Start-ups need some brand sense

There is a widely held and strong belief among start-up founders, venture capitalists and techno optimists that we are living in a “post-brand” world. There is a belief that a product or service and the simplicity of its ability to solve a problem, means there’s no need for clever marketing or flashy branding.

Those with this belief often use the phrase, “growth hacking”, and such start-ups and their investors don’t initially see the value of a brand as a long-term growth creator.

Many agencies, Boomtown included, have worked with brands that love a short-term fix, rather than a long-term vision.

The real concern is that, by viewing the development of a brand as indulgent and unnecessary, start-ups will miss out on establishing behaviours and values that reach further than marketing.

Behave like a brand and be less likely to fail

Start-ups often come into existence to solve a burning need for their founder.

While this instils the drive to create the business in the first place, there may be very little research carried out to see whether others have the same appetite.

Good brands and good start-ups understand their potential target audiences, their emotional and functional needs and how their product or service can meet them – they don’t just hit and hope.

Brand thinking drives emotional resonance

It’s tempting to see early conversations with consumers as good market research practice, but even start-ups that do think about their users as fully rounded consumers, are vulnerable.

One need look no further than Uber. The app delivers on its promise of cheap, abundant, trackable transport, thereby meeting a real user need.

But consumer love for the brand has decreased, due in many ways to Uber seemingly overlooking that its end users have emotions and opinions that extend beyond a desire for cheap travel – things such as empathy for drivers and concern for their employment status.

By engaging robust brand thinking, Uber would have helped forge a stronger connection between the brand and its customer base, while identifying what constitutes appropriate brand behaviour in the eyes of its customers.

The brand is the voice on your shoulder

One senses that despite the abundance of start-ups wanting to change the world, very few have a guiding principle that overrides profit and scale.

There is no doubt that having a purpose that everyone feels attached to helps a brand overcome challenges and defend its interests.

A brand purpose aligns commercial needs with an awareness of society.

It’s not a statement that the “founding problem” a brand was set up to solve has made the world a better place or grateful to its founders.