Branding for Learning

Branding for Learning
Ian Pearman
CEO, AMV BBDO
“But we’re not selling soup,
sneakers or potato chips.”
The client brief
•
One-off purchase
•
Huge price tag
•
Buyer will be paying for product for over 10 – 20 years
•
Little data available to buyer to support product’s claimed benefits
•
Product comparison with similar products incredibly difficult
•
Older consumers in their family - whose opinions the buyer suspects as
self-serving - have reassured them it’s the right decision
•
The product has no guarantee whatsoever
•
It is not possible for the buyer to trial the product
•
If it goes wrong, it’s the buyer’s fault and they have absolutely no right of redress
•
If they make any mistakes whilst using the product, it’ll be on record and affect
their employment chances forever
You’re right, what you’re selling
is much much more difficult
And that’s why brands
are so important
Brands create preference
Brands increase the amount of perceived
satisfaction – likely and actual - of a product or
service
Allowing a brand to…
…Charge more for its product/service
…Sell more of its product/service
…Or both
Stock market value of these companies?
$1.6tn
Source: Ash Park Capital and company reports, US$
The tangible assets of these companies?
-$66m
Source: Ash Park Capital and company reports, US$
The intangible assets of these companies
$1.7tn
Source: Ash Park Capital and company reports, US$
But your brand is not just your logo
(But be careful with your logo
nonetheless)
20%
Anything can be
codified as a brand
But just because you
can codify it, doesn’t
mean you own it
Type “Harvard”
“People build brands as birds
build nests, from the scraps and
straws they chance upon”
Brands are built by consumers,
in their own heads.
All an organisation can do is try
and provide the right raw materials as
widely as possible
(and be aware and vigilant
of the wrong ones)
This is Geoff
69%
Bullingdon Club initiation
ceremony claim: New members
of David Cameron's old club
'burn £50 note in front of beggar’
Poor Geoff
Brands help
us choose
The wonder of choice
87,000 options
“I set out to try to calculate the number myself, but it
gets complicated quickly. For instance, going off the
online menu, the peppermint white chocolate mocha
comes in four sizes, with five milk options and two
whipped-cream options. Multiplying those gives 40
different combinations. But that doesn’t account for
other options such as adding an extra shot of espresso
or asking for decaf. Meanwhile, the only options listed
for the Caffè Americano are the four sizes.”
Carl Bialik, WSJ
38 million options
The Paradox of Choice
More choice
Higher expectations
Greater chance of disappointment
Everything was
better when it
was worse
Student Expectations and Perceptions of Higher Education – Quality Assurance Agency study
Map 1. First year, Female, Chemistry, Teaching‐intensive institution
They want a lot…
“...dominant across all student year groups,
institutional types and subjects, students have
a consumerist ethos towards higher education,
wanting ‘value‐for‐money’.”
- UK Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) 2012‐13
It’s an old fashioned value exchange
Employability is the key motivation
More students studying
for photography degree
in UK than there are
photographers in the
whole of Europe
DP Review 2009
And challenge, not just money
The surveys say reputation is not
the only metric
If you had to choose, which ONE of the following aspects of university do
you think is MOST important to your job prospects?
Most important criteria
Student
Employer
Course studied
40%
61%
Grade achieved
32%
17%
University attended
16%
8%
Participation in extra-curricular activities
7%
7%
Don’t know
4%
7%
YouGov / News UK Survey Results - Good University Guide, Sept 2013
Employer sample: 635 senior managers and above in businesses of all sizes
Student sample: 505 students who are either currently studying towards or
have just taken A-Levels or are at university
But beware the assumptions
Total visitors x length of stay
Visitor numbers based on…
Population density (concentric circles)
Weather patterns,
Income levels
Lead to projection of 11 million visitors per year.
At other parks, people stayed 3 days…
So 11 million x 3 days = 33 million guest days
They did get
11 million visitors
They did get
11 million visitors
But they stayed only
one day, not three
-$1 billion
in 2 years
Other Disney parks
45
rides
Other Disney parks
EuroDisney Paris
45 15
rides
rides
The surveys say reputation is not
the only metric
If you had to choose, which ONE of the following aspects of university do
you think is MOST important to your job prospects?
Most important criteria
Student
Employer
Course studied
40%
61%
Grade achieved
32%
17%
University attended
16%
8%
Participation in extra-curricular activities
7%
7%
Don’t know
4%
7%
YouGov / News UK Survey Results - Good University Guide, Sept 2013
Employer sample: 635 senior managers and above in businesses of all sizes
Student sample: 505 students who are either currently studying towards or
have just taken A-Levels or are at university
But it is the only one you can influence
If you had to choose, which ONE of the following aspects of university do
you think is MOST important to your job prospects?
Most important criteria
Student
Employer
Course studied
40%
61%
Grade achieved
32%
17%
University attended
16%
8%
Participation in extra-curricular activities
7%
7%
Don’t know
4%
7%
YouGov / News UK Survey Results - Good University Guide, Sept 2013
Employer sample: 635 senior managers and above in businesses of all sizes
Student sample: 505 students who are either currently studying towards or
have just taken A-Levels or are at university
And at actual “point of purchase” it
will be disproportionately important
2+ years
University?
Subjects?
1 year
Application
Which University?
Which course?
Entry
How grade will I strive for?
What other activities will I do?
Higher expectations…
Bigger disappointments…
“Students’ expectations rarely matched their
subsequent experiences of higher education,
indicating a potential need for guidance for
students embarking on a degree course.”
- UK Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) 2012‐13
increase in student complaints over last two years
Source: Office of Independent Adjudicator
Chief executive: Rob Behrens
From Black Box to Glass Box
Unigo
College Confidential
College Prowler
StudentsReview
Yollege
CollegeGrader.com
MyNextCollege
Ratemycollege
TheUniversityReview
TheU.com
StuVu.com
OnlineCollegeReview
RateMyProfessors.com
RateAProf
RateYourProf.com
Pick-A-Prof.com
GradeMyProfessor
WhoToTake.com
Reviewum.com
Grademyprofessors
Post Purchase Dissonance
50 million views
Brands insulate organisations
Brands insulate organisations
“It’s only when the tide is out that
you can see who’s been swimming
without any shorts on”
- Warren Buffet
THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT
Your brand helps people choose you
Your brand helps you charge more
and give greater satisfaction
Your brand insulates you in the
difficult times
And the opportunities to use it
have never been greater
Thanks to Mr Berners-Lee
70
50
30
10
5
1,700
65,000
48,000
25,000,000,000
107,000,000,000,000
Video didn’t kill the radio star
“Three Screen” behaviours
Number of times aired:
1
Number of times shared:
72,000,000
To people
To people
&
For people
&
With people
The capacity to be more
entertaining
More Helpful
More relevant
More responsive
More collaborative
More generous
More customised
The table is now overflowing
with different parts
Get the right minds around
It and start experimenting
‘Start lots of fires and pour petrol on
the ones that catch alight’
Bruce McColl,
Global CMO Mars
100
Thank you