Debt refers to a withdrawal of equity. Brand debt occurs when marketers are not putting equity into a brand. Fare sale ads are generators of brand debt. In an active and competitive marketing world, stasis or standing still while competitors are creating brand value also creates brand debt. Think shark analogy. It is the job of brand managers to make deposits in the brand bank. Daily acts that make brands stronger.
But it’s not enough to make multiple random deposits; one must make exacting, strategic deposits. A prospect said to me yesterday she thought my “three proof plank” approach to organizing these so-called deposits was “formulaic.” And potentially limiting. My response? More than 3 planks dilutes the collective message. The collective experience.
I have a slide in my presentation on the “Fruit Cocktail Effect.” It states that if you try to be too many things you end up being none. In fruit cocktail the peach tastes like the pear, which tastes like the cherries and grapes…and so on. The result is that you are building with too many materials and detracting from “the build.” You have to feel the build.
Peace.