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Turning a Brand into A Lovemark

You see them everyday – Krispy Kreme doughnuts, Lambourghinis and Rolexes. But these different products and brands no doubt invoke a different emotion than the “I want it” syndrome. For me they bring about a feeling of love, of warmth and of affection. These lovemarks are a company’s dream and most spend millions of dollars advertising to bring about similar emotions in our everyday lives.

Seth Godin (a fellow blogger) writes in his book Purple Cow: Transform by being Remarkable (aff.) that two factors lie behind this play on emotions. Firstly, innovation is of the utmost importance. Anyone can advance on a certain idea and try to add a few more features or try to make it a bit better. Successful lovemarks can only be achieved with a successful and new product – attracting the attention of new shoppers and customers (think how Alex Tew did this with MDHP and now Pixelotto).

Secondly, to develop a lovemark one must have a band of loyal followers. If it weren’t for the minted rappers, those “cool” people who drive upto the clubs in their Lambourghinis do you really think you’d be wanting one? Of course, these people boost brand recognition – and most of the time are paid to do so. Krispy Kreme does this very effectively by giving out free dougnnuts as they roll off the production line.

But this still is not the be all and end all of creating a world-changing item. If the consumer doesn’t like it then it’s you that has to change. Love implies commitment, and if you’re not committed to revolutionizing your niche then your band of zealots simply won’t look up to you with adoration as they did before. BMW’s newly designed 5 and 7 series has amounted a fair share of criticism from its loyal car buyers, so meeting the needs of your consumers is number 1 priority.

Managing to turn a brand into a Lovemark may not be as easy as ABC, but if you master it, it can change your business. Put yourself in their shoes and play on emotions. Building bonds and relationships with your purchasers will tie them in and sometimes it’s worth paying for the attachment

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