Challenging a few "truths"

As in any industry, advertising and marketing has its share of rules and beliefs. Many are taught in college and perpetuated by the profession. Some are cast in stone and seldom questioned. So every now and then, it’s a good idea to throw a few stones at these so-called truths. Do they really apply today? Have they withstood the test of time? Let’s take a whack at a few.

“Being first is important”

Being first apparently makes an indelible impression on people, and therefore, becomes the property of the pioneering brand. So the theory goes. You hear trivia questions like, “Do you recall the second man to walk on the moon?” Your contentious answer could be “No, I don’t, because they never went to the moon. It was all a hoax.”

The diplomatic answer, if you wish to condescend to the point, is that you had never heard of Buzz Aldrin, but of course, everyone knows Neil Armstrong. It’s a deceptive analogy. For all the obvious evidence tells us being first has less value than we are led to believe.

For instance, can you name the first digital camera? Or the first toothpaste to use flouride? How about the brand of car that invented automatic transmission? Or the first car with variable valve timing?

The first airline to introduce business class can no longer claim competitive advantage. Neither can the first maker of MP3 players. Flip back a few decades and you’ll find that many pioneering companies aren’t leaders in their field today.

Technology, formats and business models can be copied. And copied they have been, innovated on by brands that deliver and communicate it better, consistently. The ‘first’ that marketers really want to be concerned with is being first or among the top in brand perception. That, sometimes, has little to do with a technical fact.

“Branding takes time”

I still hear this one. The most recent was last month at a presentation by a class of graduating marketing students. Try telling that to a brand manager today.

Maybe branding once did take a lot of time. But that was when everything took a lot of time. Back when it took 7 hours to get from KL to Penang. When rendang, pre-microwave, took a whole delirious day to stir and stew. When news of the demand of spice moved only as fast as a ship could steam from Britannia to Batavia.

Fortunately or otherwise, communication now moves as fast as fingers on a keyboard. And so, Yahoo (1994), Amazon (1994), and Google (1998) have quickly become brands. YouTube is only 2 years old.

Even outside cyberspace, rather astute marketing has very quickly established brands of cars, fashion and electronics. Dell and Paul Smith, both founded in the early 80’s, are international examples. Look around and you will see lots more. Many Malaysian companies have elevated their commodities to brands in remarkably short periods.

Branding isn’t about taking time as it is does about being with the times. When people have the memory span of fish, it’s relevance and fresh ideas that win new marketshare.