How to Create a ‘Fly-Paper Brand’

 
This August, the University of Central Florida joined forces with the Zurich-based Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute and FoodService Europe & Middle East for the third time to hold a seminar on Lake Zurich for foodservice professionals from all over Europe. The subject of the three intensive days with Prof. Chris Muller (Orlando, Florida): ‘Branding in the Restaurant Industry’.
 

 
The focus of the seminar was not so much on specific questions relating to individual companies but rather on the questions that are decisive for building up a brand: what attributes does the product embody? What advantages does it incorporate? What benefits does it provide? What ‘obsessions’ does it represent? And on questions such as: what constitutes your individuality? What areyour long-term goals and ambitions? What are your basic truths?
 
Sometimes, however, unusual questions also help to cast aside old patterns of thought and to break out in new marketing directions. Thus, Chris Muller asked the 14 participants to draw up aspecification for their individual brand: what car would it drive? Which music would it listen to? What style of clothes would it wear? And in which restaurant would the brand prefer to eat with friends? The background: in the age of Facebook, MySpace, ICQ and Co., restaurant brands along with millions of internet users, should have a clearly defined profile that is accessible to everyone so that, in common with users of the online communities mentioned, they can build up their own circle of friends. Thus, says Muller, marketing and branding managers must constantly ask themselveswhat it is about their brand that makes it unique for consumers. These then are the points that they should emphasise and build up so the brand is unmistakable or consumers. “The brand is the DNA of a company: it carries all the information about the product it sells,” explained Muller. Moreover, authenticity is essential to ensure the brand is credible and immediately recognisable for consumers. On the way to building up a personality for the brand, it is helpful to observe the ‘restaurant peer group’, i.e. to ask, “Where is my target group when they are not with me?” However, the stronger and more individual the personality of the brand, the less important is the competition because, as Muller put it, it sets the standards itself. “Character brands know whatlifestyle they stand for.”
 
This stage of brand consciousness is all the easier to achieve the more the unique aspects can be emphasised – it is easier to survive as a monopolist than in the face of competition. At the same time, it is important to keep a close watch on the target group, to make it easier for them to identify with the product. “The higher the brand affiliation, the higher the brand effect.” “A brand has a meaning which is made in the customer’s mind. Your task is to make the customer fall in love with your brand. How? By creating more value for them than any other person or company they could have discovered. Create a sticky brand, like fly paper.” In other words, customer loyalty is enhanced by forging the customer’s personal association with the brand and increasing the frequency of use. And finally, the market value of a hospitality brand is reflected in the firm’s ability to capture price premiums above the intrinsic value of the product it sells.
 

 
If a company has more than one brand, the individual brands should be kept clearly separate from each other so each can be positioned effectively. To this end, it is firstly necessary to understand the market and its needs. What do my potential customers need daily, what on special occasions, what gives them a feeling of security? What helps them find fulfilment? Ideally, every brand in the portfolio should cater for different needs – especially those that have not yet been adequately satisfied by a competitor. A successful brand consists of quality products and services, as well as flawless execution of service delivery to guarantee that the products meet or exceed the expectations of the consumers. On top of that, there is the symbolic imagery and the story a brand tells by its logo, graphics and design. All in all, a successful brand is a promise kept every time it is purchased. Because branding is not about this purchase, it’s about the next time.
 

 
Please read the full article here
. You find picture impressions of 2008's Seminars here.
Also, please find more information on the 1st Seminar, the 2nd Seminar and the 3rd Seminar in 2009.
 

 
| 13 November 2008 |