Well, I am back and had a good show last week - tiring, but good sales. I can see that you all have moved on to bigger and (maybe) better things to discuss, but I will throw this out just in case there is still some interest in it. If not, just let it slide slowly to the bottom.
As I mentioned, I spoke on "Capturing More Than Market Share." (which, an exerpt from that will be my article in A&FR this month, if anyone wants the link to it.)
What the "punch line" to that statement was, was capturing what I call "Mental Market Share."
For instance, when you see a "swoosh" what do you think of" Nike - right? But in fact, what is a "swoosh" anyway? Did Nike define the swoosh, or did the swoosh define Nike? This is a wonderful example of "branding." Home Depot? Orange signs, and "helping the do-it-yourselfer." Lowes? Blue signs, and "better selections."
Wal-mart? "smiley face and lower prices."
Target? "Red bull's eye, more in style"
These are great examples of branding, but to capture the "mental market share" you need to become the "thing" that the customer thinks of.
For instance - "facial tissue"? Kleenex. I have no idea of the portion of the physical market that Kleenex has, but it has nearly 100% of the "mental" market.
"Copy machine?" Xerox. But now, how many of you actually own a Xerox brand machine? I bet few, if any.
This is what capturing the mental market is all about. And it involves so much more than branding. Branding is important and it needs to be done, but that's only a small part of it.
I know Kleenex had 80+ years and movie stars such as Helen Hayes endorsing the product, but there are ways for us to do it on a more "regional" scale.
More discussions? Or tired of it? (Gee, was I too late?)
Betty