It Doesn't Matter If It's Food, Fashion, Music, Cars or? Branding is a Science

I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody - Bill Cosby

I had a meeting with a nice gentleman the other day who is working on the branding of his company. I was a bit alarmed at what he said. It was obvious that this person wasn't exactly clear as to what Branding means.

He is in the restaurant industry and said to me,

"We can't be sure the age of our customers or who they are so we can't decide on what kind of food we will serve, we just have to make sure that the food we serve always tastes great."

Well, yes and no. He can't decide what kind of customers he's going to get or their age. That's true... But if he thinks he is making things to please everyone, he certainly can't do that either. He's wrong there. Also, if he's thinking is that his only competition are other restaurants, then he is dead wrong on that issue too. 

I'll explain why in a moment. 

Just like the old adage that Bill Cosby made into his own above, this kind of thinking is a time proven key to failure. It astounds me that to this day, with all the many example around us on why this sort of thinking doesn't work anymore (please think: Apple, Google, famous fashion makers, etc.) When you try to please everyone, you please no one. This is obvious and has been repeated over and over again throughout history since the Industrial Revolution. The serve-all method is a sure-fire way to fail.

Here's why...

The success of corporations like Coca-Cola, Apple, Google and Mercedes Benz, just to name a few; proves that specialization is the key to success in this day and age.

The sushi-ya is good at what they do. "But they can't be sure of the customers or their age!" Should the sushi-ya now add Chinese Food, Hamburgers, Indian Curry, etc. to the menu? Of course not!

There are lessons around us everywhere. Let's look at the restaurant industry for an easy example. Quick name one highly successful and profitable family restaurant? Denny's? Nope. They are rumored to be on the verge of bankruptcy. How about in Japan? What others are there? There's Gusto and Jonathans and Skylark to name a few. All rumored to be nearing bankruptcy. Skylark did go belly up.

How about Royal Host and Sizzler? Well, the Royal Host chain isn't doing well, but is better off financially than Gusto and Jonathans... Why? They own Sizzler in Japan.

Sizzler?! Well, yes, folks, Sizzler is doing well in Japan, thank you. Why? They specialize. They realized years ago that they needed to set themselves apart from the others in their market space. Sizzler is a steak house and its steak meals start at over ¥3,190 a plate! (about $35.77). Sizzler may be considered a family restaurant but they are doing all they can to destroy that image and change to a higher end steak restaurant.

That's Branding. That's smart. That niche marketing.

Branding is doing thorough market research and then focusing on one part of the market.

The example above I gave where the boss said, "We can't be sure the age of our customers so we can't decide on what kind of food we will serve, we just have to make sure that the food we serve always tastes great." He is so completely wrong on that point that it makes me wonder if he has ever bothered to read any books on Branding and Marketing? Or, does he even understand the concept? I don't think so, that sort of thinking is like something out of the 1950s.

Let me get back to that point and prove to you why the other restaurants are not his only competition in this day and age and why trying to please everyone will fail with a simple example.

Imagine: It is your free time, say lunch time. You have one hour. There are so many things for you to do and to choose from on how you spend your one hour. You could go shopping or you could go to the gym, or for a walk, or to a coffee shop. You could go to a book store or meet friends, you could listen to music on your iPod or iPhone or Android or at a record store nearby. You could eat your own homemade lunch or, you could go to a restaurant. The choices are endless.

But, since it is lunch time, and you didn't bring your own lunch, you are hungry. 

In your immediate area there are 5 family restaurants. There's the Denny's, the Skylark, Gusto, Jonathan's or Royal Host... Those restaurants have everything, but I'm sure you'll agree that even though they do have everything, everything is not particularly delicious.

Besides the above, there's also a plethora of choices. There's a McDonalds (Definitely a niche restaurant), a standing soba shop, a delicious sushi restaurant, Chinese food, Indian food, Korean Barbeque, Japanese lunch of baked fish and miso soup, Wendy's, Pizza, etc...

Now, it's not rocket science but most people would go to the specialty shops. 

"How to triple your users and sales by doing just one thing..."

This movement of the market and people's tastes have dictated why this science of Branding is so very important.

Once again, take Apple Store for example. What if they thought that, "...there's all sorts of people who come here of all different ages. We need to please them!" Do you think Apple store would then start carrying Epson printers and ink cartridges? How about printer paper and office supplies? Should Apple start carrying Android phone or old-fashioned cell phones to please the older crowd? See? If one were to stop and think about this for just one second, they'd realize the absurdity of not specializing towards a niche market...

And, I'm sorry, food, music, fashions, etc. are all very broad topics. Anyone who thinks they can't be treated in a scientific fashion for Branding purposes simply just hasn't been paying attention.

For more on the Scientific Method and how Branding is a science, may I recommend: Brands and Brand Management - Contemporary Research Perspectives  

From the publisher review: "Very few books exist that meaningfully integrate the rich and vast body of scientific research and theories that have accumulated in the field, relating to both traditional and contemporary topics in branding. This book accomplishes that task, with contributions from leading experts in the science of branding, national and international. The book should appeal to all students, faculty, and marketing professionals with an interest in research findings about brands, and an interest in deepening their understanding of how consumers view brands."

Thanks to Kevin Riley for the TED link.

Groupon Image and Branding is Horrendous

To continue with my examining just how inept Groupon is, here's another thing I found that makes me wonder about this companies management. This company is so messed up. They should be paying me to point out their screw ups... But no. I point out these mistakes as a free service because I am such a wonderful person.


Clients and customers do not associate with Groupon because of Groupon image or branding. Customers use it for discounts. Clients use it to try to get promotion. 


I don't think the deal for clients is good and I think Groupon is not a sustainable business model.


Anyway, unlike a company like Apple, which has a great brand and people want to associate with it, even if it is more expensive, Groupon has a poor and weak image. 


Today, here's a short look at a problem with their branding and examples of just how poor the Groupon Brand is handled and managed.


Here is Groupon internal rules on logo use (I received effective as of the date of writing of this article):

CLICK ON IMAGE FOR FULL SIZE

CLICK ON IMAGE FOR FULL SIZE

You'll notice that the rules for use of this logo are very strict (well, at least they are supposed to be). A company logo is not only the lettering, it includes the the outline. In Groupon's case, they use a quadrilateral box that has the top and the right side at 90 degree right angles. 

The problem with Groupon in Japan is that it is a new company so the name is still not fully recognized and Groupon management is not competent enough to consider branding consistency. 

In the second box, they specifically state, "Using the "G" as one unit, the logo must appear at least 1 unit away from all other branding, copy or graphics in the layout"

In the third image down you'll see that the rules specifically state that "the mark cannot be altered."

In the forth box, you'll see that they state that legibility must be maintained.

Yet, they greatly altered their logo in the week leading up to Valentine's day. It was changed so much so that it is hardly recognizable. There are at least three of Groupon's very own rules broken in this one ad.

Notice that there is no quadrilateral box at all and they have also broken rule #2 by committing the cardinal sin of putting something - which is laughably unrecognizable - on top of their "G". Not to mention the silly heart mark where the "O" should be.

Well, a heart mark instead of an "O"? Great. Groupon certainly scores big points in the originality department!

What an amateurish bunch of mistakes this ad is! 

Google, Yahoo, Coca-Cola or Amazon might get away with this in Japan. They are huge and have been here for years. Groupon is new; already has a bad reputation in Japan and has poor market penetration.   

Breaking the logo rules when you are fresh into a new market is a huge mistake and a Marketing 101 "No! No!"

Here's their latest ad that I just pulled off the Internet. Once again, the background quadrilateral box is missing. They also deleted the registered trademark logo that is supposed to appear at the top right hand side of the lettering.

As an aside, I will also say that I think this is a bad ad for two other reasons:

1) Hamburgers are cheap food. No one in their right mind is going to sign up to get a $2.00 discount on a hamburger in Tokyo when it costs you $4.00 for a round trip ticket on a Tokyo subway

2) In my opinion, this is a misleading ad like the New Year's fiasco... I doubt that this an actual photo of an actual hamburger they are selling in Tokyo. 

Here's another one that violates rule #2 above about "Clearing Space." The rule states; "Using the 'G' as one unit, the logo must appear at least one unit away from all other branding, copy, or graphics in the layout."This means that there must be at least one unit of space above the logo. But, as you can see, they have it flush with the top of the ad:

Yet again, another violation of the "Clearing Space" rule:

It clearly states in rule #2 that there cannot be any lettering within

one unit space (the same size as the "G" in Groupon, yet

here again, they violated this simple rule. Is there anyone

even working in Branding at that company?

Seriously, someone there is trying to screw things up

intentionally. How else to explain this logo consistently

being used differently?

I don't think Groupon can survive with the constant mistakes they make. Like here, here, here (to name just the huge screw ups within the last 2 weeks!)

Besides, the copy cats are already here and they are numerous.

Just to reinforce to you that what I have written is true, here is a Groupon ad I just found a second ago. Once again, the branding is inconsistent. Different from the shoe ad above, it is inconsistent (yet still in violation of spacing rules).

In this one, they have the quadrilateral box. In the one with the hamburger, they don't. The "shrimp" ad also includes the registered trademark logo. The hamburger ad doesn't. Why?

Really. These are such basic mistakes.

Japanese text too close to Groupon logo at top right (March 7, 2011)

Groupon. You fools! You should have taken the $5 billion dollars from Google when you had the chance. As soon as Facebook, Google and, say, Mixi, make their own group discount service, you are dead.

I expect Groupon to crash. They can't even handle basic things like their branding and marketing? 

Who could expect them to do great things like a Google or Apple? I can't.

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