emotionally engaging the narrative, the more of a chance you have of being able to capture the imagination and the energy of your people.”
Speaking about the fast food industry, Anna Jones, former chief marketing officer at Guzman y Gomez said a challenge for big fast food brands was turning consumer perception around to help the industry’s growth.
“The fast food industry is not growing, it’s shrinking, and the reason is because convenience is the number one driver, and there isn’t a lot of brand loyalty,” Jones said.
Jones: No “brand loyalty” in fast food sector.
“My belief is that convenience and price are the drivers, and we all comprise on quality and nutrition and the fact food is not necessarily made in a responsible way because it’s satisfying the need of convenience.”
Jones went on to say her time working with a smaller brand competitor such as Guzman y Gomez gave her the capacity to focus on sustainability and consumer needs.
“One of the reasons I was able to do it is because we didn’t have legacy views on how you should spend your marketing dollars” she said.
“It’s not just how many people are going to see the brand on a billboard, but ‘is my marketing budget actually better spent on being able to put the money back into the product and (offer customers) free-range chicken and then be able to talk about it from a PR point of view, as opposed to it just sitting in a marketing budget that I just spend on digital and outdoor?’”
From a media perspective, Aimee Buchanan CEO of OMD said thinking beyond a campaign was crucial for engagement.
Buchanan: “The brand and clients that come to us want to talk about how their brand positioning is forming through their business, and how it’s influenced by product”
“It’s about business alignment,” Buchanan explained.
“The brand and clients that come to us want to talk about how their brand positioning is forming through their business, and how it’s influenced by product.”
topics
Amy Buchanan
Anna Jones
Guzman y Gomez
Jee Moon
John Broome
Luxottica
OMD
Patrick Corr
Unilever
YouGov
Great conference and really interesting panel, thanks Mumbrella. I did ask a question though that none of the panelists answered. So I’ll pose it again. I’d be interested in the industries pov.
‘You all talk about brands that have a purpose and a layer that intrinsically does good whether it be sustainability or body confidence, all positive. What’s your view on a brand that does the opposite such as Donald Trump and what do you think their future is in the long term?’
Thanks in advance,
Eithne
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Well said!
“It’s not just how many people are going to see the brand on a billboard, but ‘is my marketing budget actually better spent on being able to put the money back into the product and (offer customers) free-range chicken and then be able to talk about it from a PR point of view, as opposed to it just sitting in a marketing budget that I just spend on digital and outdoor?’”
For small challenger Brands it’s easy to look at the big players and what they are doing for Marketing and say “hey that’s what we need to do to grow” But that’s not always the case, especially if your growth ambitions are more modest. Focussing on the Brand and customer and gaining their loyalty and advocacy can be a lot more beneficial.
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Can you not see how blind and lacking insight your question is. There are lots of people who believe Donald has more purpose, and is doing more good than anyone in the history of American politics. (Im not one of them – but there are lots out there).
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