New Media: Your ultimate resort for fruitful Communication : Future Startup

New Media: Your ultimate resort for fruitful Communication : Future Startup

Brand Building Strategies for ‘StartUp’ business : Future Startup

Brand Building Strategies for ‘StartUp’ business : Future Startup

Branding in the age of Wikileaks and Facebook

The other day I was watching the Oscar winning documentary "The FoodInc." by Michael Pollan and was thinking how easy is getting information now. The documentary stripped some of the most giant corporations of our time and their sins. Most importantly, it showed what consumers can do now. The documentary showed that, information today is no more the property of those who create them; rather other people who are affected by that information have also access there. 

The emergence of websites like wikileaks and thousands other media makes the access to information easier and cheaper. In addition to the overflow of information, invention of the Face book and other social media makes communications more intense and instant. 

Stay close is no more an option, rather a mandatory for Brands that want to live long and prosper. Now only billboard and TV commercials cannot ensure effective and fruitful communication for a brand. Instead, presence in conventional media makes its communication calculation complicated.Today's consumers are peculiar in nature. Their lifestyle, their priorities and their cognitive process are totally different and complicated. Communication with these consumers is no easy a task. 

Brands are facing new challenges in dealing with these consumers globally and locally. In this age of Wikileaks and Facebook, brands have to face two major challenges. The challenge of transparency: Today consumers know everything of a brand they purchase, not only its contribution to global warming but also its multimillion-dollar promotion campaign and tax scandal. Today, consumers respond against any misdoing of their brands as instantly as flash of light. Now pretending to be a socially responsible brand by shooting some seductive charity pictures can no more be able to make any impact in the minds of consumers. Rather, consumers now seek real difference, real impact and they certainly ask you to show your data against your claim that how much you reduced your carbon emission. During the last few years, because of the easy access to information as a result of invent of a number of whistle blowing websites and Government transparency regulations, the power of consumers have grown significantly. Besides, social networking sites have given consumers to form their own community and raise their voice together. They are now more powerful and can possess the ability to sweep away your brand image within the blink of eyes. Besides, the number of electronic and print media has also increased significantly, both globally and locally. Now consumers are getting whole picture unlike previous broken ones and can better decide what to buy and what not. The second challenge is communication complexity. 

Until today Bangladesh has 13 TV channels that include private and public. Besides there are also regional cables, Indian channels and channels from other foreign countries, there is FM radios, and a number of National and local newspapers. 

Thanks to worldwide web and globalisation, now anyone can view any international media sitting anywhere in the world through internet. Brands are quite aware of this situation. But it is not knowledge rather action according to that knowledge is very important. Now brands have to remain more conscious in choosing media. The question is how brands can outperform these challenges. In all crises the most important and meaningful task is to remain sensible. At the time of crisis the person who has feet on the ground can survive. Therefore, the first caution is, brands should remain sensible to their target market and consumers about their wants and demands. Every move of consumer should be counted. Every claim of the consumers should be considered. The top brands of the world do not get their position merely by chance, rather because of their high level of sensibility and relevance. 

A story tells that after testing a "Mac Model", Steve Jobs called his engineers in his office because the model was taking longer startup time than usual. He pointed out that, Apple hoped to sell at least a million of the new Mac, which means a million people will waste their certain amount of time by waiting to start every day. Every second added to the process and would cost society over 4000 man-days per year. This is the real example how corporations remain sensible about their consumers and what makes great brands.In Bangladesh we see many recognised brands tend to make things secret and misguide consumers. This habit of gaming causes the brand to bleed during the time of competition and consumers do not hesitate to divorce the brand when they get alternatives. So, the declaration is that, as a brand if you want to sustain, want to win the hearts and minds of consumers, then be sensible about the feelings and requirements of consumers. Then comes, staying alive. Now it is time to break rules (not law). Everybody either willingly or by force is thinking beyond box. Old age forms of structured-thinking are losing strength. Changes are now more intense and pervasive than ever before. Thinking for tomorrow or planning for future is no more a challenge; rather keeping pace with today is the biggest challenge. To outperform this challenge staying alive is must. Now we are entering into the age of brand experience. Today mere TVC and communication cannot make any significant difference, rather what can make a difference is brand experience -- the ultimate prove of a brand. Moreover, this brand experience builds customer perception about the brand, create brand feelings in customer's mind and build customer's brand knowledge. Now branding and brand building is going out of textbooks. This is the time offacebook, Wikileaks and twitter, and this is the age of real time impact. Personalisation of brand building is taking its way. Consumers are now like boyfriend or girlfriend, wife or husband to a brand. Like conjugal life brands should renew their relationship with their consumers. Now consumers often long for a 360 degree care from brands. If the brands fail to build a safe conjugal relationship based on transparency and continuous surprises, they will be blown away from the scene.