Brands have to find new ways to connect with consumers. Traditional advertising is losing relevance as people move away from traditional media. Of course, advertising alone is never enough. Real brand loyalty comes from great brand experiences.
The brands I have a deep, loyal relationship with are the ones making my life better. A few weeks ago I upgraded the software on my iPhone. To my delight I had a new application installed for voice recording. I used it to record this thought: Apple continues to embed itself in my daily life through utilities like this, and the thought of changing brands doesn’t even enter my mind.
The voice recorder is a ‘branded utility’. It helps me in a meaningful way by providing a valuable service or function. Benjamin Palmer, CEO of the Barbarian Group, does a great job of summing up what branded utilities are about:
It’s where the brand creates something useful to you, something that’s a utility in your life. The consumer will feel more confident with the relationship if the brand will continue to be part of your life.
Palmer is one of the people given credit for defining the term, though the concept – giving something useful away for free to promote your brand and products – has been with us for years.
A Special Report on Branded Utility from media consultancy Contagious points to a great example developed many years ago by David Ogilvy: The Guinness Guide to Oysters:
The call to action on the poster encouraged people to phone Guinness to order their own poster; that’s viral marketing circa 1960.
This poster would still be very useful today. It’s great content. What’s changed since then is the way it’s distributed. Today it would be all over Twitter in a few seconds, which would lead you to a website for downloading and social network distribution.
This change in the digital landscape is amplifying the opportunity to develop useful content and services for distribution to a much wider audience, much faster.
For FMCG brands in particular, especially those in low-involvement/interest categories, a branded utility provides a great opportunity to create a meaningful connection with the consumer and entrench their loyalty to the brand. Late last year Kraft launched the food industry’s first iPhone App, the iFood Assistant designed to offer consumers access to food and meal-planning ideas.
Our goal is to help make consumers' lives easier by helping them find the perfect food idea for any occasion, create quick shopping lists and find the nearest grocery store -- all just a finger-tap away," said Ed Kaczmarek, director of innovation for new services at Kraft.
Kraft’s approach represents a change in traditional marketing thinking. The iFood Assistant is a move away from disruptive advertising to a model where people actively seek out the brand.
The challenge for brand managers is finding a service or function that’s original, relevant and of ongoing value. The reward will be a loyal following of happy customers actively engaging with and promoting your brand.