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Marketing firm backs quality push
There's a critical need for better quality marketing, branding, packaging design and other strategic creative services in Viet Nam, and this has attracted some of the marketing industry's top guns to Viet Nam. Viet Nam News spoke to Charlie Wrench, CEO of Landor, one of the world's branding powerhouses.
Despite increased efforts, few Vietnamese brands are well-known on the global market? Why is this?
Recent branding efforts in Viet Nam have focused heavily on symbolism, such as logos, graphics and slogans. A visual and verbal change grabs public attention for a time, but we know from experience, over the long-term, great brands have meaning. Meaning is cultivated through two factors in brand building: differentiation and relevance. The quality of great ideas and brands is based on these two factors. The more differentiated an idea, the more it stands out as distinct against the competition. The more relevant an idea, the more closely connected and appropriate it is to its intended audience. We see many brands in Viet Nam spend too much time only focusing on the competition, and this tends to lower their differentiation. They all start to look, act and behave the same, and that limits consumer preference of choice.
Which are the crucial factors for a globally recognised brand?
Our founder, Walter Landor, said, "Products are built in the factory, brands are created in the mind." Walter was an early radical thinker on brands and consumers. He created a culture of breakthrough branding which we practise. The standard approach to doing business is to build products first, build brands later. Our strategy is just the opposite, and it would be the single most crucial factor for a globally reputable brand: start with your brand promise. Lead with it. Turn your brand into the driver of your business, not just another way of "packaging" it.
Do you think that a strong brand name must come with the product's quality?
A brand is a promise that creates a preference of choice in the mind of the consumers. A brand name is one part of the symbolism of a brand. Its strength is measured by its relevance to consumers and its differentiation from competitors. A new brand name takes more investment to build a sense of relevant differentiation. Delivery on the brand promise signified by a brand name must be backed up by both consistent product quality and consistent use of the brand name in graphics and consumer experiences, such as packaging design, branded retail environments, employee brand engagement, and digital spaces. Without unilateral consistency, the strength of the name will eventually erode. Thus, a strong brand name and product and service quality go together and grow together.
What are Landor's plans in Viet Nam?
We will grow alongside our clients, strengthening their brands while improving our total global offering. Companies ready for significant investment, board-level involvement, and close partnership will be a good fit for our rigorous programmes. Walter Landor helped invent branding. Landor pioneered consumer research, modern logo design, and many of the tools our industry relies on today. We have more than six decades of experience with the world's most successful brands – an unmatched legacy that benefits our clients daily.
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