Hanging out in Manhattan's parks has got me thinking. What's the difference between a rat and a squirrel? In truth, DNA has little to do with it...a grey squirrel is just a rat with a bushy tail, right? And yet the two urban-dwelling creatures provoke very different reactions from people. Why? One word...brand.
Just look at the squirrel as a case study in brand building...
Name --- Squirrel sounds nice. Squirreling sounds fun. Rats, rattiness, and getting ratted on are not good things. The beginnings of a strong brand are often found in a good name (or a quirky or bad name well used).
Packaging --- Rats are sleek with tails like electrical cable, while squirrels are bushy and big-tailed. Packaging your branded good or service in the right way, creating visual and sensual pleasure for your target audience, is another key aspect of a strong brand.
Context --- You tend to encounter squirrels in parks, while rats are seen in gutters, litter bins, and subway stations. Never mind that both are feeding on trash, the context in which we see squirrels creates an entirely different emotional response to them.
Behaviour --- When squirrels eat, they sweetly clutch nuts in between their little paws. Or at least we all visualise them doing so. Which leads to...
Story --- Great brands emerge from good businesses when the stories about them develop their own momentum, and when tribes or communities fiercely and spontaneously choose to protect them. More people tell and spread better stories about squirrels than rats, so the brand self-reinforces.
The squirrel is not a comprehensive case study in brand building, just an everyday one.
Comments