Brands Can be Hurt by Turnover When Key Relationships Are Severed
IF IT AIN’T BROKE, DON’T FIX IT!
Lost opportunities, reduced sales, broken relationships. These are the nightmares of all brand builders. Maintaining stable business relationships are crucial to brand growth, and business relationships are based on performance over time. So why would a brand builder risk turnover when key relationships hang in the...
Brand Builders Who Produce and Sell Their Own Products Can Underestimate the Value of Their Own Labor
DON’T GET TRAPPED BY DOING IT ALL
Some brand-building entrepreneurs start off doing everything themselves, from production and supply chain management, to sales and customer service. Often this works – for a while! But ultimately they realize that in order to grow their brand, they must hire salespeople besides themselves. Then they realize...
Successful Brand Builders have to be Prepared to do the Middlemen’s Work
THAT’S NOT WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR
When your brand is new, you may be disappointed by the performance of brokers, distributers, jobbers and retailers in the handling and merchandising of your branded products. We were! In fact we were in denial for months. You know that river in Egypt? We were drowning...
Volkswagen Hurts its Brand Image
CHEATERS NEVER PROSPER
Volkswagen has now officially apologized for apparently deliberately installing software that was designed to fool emission testers. After the apologies, mandatory firings and purging that will inevitably take place, we are still left with the atomized structure that allowed this to happen in the first place....
Successful Brand Builders Avoid Chains and Box Stores until their Brand is Established
WE’LL TAKE A TRUCKLOAD!
Getting a huge initial order from a big box store or national chain sounds like the answer to a brand builder’s dream, but if they aren’t already established in the general market, it could be more of a nightmare! Sure, new brands need instant exposure and...
Consumer Product Brands Must Provide Customer Service
ALL BUSINESSES ARE SERVICE BUSINESSES
Probably the biggest misconception we see coming from aspiring and launch-phase consumer product producers is that they think they are in the product business. But they are all ultimately in the service business. Why? Their products and their customers will need servicing! The quality of that...
The Catholic Brand of Ecology
THE POPE WITH HOPE
Pope Francis made headlines with his encyclical on the climate last week. It’s official! This is the first time a major religion took a public position on climate change, its causes, and what we can do about it. The Catholic religion is the largest religion with...
Build Your Brand with Floor Displays
IF YOU’RE NOT ON THE FLOOR, YOU’RE NOT IN THE STORE!
New consumer product brands require a billboard effect to get noticed at retail stores. Why would any shopper notice your branded product on a shelf packed with a myriad of other choices vying for attention? Getting shelf space is great, and making it into the official...
In-Store Tastings and Free Samples Require Careful Preparation and Follow-Up
WOULD YOU LIKE A FREE SAMPLE?
A great way to build your new food and beverage brand is to conduct free tastings in retail stores. This gives the consumer an opportunity to try your product and hopefully buy it. It’s also a great way to get your new product placed at all,...
3 Take Aways From The Customer Experience Conference
THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE RULES!
Last week we were honored to be the closing keynote speakers for the Annual Customer Experience Conference in New York, brought to you by the same folks who bring you the Consumer Confidence Index: The Conference Board. The MC for the event was Robert Reiss, often...