Words of advice from the brand man

Stuart Green, president of Interbrand's Asia Pacific operation, says building a brand is a long and continuous process. Provided to China Daily

There is more to that tube of toothpaste than meets the eye - or the tooth

As a consumer, Stuart Green does not think twice when he picks a tube of toothpaste in the supermarket or when he buys a blazer for outdoor activities, but as a professional with years of experience in branding, he knows much more about product logos than the customers standing next to him in the aisle.

Green is CEO of Interbrand Asia-Pacific, a division of Omnicom Group Inc, a global branding consultancy specializing in brand services including strategy, analysis, valuation, corporate design, digital brand management, packaging design and naming. Today, Interbrand is among the world's largest brand consultancies, with nearly 40 offices worldwide.

Ten years after Interbrand entered China, Green is aware that the country's brand owners know much more than they used to about branding.

Like them, more and more entrepreneurs have realized that branding is much more about designing an appealing logo or shooting an attractive TV commercial, says Green, who consults and advises senior management teams, including CEOs and their boards, on strategies for developing and exploiting their brand portfolios.

Green started out as a graphic designer and says this prepared him well for his current job.

He says that as a child he liked drawing and painting and then became passionate about outdoor activities such as skiing. The two blended into a path leading to a challenging, enjoyable career.

Since joining Interbrand in 1994, Stuart has led extensive brand programs across many sectors, including transport, consumer goods, hospitality, telecommunications and financial services.

His previous clients cover industries from computers to banks, from airlines to telecoms, and include Barclays, Creative Technology, Deutsche Bank, Giant, Hengdian Group, Marks and Spencer, Maybank, NTT, Nuclear Electric, P&G, Pertamina, RBS, Taj Group, Thai Airways and Telekom Malaysia.

He has 25 years' experience in brand management and design, working across Europe, the US, the Middle East and the Asia Pacific. Cultures may diverge, but values always matter, especially in an era when consumers have more access than ever to compare what they are buying, Green says.

With various applications installed in mobile phones, hundreds of thousands of websites that provide price comparisons and product reviews, consumers today have more information than ever in making their decisions, he says.

"Price is not the only factor that matters. Consumers' experience and after-sales service must also live up to expectations to make a consistent image of a brand."

The process can be complicated, varied and influenced by age, education, gender and income, but one thing does not change: consumers know clearly whether the products or services are consistent with what has been promised in a product brochure or in advertising.

Good brands usually have sustainable success for several reasons, he says. First, they have a global reputation that the products and services provided to consumers are consistent, therefore respected. Consumers trust that they will not be disappointed.

Brand owners know that in branding, quality control is essential, and professional teams and management work together.

Although China has many world-famous brands in various industries, last year no company with headquarters in China's mainland was among the "Best Global Brands", an annual brand-value ranking by Interbrand that listed Coca-Cola, IBM, Microsoft, Google and GE as the top five brands.

Even though companies from China have performed excellently, many are still defining their promise, Green says.

Many factors have shaped what prevails now, one of the key ones being that many brands in China are not desperate to go global, local demand being sufficient for the time being.

But in the long run, as China becomes increasingly important in the global economy, a renowned brand worldwide will be of great benefit, Green says.

Many manufacturers stick to making products, instead of adding value. Adding value requires more investment, intelligence and determination, and managing brands requires a special set of skills.

It is unlikely that brand owners in China will make something within a decade from scratch to something that may compete with brands that have a history of several centuries. However, they can acquire the brands through capital management such as mergers and acquisitions, he says.

Green, a keen outdoor athlete, is passionate about skiing, which requires great control of balance as well as courage and the ability to identify risks.

Similarly, branding presents big challenges, he says, requiring clear and compelling definition to be embraced by consumers. Each brand must be aligned with its overall promise, and brands can endure hard times, be they economic depression, wars, or scandals unrelated to the products themselves.

Outstanding brands have insights into consumers' needs that transcend cultural differences, and this can help build a global brand, he says.

It is almost impossible to get consumers in various locations to perceive a product or service in exactly the same way, he says, but those doing a good job in managing global brands can get geographically diverse populations to appreciate them.

Sometimes when hearing about scandals regarding the quality of products, especially food, Green looks at the issue from a branding perspective.

Building a global brand is a long and continuous process, he says, and it is imperative that core values are never forgotten or overlooked, because doing so can often be detrimental to the branding process, Green says.

Brand builders must also be committed to the mission, and the entire organization must be committed to support the brand, which includes empowering communication and marketing executives to play an important role in generating ideas and developing products.

Branding is also about innovation, which means experimenting, and that implies failures and losses sometimes, and it takes courage to admit the mistakes, Green says.

"An outdated notion is that people in China fear to make mistakes, and they are afraid they might lose face if they do something wrong, but things are changing nowadays."

Many brand builders in Western countries have experienced a string of failures, quite often gone bankrupt more than once, persevered and succeeded, he says.

Brands must be maintained and developed, which requires wise investment.

They must also have consistent and widely applicable evaluation systems that measure what will make products and services appealing. These benchmarks will not only help premier branding management to develop but will also give direction to branding strategies.

International branding requires attention to more than just financial analysis, such as consumer demand based on their needs, culture, loyalties to their current choices, he says, and many other factors may affect the spread of Chinese brands worldwide.

"I believe that in China there will also be great entrepreneurs with courage, wisdom and vision who can make brands among the greatest in the world."

wuyiyao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 09/07/2012 page20)