Effective branding elicits an emotional response. At least, it should – that’s pretty much the whole point. When you think of or see the logo of Starbucks, Mercedes, or Sears you immediately have an emotional response. It can be positive – “What great coffee!” It can be strong – “I’d never drive anything else.” It can be flat – “I don’t know, it’s not the store it used to be.” But no matter what your response, you’re having it because of the brand’s effect on you.
Companies spend a lot of time and even more money trying to perfect their brand strategies. It’s a tough job; there are only about a thousand considerations to be made during the process. But the sum of it all rests in one major issue: Are we reaching the right people with the right message?
This doesn’t have to be done with one message. Geico has several advertising campaigns going on – the caveman, the gecko, the celebrity-vs-average person routine – that are designed to reach different demographics. But the underlying brand image is the same: Geico saves you money. And is maybe a little kooky to boot.
Citi recently launched a new tagline, “let’s get it done.” This brand message isn’t very strong, and it’s too bad because Citi has a lot to offer. There are two immediate reactions any marketer or brand agent recognizes: this tagline is a lot like Home Depot’s “You can do it. We can help.” And it’s a lot like the currently ubiquitous “Get ‘er done.”
From these similarities it would seem Citi is trying to reach males ages 18 to 40 who like to work with their hands. Is that what Citi is trying to do? Maybe, maybe not. But with their tagline being so similar to those others, it’s a safe bet they’re not effectively reaching a lot of other markets – like women, college kids, and teachers to name just a few. |