“BRAND” OF OPPORTUNITY

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The National Retail Federation’s annual convention in New York was a buzz of activity this year with an increase of over 20% in attendees from all over the world seeking new ideas to improve their business. Granted, most of them came to see the latest technology and systems to help improve operations. However, for those who attended the educational sessions (one of which was presented by Robyn Winters and myself where we introduce our Brain Branding concept) there was plenty of information and opinion confirming now is the OPPORTUNITY to capitalize on business. Terry Leahy, CEO of Britain’s successful Tesco stores said it best when he said that “Success in this turbulent economy will be determined by staying focused on what your “brand stands for.”

Halleluiah! Someone who believes that it’s not just getting more aggressive with promotions and sale events to woo our reluctant (or bored) customers back to the stores. It truly is a time to be opportunistic. Last year when the economy was plunging out of control, Hyundai motors introduced their program that allowed you to return your new car if you should lose your job shortly after you purchased it. Not many took them up on the offer, but many certainly did take notice as Hyundai produced the best results in the car industry in 2009.

Sam’s Club just announced that it was eliminating 11,000 jobs by outsourcing their in-store demonstrators to a company that specializes in having motivated, professional demo’s in the stores. Some see it as a budget cutback (which it is) in hard times, but I see it as an opportunity that Sam’s is taking to get more competitive with Costco and add more excitement to the shopping experience in their warehouse stores. Not only will the demos be more fun, but I suspect there will be an increase which will induce trial and add to the loyalty of their customers.

The New York Daily News is fighting back against the circulation losses and advertiser cutbacks by joining forces with Yahoo (along with several other newspapers) to provide their local advertisers the ability to combine the power of the traditional mass media with the growth of online and social networking. The big chains, like JCPenney have been converging successfully for some time, but the local retailers haven’t had the opportunity or savvy to make it happen. Now, they can and are able to make it happen with their local advertising rep from the paper.

Publix once again made the list of the top companies in the US to work for. They also continue to get more grocery shoppers to come into their stores than any other in their markets by constantly improving the shopping experience (“where shopping is a pleasure” is their slogan and they live up to it, everyday.} They seized the opportunity when Albertson’s withdrew most of its stores in Florida by gobbling up most of the sites (many of them better than their existing ones) and refurbishing and remodeling them to make a loyal customer even more so while gaining almost all of the existing Albertson’s shoppers. They have also defended their brand position against the price choppers at Walmart and WinnDixie, by strengthening their private label program and by putting together a Buy One, Get One campaign that keeps the price shopper without weakening their brand position.

Now is the time to look around, redefine your brand position and take advantage of the opportunities to grow your business in spite of the media’s obsession with bad economic news.

Want more insights? Take a look at an article by Marc Albright, Business writer for the St. Petersburg Times who recently interviewed me about Brain Branding and the importance of branding today. The link is:
http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/retail/marketing-consultant-seeks-to-win-over-consumers-whole-brain/1064531

"'tis the season for great branding"

press play>>now to view Ken's Holiday Message.
“‘Tis the season for great branding”

Traditionally, the holiday season has been the time for advertisers, especially retailers, to strut their best, most creative stuff and try to capitalize on the peak selling season. The newspaper used to be a showcase of great photography and copywriting. Television spots reached out to your hearts and for a while ignored the price-item frenzy to help put their brand on the top of Santa’s wish list. The postman needed a lift-truck to deliver all the great catalogs and wish-books that we kept on our coffee tables throughout the season. And recently, innovative programs (like OfficeMax’s “elfing” promotion) have put the fun back into the holidays.

I won’t say much about the print ads other than to note that Kohl’s and JCPenney are making a lot of printers and paper mills quite merry this Christmas. Enough already! And how many red catalogues can Macy’s possibly mail with an equal number of 15% discount cards?, As I’ve said before, Sam’s club has the best print out there.

For television, I decided to take a Thursday evening and watch the entire NBC schedule to see what great spots might be out there. I’ve determined that the programming director for the network must be a junior high kid with a warped sense of humor. Advertising-wise, it was just one big disappointment. Target (usually my favorite) missed the mark this year. Best Buy, TJ Maxx, and many others overdid the singing choruses. If you can’t do great creative, make up a parody of a Christmas carol and get a bunch of lip-syncing actors to join in the fun.?

But, once again as it has been for many years, there was a shining exception. I took the time to watch a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie and as always was not disappointed. The movie had a great message and great acting. However, the commercials were the best ever. Not only does Hallmark remind us of why greeting cards are a memorable way to connect to someone we care about, but they also remind us of the holiday traditions (as in ornaments with meaning) that make this such a wonderful time for families. And they didn’t stop there. With a third message at every break, reminding us that Hallmark has been doing it for over 50 years with nostalgic looks back that are real—not contrived. The messages are great for an industry facing more online competition, but they also solidify a great brand that has been consistent in quality and emotional value. When you care enough to send the very best comes alive. And Hallmark does it in their stores, with their products (besides the cards) and with a brand that people love. To view some of them, copy this link to your web browser: and enjoy the best of the season.
http://www.hallmark.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/article%7C10001%7C10051%7C/HallmarkSite/GoldCrownStores/GCS_COMM

MERRY CHRISTMAS! .



INVITATION: Don’t miss this year’s annual National Retail Federation Convention at the Jacob Javitz Center in New York, January 10-13. Robyn Winters, a “Whole Brain Thinking” expert and I will be introducing our new program – BRAIN BRANDING! This is a new, unique way to increase your market share and develop more customers.
Don’t miss a presentation that take a whole different look at branding. It's at 9:45am on Wednesday, January 13.

Branding and Online Marketing and Networking. Watch now.

PRESS PLAY>> NOW TO VIEW KEN'S OPENING COMMENTS AND INSTRUCTIONS.

THEN CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK TO VIEW KEN'S INTERVIEW WITH TERRY BROCK.
http://www.terrybrock.com/marketingkenbanks/