XT … Brands and CEOs by Paddy Barwise
Prof Paddy Barwise of LBS defines a few terms like ‘brand equity’ and the ‘marketing concept’ before moving on to discuss how brands and marketing relate to the three dimensions of the CEO’s world: strategy and execution, finance and organisation.
- strategy and execution – what matters most to individuals is not differentiated products but those that will meet their needs better or more conveniently than the competition;
- finance – brand valuation is a helpful discipline but not a good measure of marketing performance. Marketers must understand basic finance, develop metrics for brand equity and work closely with finance colleagues;
- organisation – a simple framework is proposed: develop a relevant customer promise, deliver it reliably to build trust, keep continually improving it and, from time-to-time, innovate beyond the familiar.
Paddy closed by echoing Marshall Goldsmith, urging marketers to concentrate on what they can change, which is more than they think.