

The simple view would be that traditional brands are purchase brands and digital brands are usage brands. Where other stores are focused on making a purchase, Apple Stores are about having an experience.

Apple Stores are an example of this shift, from the removal of a checkout area at the front of the store to the prominence of the Genius Bar.

Focus brands professional#
The whole focus is getting you to buy the product with samples and professional makeovers. Consider the makeup department of a department store. Purchase brands focus on creating demand to buy the product, while usage brands focus on creating demand for the use of the product.Overall, we found two distinct clusters, which we have categorized as purchase brands and usage brands: Respondents were more likely to hear about legacy brands through advertising and traditional media, compared to digital brands which are more often discovered via social media and direct word of mouth. There were similar differences in how people’s brand perceptions are formed and reinforced. In every case, the legacy brand rated higher on the statement “Is a brand that people look up to.” But the newcomer brands all rated higher on the statement “Makes my life easier.” For example, consider the following “brand twins” – pairs of legacy and newcomer brands that compete in the same industry. We found distinct differences between legacy/traditional brands and newcomer/digital brands. We also supplemented the survey with well-known brand rankings, Net Promoter Scores (NPS), and an analysis of their marketing expenditures and strategies. We asked them about their perception, usage, preference, and advocacy for the brands. consumers and asked them about 50 different brands, both digital and traditional. Furthermore, they engage customers more as users than as buyers, shifting their investments from pre-purchase promotion and sales to post-purchase renewal and advocacy.Īs part of our study, we conducted an online survey of more than 5,000 U.S. Where traditional brands focus on positioning their brands in the minds of their customers, digital brands focus on positioning their brands in the lives of their customers. What makes a brand successful in the digital age? A joint study by SAP, Siegel+Gale, and Shift Thinking suggests that digital brands don’t just do things differently they also think differently. The key is to think about prospects not as buyers, but as future users.
Focus brands drivers#
Usage brands, by contrast, elevate customer service and loyalty from resource-starved cost-centers to key drivers of growth and profitability. Typically at Purchase brands, customer service and loyalty take a back seat to marketing campaigns and lead generation. But a Usage mindset requires a closer relationship between marketing and product development because the brand and experience are increasingly one and the same. In many organizations, marketing comes after product development. These changes fundamentally require rethinking strategy, organization, investment, and measurement. Companies looking to exploit the branding potential unlocked by core digital technologies need to make the shift in their engagement with customers – from Purchase to Usage. Furthermore, they engage customers more as users than as buyers, shifting their investments from pre-purchase promotion and sales to post-purchase renewal and advocacy. Digital brands don’t just do things differently they also think differently.
