How to deepen consumers ' impressions of products

In the late 90, Daimler Chrysler set up a new department within the company. The function of this department is not to design, not to manufacture, nor to sell, but to research and make the sound of the switch door.

To that end, a top automotive engineer shared his intriguing insights that people now have a much different mentality than they did 20 years ago. Today, the first thing consumers get into the car display area is to sit in. He held the steering wheel and felt the decorations on his seat. He smelled the "new car smell"; He opened the window and closed it, he got off the door, listened to the unique "muffled", and then he started to drive the front cover to check the engine, which only took a minute. In fact, 99% of consumers do not have any sense of the equipment in the hood.

Now, you know why Chrysler has so much work to do with the sound of the switch door in the car. In reality, our sensory response is the only reference standard for new cars.

So you need to ask yourself a question: What's left of the logo? Most companies still focus on designing logos, ignoring the sensory responses of brand audiences, such as color, navigation, material, sound, and shape.

Are these components easily identifiable? If your answer is no, it's time to "crush" your brand.

Smashing brands is smashing brands into a lot of different "pieces", while building and maintaining a "shattered" brand, although each part is critical, they can still exist and operate independently.

Crush Colors--Protect your exclusive rights

Coca-Cola lost the "Red War" in the European market because it suffered a strong local rival. In the UK, 30% of participants think that red is the color of Vodafone, while only 22% of people think of Coca-Cola when they see red.

For this reason, in a British marketing campaign, Coca-Cola has made a number of changes in the logo: the traditional red and white with a different color, but also including blue and green-each color combination represents its sponsorship of the football team. The green logo is also seen in Europe and Asia Pacific. In Germany, for example, Coca-Cola's classic red spiral cap turns green; in Japan, people think that red belongs to other brands.

However, 36% of all respondents to the survey considered red as Coca-Cola and 27% per cent as Vodafone.

Since Coca-Cola's "red status" is indestructible, Pepsi has turned to the "blue Banner" and has carried on in the global marketplace. In the survey, 33% of people think that Blue is a Pepsi. This may not be good news for IBM, which for many years has been marked by blue. In fact, in some countries, such as Japan, consumers think IBM is black, not blue. Only 11% of consumers around the world will be able to link blue with IBM. And 14% said IBM equals black.

After summing up the color properties of several major companies in the world, you will not feel that the color and real estate are similar, are "lots, lots, lots"! In the hottest district, competition is always more intense.

In the past few decades, many brands have wanted to "occupy" one of their own color. Heinz, the world's leading condiment maker, has launched a campaign called "Red Power" to give women the confidence to wear red clothing (including Heinz's red ketchup, of course).

Switzerland is also a member of the "Red Camp". Switzerland is famous for its famous watches, knives, cheese, chocolate and Swiss banks. Since the middle of 19th century, Switzerland has been planning to build its own brand and apply it on a wide scale worldwide. The Red Cross was set up in 1863, and the flag and Swiss flags were the opposite colors, albeit not deliberately, but the move created the world's most powerful red-white brand. Every brand that can be called "Made in Switzerland" is strict in product quality, because the word "Switzerland" represents precision and high quality. Red and white color is also synonymous with "Switzerland", which is by far the most wonderful "national marketing" behavior.

Of all colors, yellow is considered to be the most drilled color. The telephone directory that appeared in early 20th century is now the Yellow pages. Red and yellow collocation has always been the focus of brand contention, for decades, McDonald's and Kodak also in the red and yellow with the ownership of the debate.

Color is very important to the brand and shapes the public's "first perception" of the product. The primary difference between the school bus, the police car, the mail and the garbage truck is the color of the body. If the main color of the company's print is inconsistent with the logo, the brand cannot establish or maintain the ownership of the color. After all, the human brain is most impressed by color.

Crushing language--consistent

Disney, Home Lok and Gillette are three different business categories, but they have one thing in common: they have built a "brand language" over the past decade. 74% of consumers hear "crisp crunch sound" can Lenovo home le; another 59% think "masculine" is synonymous with Gillette, and the following figures are even more striking: 84% of Americans think "manly" and Gillette are highly correlated.

However, there is also a brand, the highest score. This brand creates a kingdom full of fantasies, dreams, hopes and magic. Since the 1950s, Disney has been working hard to create a "foundation" that is stronger than the brand's own influence. Look at the following passage:

"Welcome to the Kingdom of Dreams!" Here, fly your ideas and fantasies, and let the smiles and magic come from the generations. ”

The survey found that more than 80% of the participants said the phrase was Disney's advertising language.

More importantly, Disney's language can be used to "crush test." Pick out a word, a sentence, or any of a column in a Disney publication, and get rid of all the tips, and you'll still recognize Disney! If you go to London, you may find that the Chanel car looks the same as the 5th perfume.

To build a truly crushing brand requires persistence and patience. This is very rare in today's business world, because "the only constant is change", whether it is brand strategy or marketing strategy. Coupled with the current financial environment, which only pursues instant results, brand information has become a kind of information in this overcrowded world.

For many years, Nokia has used "humanization" to locate its own mobile phone products. However, only 14% of consumers will associate the word "humanity" with Nokia.

Nokia is not alone, and many companies fail to implement their emotional strategies through words. Colgate has been playing "Colgate Smile" This slogan for decades, but in the survey, the "Smile" in the word, Colgate is only the third level of association, the top two are Disney and McDonald's. This investigation of relevance has sparked an intriguing phenomenon: the more distinctive the brand's personality, the more emphasis it has on human nature (the less attention it has to the product itself), the easier it is for consumers to remember the words, phrases, or sentences associated with the brand.

What's The secret? It's no use just to make up a slogan, the key is to adopt a people-oriented approach, to avoid the product itself as the core (such as focus on describing product features).

Crushing shape--after unloading eight pieces

Shape is one of the most overlooked brand elements. Think of Coca-Cola's curved bottle, the bottle of Garian liqueur, and the bottle of Chanel No. 5th perfume, which has long been the voice of the brand; when it comes to the Golden M shape, you must think of McDonald's at once, and every McDonald's store in the world uses this shape. Tabenergy is a low-calorie beverage designed for women by the Coca-Cola Company, cans are taller and thinner than traditional cans; the Klaus Boulay of the British company, which uses an hourglass in its waistline-reducing product, means that the figure can be as good as Marilyn Monroe if the female consumer insists on taking it.

Male products are not to be outdone. The liquor brand, the Kentucky bourbon, is a bottle of large, sturdy glass that the designer of the brand describes as a "manly shoulder". Russia launches a new vodka brand and translates it as "sexy Tina" in English. Including Irish Cream, the bottle body is also designed as the shape of the female breasts.

Barbie is also easy to spot, even if you take her "eight pieces", you can recognize (no disrespect for Barbie's meaning OH). In other words, Barbie is the easiest to crush in a peer product.

Most computers look mediocre, but Apple's imac is an exception. Whether it's a generation of computer products, you can arbitrarily "crush" its parts, and will not affect its "high degree of identification." Whether it's a shiny white piece, or a white plastic shell of an ipod headset, Apple's unique logo.

Barbie's waist curve, Apple's streamlined look, and the contours of a cola-curve bottle, each element is integrated into the overall design of the product, creating a unique appearance shape.

Crushing behavior--how impressive.

The check-in counters at the airport usually have a clear indication of the maximum weight of baggage that can be carried. Various airlines also advertise the relevant regulations and safety clauses in many ways. But Virgin invented a unique way of saying: "You can be conceited, but with only one piece of luggage (7 kilograms)!" "Virgin's boarding process was also comfortable. Every staff member smiles, and every radio starts with "Ladies and gentlemen" and "Boys and girls", which are often overlooked by small travellers who feel respected. Even Virgin's flights are unique, and the experience continues until the plane arrives-a sign on oversized baggage that says "big baggage is really inconvenient".

If you are not satisfied with your purchase at the Harrow department store in London, you can change it or return it for whatever reason. This "commitment to unconditional return" policy is one of the reasons for Harrods's popularity.

In this case, "service" is an invisible concept, but it can also crush it like other visible elements. Cathay's passengers will receive a handwritten "good luck" note from a staff member. When you see this, you may question that the notes were written by a single advertising company in advance and printed with handwriting. But when I was on this flight, I was amazed to find that the passenger next to me was getting a different note from me. On another occasion, when I was about to start a long flight, the staff handed me a big parcel that said, "Dear Mr. Linstrom, we found you have been away from home for a long time, so we prepared these readings for you." "When I opened the parcel, I found a large pile of papers from my hometown.

At the Peninsula Hotel in Chicago, I also experienced one such intimate service. When I offered to listen to music in my room, the receptionist in the lobby told me politely that the peninsula had no record rooms. Okay, that's okay. But a few minutes later, a doorman called to ask my favorite music. Eminem, the band and the Beatles, I casually said, thinking why he asked me these. 20 minutes later, I heard someone knocking at the door. I opened the door, and a door-boy gave me a plastic bag containing three CDs: Eminem, the band, The Beatles. Doorman said: "This is my personal gift to you, welcome to the Peninsula Hotel." ”

Their expectations vary from audience and consumer perceptions of brand information. Most companies promise too much and neglect to act. But there are exceptions. Louis Vuitton will not provide permanent quality assurance for its products. In fact, the company's paper also clearly stated that if the leather goods to be repaired, consumers have to pay a certain fee. And every time you go to the service, the salesperson will stress the rule again.

But you don't have to spend a penny on the service, because the last salesperson will tell you: "You're the only one who's been exempted from the charge." ”

Smash name--the value of extension

When Porsche 911 was introduced to Frankfurt in 1963, it was originally named 901. A large number of manuals have been printed and marketing materials are ready, but overnight, these are discarded. Porsche employees were frustrated--because they found that the French Peugeot Motor Company had registered to register all the three digits of the median "0" as the product number of the company's model. There is no room for negotiation, it can only be renamed "911".

Peugeot has had the privilege of naming this number since 1963, with the median "0" making the Peugeot models visible at the peer, even if you can't tell the difference between 204 and 504.

McDonald's also cherish every opportunity to use the "wheat" word title, McNuggets chicken, wheat chicken, and even mccafés. If you've received emails from them, you must have seen the phrase: "Good day!" "McDonald's naming rules for products are undoubtedly part of branding, but it also raises a lot of legal disputes." In Denmark in 1995, McDonald's sued a man named Alain Paderson, who opened a hot dog shop named "Maaland". But this time, McDonald's didn't win.

The Disney group successfully fused Disney's cartoon characters into the headquarters building of Burbank, Calif. The 20-foot building was propped up by seven dwarfs, and the corridors were named after Disney characters: Mickey Avenue, Dwarf Street, and so on. With this naming strategy, Disney extends the value of the brand in every detail.

We must remember that there is a brand, each product's name should be preceded by a "I", such as the iphone, IPod, IMac, ITV and so on. Apple also had a court deal with Cisco Systems to get the right to name the phone with "I". Is there a smarter strategy than Apple's monopoly of one letter? Any noun in front of a "I", such as Ifridge (refrigerator), imicrowave (microwave oven), ibooks (notebook computer), as long as you see "I", do not need to understand the use, you know is Apple's products.

This kind of integrated naming strategy can effectively enhance public awareness of brand image.

PS: Recommended reading: Create new category, not brand transplant so simple

This article source: Business