I was going to give up on the "brand" debate. But then on the way home I remembered I was out of Jack Daniels and changed course for the liquor store.
Inspiration (and I hadn't even opened it yet). We don't seem to be using the word brand the same way. Could be some people are using it as a synonym for hype. I would not define one with the other. Closest I can get is describing "hype" is impression created by shallow, short-lived branding gimmickry.
Jack Daniels is a good example of "brand." My favorite whisky? No. But for me, a good value. It's brand is worth the money (less than half what I pay for my single malt scotches).
Brand, the way we use the term here, can't be created through branding. Brand is the connotation evoked by a product's name or logo, derived from the collective experience of customers over time. Customers, collectively, create a company's brand. It's what we're after when we say, "But what does Jack Daniels 'mean'?"
I think liquors and tobaccos might be too tough for examples, though, especially after the threads already here. So at this point in my thinking tonight, I switched to pondering further about things I write about, in respect to brands.
I write for the construction, mining and drilling industries.
What does "Cummins diesel" mean to you? To me, it conjures up images of just about every piece of equipment Americans put diesel engines in. Generators, power packs, light towers, wheeled and crawler carriers (Could have used Deere, too, I guess. So many products offer you a choice of one or the other).
- Manufacturers here trust Cummins, so they don't need to make their own engines.
- They know their clients "know" and trust Cummins. It advances your own brand to offer Cummins in your machines.
- They know that just about anywhere in North America you go, there's someone with Cummins parts and mechanics who can service them. Better uptime means you have the confidence of *your* customers, if you equipment is powered by a Cummins.
Those are important brand points.
Case, CAT... same thing.
Stop. Do CAT. Man, I wish we represented them. They are 10 times bigger than our biggest client. Baby! I wish I wrote for them. Just because of size???
Size is part of their brand appeal. You can find a Caterpillar dealer just about anywhere. You won't be stuck if you need parts or service or a technician or a loaner. Minimized downtime equals higher customer confidence. But there's more. Legendary customer support, for one. Your experience may have varied. But brand is not about "one person's perception." It's a collective customer experience. Over a long period of time. And overall, CAT customer support... is legendary. When I'm in Canada, some northern, remote spot, there will be a Caterpillar technician. The company is standing by its equipment. He/she almost loses the CAT identity to become part of the customer's company -- until payroll goes out.
The jaded among us will say, "It's because the POS machine will break down." Don't know if you've been around construction sites much, but, it *all* breaks down. And CAT stuff with a dedicated technician on the site, working as if he/she were part of your company, means things are serviced properly. Wear points are being monitored. Things are being cared for, swapped out, replaced ... *before* they break down. And he/she is doing it on scheduled downtime whenever possible.
That concept of "partnership" (we aren't successful unless *you* are successful) is a huge part of the brand. Not just "sell and run," but a sort of welcome into the CAT family. We make "our" business making your business successful" and "We won't let you down."
That's not hype. They're really backing that up.
Does every company do that? Well, they *should*. But there were other makes and models up there with no one. In fact, one popular brand was "kicked off the site" because the company was so frustrated that the company wouldn't help them. They had *hyped* that they had close customer support "just like CAT." In reality, their branding trick backfired. (And not just once. That company is on the rocks. It has support trouble all over North America). The company service agreement stipulated a technician on site caring for that equipment. But, that sad brand's tech never showed. And wasn't replaced. And no rep could tell the company when they could get one out there. See, they couldn't support their equipment in civilized areas, let alone remote areas.
Oh oh. Brand fail. But not CAT. CAT, as requested, had a technician living two out of three weeks on site with the construction contracting company's crews. AND helping the company's own technicians with their projects, just because he was caught up on his own work.
That's an important brand distinction, right there. Right now, in construction equipment, many other manufacturers would kill to have CAT's reputation for customer service. Toughness. Dependability. Availability. Longevity. Across-the-board design similarities -- training new operators is easier, and their skills are transferable.
That's the CAT brand. (And Ingersoll Rand's, and Atlas Copco's... brands that MEAN customer service, top grade equipment, global support, historically good records of quality).
Guess what the others do? They use "branding" to try to imitate CAT. For some it backfires; for others, they become an inexpensive alternative.
Maybe you also like its name. Or have *come* to like its name. Maybe you're loyal to it, also like its livery (color scheme/design). Maybe you hate it. But that's the CAT brand. It's been the CAT brand for a long time. It will be the CAT brand for quite a while yet. That inspires confidence.
It's such a dependable brand that when it bought Terex Redrill (think blasthole drilling crawlers), some people scratched their head, saying, "CAT isn't a blasthole drill brand." But construction, mining and quarrying companies got excited. CAT is going into the drilling business! They know that if CAT bought it, just you wait, it is committed to expanding its offerings with CAT brand. And it will *make* this drill a CAT. Five years. Ten years. It's scary to other drill manufacturers because CAT is a brand identity they can't compete with. CAT lives up to its brand image -- or it would lose its brand image. And people who like CAT can't wait until they have drill rigs that slide into their CAT fleet with the same "brand" expectations that they have for other CAT equipment in their fleets.
This make any sense yet? Was it a good example?
Brand isn't just about material. Two companies can build a bulldozer out of the same material.
It's isn't just about color scheme or name.
It isn't just about production capability.
It isn't *just* about customer service.
It's the whole she-bang -- reliably delivered for a long time. You can copy all those brand points and issue them as your own brand -- but people will suspect you can't live up to them (and you probably can't) but are just a poser company.
Does any of that transfer to tobacco pipe brands? Even a little?
If not, I promise, I quit on the subject.
Inspiration (and I hadn't even opened it yet). We don't seem to be using the word brand the same way. Could be some people are using it as a synonym for hype. I would not define one with the other. Closest I can get is describing "hype" is impression created by shallow, short-lived branding gimmickry.
Jack Daniels is a good example of "brand." My favorite whisky? No. But for me, a good value. It's brand is worth the money (less than half what I pay for my single malt scotches).
Brand, the way we use the term here, can't be created through branding. Brand is the connotation evoked by a product's name or logo, derived from the collective experience of customers over time. Customers, collectively, create a company's brand. It's what we're after when we say, "But what does Jack Daniels 'mean'?"
I think liquors and tobaccos might be too tough for examples, though, especially after the threads already here. So at this point in my thinking tonight, I switched to pondering further about things I write about, in respect to brands.
I write for the construction, mining and drilling industries.
What does "Cummins diesel" mean to you? To me, it conjures up images of just about every piece of equipment Americans put diesel engines in. Generators, power packs, light towers, wheeled and crawler carriers (Could have used Deere, too, I guess. So many products offer you a choice of one or the other).
- Manufacturers here trust Cummins, so they don't need to make their own engines.
- They know their clients "know" and trust Cummins. It advances your own brand to offer Cummins in your machines.
- They know that just about anywhere in North America you go, there's someone with Cummins parts and mechanics who can service them. Better uptime means you have the confidence of *your* customers, if you equipment is powered by a Cummins.
Those are important brand points.
Case, CAT... same thing.
Stop. Do CAT. Man, I wish we represented them. They are 10 times bigger than our biggest client. Baby! I wish I wrote for them. Just because of size???
Size is part of their brand appeal. You can find a Caterpillar dealer just about anywhere. You won't be stuck if you need parts or service or a technician or a loaner. Minimized downtime equals higher customer confidence. But there's more. Legendary customer support, for one. Your experience may have varied. But brand is not about "one person's perception." It's a collective customer experience. Over a long period of time. And overall, CAT customer support... is legendary. When I'm in Canada, some northern, remote spot, there will be a Caterpillar technician. The company is standing by its equipment. He/she almost loses the CAT identity to become part of the customer's company -- until payroll goes out.
The jaded among us will say, "It's because the POS machine will break down." Don't know if you've been around construction sites much, but, it *all* breaks down. And CAT stuff with a dedicated technician on the site, working as if he/she were part of your company, means things are serviced properly. Wear points are being monitored. Things are being cared for, swapped out, replaced ... *before* they break down. And he/she is doing it on scheduled downtime whenever possible.
That concept of "partnership" (we aren't successful unless *you* are successful) is a huge part of the brand. Not just "sell and run," but a sort of welcome into the CAT family. We make "our" business making your business successful" and "We won't let you down."
That's not hype. They're really backing that up.
Does every company do that? Well, they *should*. But there were other makes and models up there with no one. In fact, one popular brand was "kicked off the site" because the company was so frustrated that the company wouldn't help them. They had *hyped* that they had close customer support "just like CAT." In reality, their branding trick backfired. (And not just once. That company is on the rocks. It has support trouble all over North America). The company service agreement stipulated a technician on site caring for that equipment. But, that sad brand's tech never showed. And wasn't replaced. And no rep could tell the company when they could get one out there. See, they couldn't support their equipment in civilized areas, let alone remote areas.
Oh oh. Brand fail. But not CAT. CAT, as requested, had a technician living two out of three weeks on site with the construction contracting company's crews. AND helping the company's own technicians with their projects, just because he was caught up on his own work.
That's an important brand distinction, right there. Right now, in construction equipment, many other manufacturers would kill to have CAT's reputation for customer service. Toughness. Dependability. Availability. Longevity. Across-the-board design similarities -- training new operators is easier, and their skills are transferable.
That's the CAT brand. (And Ingersoll Rand's, and Atlas Copco's... brands that MEAN customer service, top grade equipment, global support, historically good records of quality).
Guess what the others do? They use "branding" to try to imitate CAT. For some it backfires; for others, they become an inexpensive alternative.
Maybe you also like its name. Or have *come* to like its name. Maybe you're loyal to it, also like its livery (color scheme/design). Maybe you hate it. But that's the CAT brand. It's been the CAT brand for a long time. It will be the CAT brand for quite a while yet. That inspires confidence.
It's such a dependable brand that when it bought Terex Redrill (think blasthole drilling crawlers), some people scratched their head, saying, "CAT isn't a blasthole drill brand." But construction, mining and quarrying companies got excited. CAT is going into the drilling business! They know that if CAT bought it, just you wait, it is committed to expanding its offerings with CAT brand. And it will *make* this drill a CAT. Five years. Ten years. It's scary to other drill manufacturers because CAT is a brand identity they can't compete with. CAT lives up to its brand image -- or it would lose its brand image. And people who like CAT can't wait until they have drill rigs that slide into their CAT fleet with the same "brand" expectations that they have for other CAT equipment in their fleets.
This make any sense yet? Was it a good example?
Brand isn't just about material. Two companies can build a bulldozer out of the same material.
It's isn't just about color scheme or name.
It isn't just about production capability.
It isn't *just* about customer service.
It's the whole she-bang -- reliably delivered for a long time. You can copy all those brand points and issue them as your own brand -- but people will suspect you can't live up to them (and you probably can't) but are just a poser company.
Does any of that transfer to tobacco pipe brands? Even a little?
If not, I promise, I quit on the subject.
