Cuidar la marca no es cuestión de presupuesto

Todas las empresas, con independencia de sus múltiples variables administrativas, tienen una marca: un nombre comercial que las identifica en el mercado, el nombre por el cual son reconocidas, el nombre que se usa al contestar una llamada telefónica, el que aparece en las tarjetas de presentación, etc. No importa su volumen de facturación o cantidad de personas en planilla, la marca está presente y constituye un elemento propio de la empresa.

Dado que la marca es un elemento relevante en la identificación de una compañía, parece razonable atenderla y procurar que ésta congregue elementos positivos, como recordación, prestigio, funcionalidad, familiaridad y confianza. Sin embargo esto no sucede de forma espontánea, la administración de la marca es precisamente la conducción de las creencias y percepciones relacionadas con la misma.

Sería un error pensar que el tamaño de una marca es una función de la cantidad de dinero invertido en su administración. Algunas sí necesitarán fuertes inversiones de capital, como las marcas que compiten en mercados de consumo masivo, sin embargo pienso que el valor de la marca es una función de la percepción que sus usuarios tienen de ella. De acuerdo con esa lógica, la gestión para atribución de valor a una marca es propia de las relaciones y experiencias entre el consumidor y la misma, variables que son controlables a partir del diseño de una adecuada estrategia de comunicaciones de marketing.

En cualquier mercado lo normal es observar que el mayor número de empresas no comercializan productos de consumo masivo, ni tampoco tienen públicos masivos. Se trata de compañías medianas o pequeñas que atienden las múltiples necesidades de pequeño grupos de personas o de otras empresas participantes en la economía de un país. Y todas esas empresas son marcas, sin importar su facturación o características de sus clientes.

Según lo expuesto, estas medianas y pequeñas empresas también se encuentran en la necesidad de gestionar su marca, su nombre, su identidad. La necesidad y oportunidad de asociar percepciones positivas hacia ellas. La oportunidad de administrar la marca como un activo de la empresa.

Un buen ejercicio para las compañías medianas es revisar si cuentan con estrategias para gestionar su marca, si son coherentes con los mensajes que mandan a sus clientes, si han pensado y cuidan los puntos de contacto entre ellas y sus clientes, la forma en cómo se muestran al mercado –desde una tarjeta de presentación hasta su website– y otras variables propias de una cuidada estrategia de comunicación.

En último término el objeto es cuidar la marca a lo largo del tiempo, procurando asociaciones positivas y coherentes, con consciencia de que ésta es un activo de la empresa.

Don't Hire Me Because I'm an Expert

Have you seen the latest RFP? You know the one. Where they want to hire a firm that is an expert in [insert name of category and/or marketing channel]. Funny, I think the RFP before this one had that same line. And the one before that one too, and so on and so on. We've all read them. We've all responded to them claiming to be said expert. And honestly, if a company is looking for tactical implementation, hiring an expert is absolutely the way to go. I concur. Enjoy. Have fun. Good luck.

But ... If a company is feeling a little lost, maybe feeling a little like what it's been doing isn't working any more and maybe, just maybe it's time for a new direction. Well, that company shouldn't be looking for experts. It should be searching for explorers. (continuar leyendo). Tom Martin. Advertising Age.

Wolkswagen: anuncio para autos usados.

'El tiempo nunca para para volkswagen'. Su creatividad tampoco, suele tener un quiebre creativo en la pieza que engancha a quien se expone.

Ideas en dimensionar la creatividad

I Hate 'Creative,' and You Should Too

The Word Is Now Being Used to Mean 'Not Strategic'. Por: Tom Denari. Adadge.com

Now that I have your attention, I really do hate "creative." It's not that I dislike creativity or creative people. In fact, I love it, and I work closely with truly creative people that inspire me on a daily basis. It's what's kept me in this crazy business for so long. But after two decades in advertising, I've come to hate the word "creative." What was once used to describe thoughtful and novel communications, to describe what we aspire to on a daily basis, the word "creative" has somehow devolved into a pejorative hammer -- a hammer that's often used to beat the life out of an idea into something that's anything but "creative."

When my agency was a much younger, smaller upstart group, the more established old-guard agencies in our local market would often give us the backhanded, dismissive compliment of being "really creative." It was as if the other end of the spectrum was "really strategic." They would try to paint their straight-forward, sometimes even pedestrian, work as "more strategic." (Ah, "strategic," there's another painfully misused word by marketers. But that's for another day.)

Over time, the industry has fed this notion by too often producing undisciplined work that has tainted what it means to be "creative." The meaningless way we discuss creativity in the media and the boardroom has poisoned marketers' perceptions of how to engage consumers. We are continually overusing and misusing the term "creative," stretching it to represent everything from the remarkable campaigns to the soulless advertising that gets by on being visually interesting to the self-indulgent and baseless advertising created only for creative accolades and personal portfolios.

And how many times are we going to have to read stories about whether "Creativity and Effectiveness Can Coexist?" These stories simply fuel the misperception and definition of what creativity should mean to both agencies and clients.

The crux of the issue is not whether there is tension between creativity and effectiveness. In fact, it would save a lot of trouble if we simply eliminated the word "creative" from our lexicon. If we did, the discussion would shift to a more productive discussion, focusing on engagement and effectiveness.

For instance, instead of the client asking, "Do we really need to be so creative on this one?" he would be forced to say, "Do we really need to engage the consumer on this one?"

Ridiculous? Maybe.

The cadre of marketers that don't think the message needs to be "creative" assume that the target audience is keenly attentive to whatever they have to say next. They argue the more direct the better. Unfortunately, we all know that's just not the case. Consumers are bombarded with thousands of messages daily that ask for their attention and their disposable income. The brands that find a way to break through, engage and connect with their audiences are the ones that have the opportunity to affect their behavior.

Instead of debating whether the work is "creative," clients need to start asking:

• "Is the message surprising?"
• "Does it play upon consumers' life experience?"
• "Is it relevant?"
• "Is it consistent with the brand's voice?"
• "Is it believable?"
• "Does it differentiate the brand?"

If we all can begin to look at how an agency's work will (or won't) engage a consumer, and focus less on whether its work is "creative," my guess is that the advertising will end up being more effective. And likely more "creative."

Tom Denari is president, Young & Laramore, Indianapolis, Ind.

Anatomía de una URL

ALT1040 en sencillo post acerca de lo amigables que pueden ser, hoy, las url largas.

Una de las formas más efectivas de posicionar bien un sitio web dentro de Google y otros buscadores es usando direcciones URLs amigables y que incluyan las palabras claves o titulo del contenido que presentan. Es uno de los trucos más extendidos en cuanto a posicionamiento en los resultados de las búsquedas de Google y algo que cualquier experto SEO recomienda de entrada.
La gente de SEOmozBlog ha creado una excelente ficha en PDF llamada SEO Cheat Sheet: Anatomy of A URL, la cual explica de forma muy sencilla y práctica cuales deberían ser las partes de una dirección URL más eficiente para los buscadores de Internet en este momento. Un truco básico y muy efectivo para mejorar la visibilidad de tu sitio web.

Dirección URL amigable

Dirección URL dinámica, vieja y poco amigable

Vía: SEOmoz

How companies are benefiting from Web 2.0: McKinsey Global Survey Results

Web 2.0 technologies can be a powerful lure for an organization; their interactivity promises to bring more employees into daily contact at lower cost. When used effectively, they also may encourage participation in projects and idea sharing, thus deepening a company’s pool of knowledge. They may bring greater scope and scale to organizations as well, strengthening bonds with customers and improving communications with suppliers and outside partners. (Continuar leyendo). 2009 McKinsey & Company

A Five-step Guide to Building Successful Brands

How does a new brand become successful? The author of this paper, after conducting in-depth interviews with marketers in the consumer products and services sector, argues that the perception of a successful brand — among employees, shareholders, and managers within different departments — undergoes a five-stage evolution. Understanding how the meaning of a brand changes over time is crucial to ensuring its success. (Continuar leyendo). Strategy+Business. ©2009 Booz & Company