The indifference apocalypse
It’s an era of indifference. Consumers are increasingly brand-agnostic and expect brands to break their promises. In times like this, what becomes of brand equity? Uberbrand’s Dan Ratner explains why responsibility and differentiation are key to rebuilding trust.
The data breaches, PR disasters and never ending tirade of disappointing brand behaviour in 2022 has pushed brand equity off the cliff. It’s no wonder consumers have become lethargic and indifferent as companies have relied on category norms – and not true differentiation to lead their strategies.
Traditionally, brand equity has been defined as the sum of all the experiences a person has with you over time. The more positive they are, the more the consumer can draw on them when things go wrong and the more trust they have.
But when consumers are already suffering from severe brand inertia and a lack of belief, it’s becoming harder to build genuine brand equity.
I’d be keen to hear your thoughts on how “brands” can differentiate themselves in a “real” manner.
Everyone claims to be the best at something, or the most responsible but realistically, can a brand truly demonstrate a point of difference to its competitors? Furthermore, are these points of interest to a customer, old or new – did anyone ask the customer?
Taking the energy sector as an example, I looked at them all the same until I got a call from my existing supplier that wanted to advise we were on a higher rate than necessary & offered us a discounted rate & partial refund…no catches…just a genuine audit & cost reduction for our household.
I don’t disagree that Brands would be wise to ensure they are trying to be transparent, real & everything else…but…consumers can say one thing & do another. Take the Milk pricing crisis a few years back. The Australian public was, according to the media, 100% supportive of the Dairy Farming community’s push for fair pricing. But this support didn’t stop them from buying their $2 milk from Coles & Woolies did it?