The Brand Bubble

Citation

Hao, W. (2009), "The Brand Bubble", Journal of Product & Brand Management, Vol. 18 No. 5, pp. 386-387. https://doi.org/10.1108/10610420910981891

Is there really a brand bubble hiding in our economy? If the answer is yes, then how can organizations deal with it? In The Brand Bubble, Gerzema and Lebar address all the answers to these questions. The authors' main sources are their experiences and opinions as well as solid data from 40,000 brands across 44 countries on more than 70 brand metrics (p. 16). “Perhaps no marketers have their finger on the pulse of branding better than John Gerzema and Ed Lebar. It persuasively redefines brand management for the 21st Century”, says Kevin Lane Keller, Professor of Marketing,Tuck School of Business/Dartmouth College (http://thebrandbubble.com/blog/?page_id=14).

There are two major sections in the book. Part I (Chapters 1‐5) identifies the existence of the brand bubble and the attributes of energy infusing the leading brands. The remainder of Part I analyzes the new consumer behaviors that demand highly energized brands. Part II (Chapters 6‐10) guides the readers in detail through a five‐stage model to show how to develop brands with high energy and how to cultivate a brand‐led enterprise or “Energy Driven Enterprise” (p. 117).

Part I (Chapter 1) starts with the authors' argument that “the constantly rising valuations of major brands are creating a brand bubble” (p. 8), which is evidenced by their research findings that consumer perceptions toward brands are substantially decreasing while marketers have been bidding brand values even higher. Next, the definition of intangible assets and brand value, and the importance and the measures of these concepts are briefly discussed. The authors further propose three fundamental causes of “diminishing consumer desire for brands” (p. 21), i.e. “consumers are overwhelmed with undifferentiated brands and excessive choice; they are left uninspired by the lack of creativity in many brands; and they have lost their trust in brands to be unique and special enough to attract their emotional and financial commitment” (p. 30).

Based on the intensive data analysis (brand asset valuator), the authors introduce the concept of brand energy, perhaps the most important concept in this book, and explain the functions of brand energy (Chapter 2). In fact the rest of this chapter, even the rest of the book, elaborates on this innovative concept. Energy is defined as “the consumer perception of motion and direction in a brand” (p. 36). According to the authors, a brand with energy has five essential characteristics:

1. 1.

   Has velocity and direction.

2. 2.

   Constantly reinvents itself.

3. 3.

   Engages consumers on its own terms.

4. 4.

   Attracts without chasing.

5. 5.

   Moves culture as well as category.

The authors' analyses indicate that “the more energy a brand has, the greater consideration, loyalty, elasticity, pricing power, and brand value they command” (p. 36). Since the traditional metrics to measure brand equity no long work, the authors provide some background information on the methodology, brand asset valuator (BAV), used to measure the level of brand energy. BAV evaluates the movement and success of a brand in terms of two categories:

1. 1.

   Brand strength – composed of energized differentiation and relevance.

2. 2.

   Brand stature – composed of esteem and knowledge.

Profound examples and figures are provided to illustrate the different uses of BAV in the examination of brand performance. For those readers who are not familiar with the BAV tool, this chapter is a must read.

Chapter 3 suggests five parallel behaviors of consumers and investors. According to the authors, consumers today “select brands based on the same principles investors use to select stocks” (p. 59), thus, identifying the similarities between investors and consumer behaviors help to understand how to build energy into your brand. The five similarities include seeking future benefits, maximizing current returns, accumulating information and knowledge before investing, watching for movement to simplify choice, and demanding transparency and accountability. The remaining chapter discusses why an energized brand is able to drive up both margin and volume, to boost market share, and to create future value.

Chapter 4 provides a brief analysis of why creativity is an important component of consumers' perception of brand energy. Creativity is defined in a loose term. The authors seek to “ paint broad strokes how consumers feel about and interpret creativity and why they constantly crave innovation and uniqueness at elements of energy found in the world' s most admired brands” (p. 82). This chapter is short and sweet.

Chapter 5 further explores the new consumer behavior, expectation, and mindset called “ConsumerLand” (p. 89). The authors describe technology innovation and change in human nature and its impact on how “consumers have co‐opted the brand government” (p. 91). In this ConsumerLand, consumers “have unprecedented technology … which in turn gives them unprecedented power to alter their relationship with brands” (pp. 89‐90). This chapter is easy to follow and fun to read.

After laying out background information and key concepts in Part I, the authors devote the next five chapters (Part II) to present a thorough, lucid description of a five‐stage model on how to “infuse energy into your brand and extend it through the value chain into your entire enterprise” (p. 57). In addition, a variety of cases, such as Lego, Virgin, Xerox, Mumbai Tiffin Box Company, and Uniqlo, are provided. These real‐life examples and insights add to the book by providing a concrete demonstration of the five‐stage model (p. 119):

1. 1.

   (Chapter 6): “Exploration: Performing a baseline energy audit”.

2. 2.

   (Chapter 7): “Distillation: Identifying the energy core”.

3. 3.

   (Chapter 8): “Ignition: Creating an energized value chain”.

4. 4.

   (Chapter 9): “Fusion: Becoming an energy‐driven enterprise”.

5. 5.

   (Chapter 10): “Renewal: Active listening and constant refreshing of brand meaning”.

For each of the five stages, first, the process adopted is presented to the readers. Next, the leading obstacle that prevents businesses from moving forward in this stage is demonstrated. In order to counter the obstacles, the authors develop “Laws of Energy” (p. 117), which lead to the “New rules of brand management” (p. 118). The new rules of brand management “translate each law into practical actions, strategies and tactics for leaders and managers to induce energy into their brands” (p. 118). The development of this model is based on the analysis of the practices of the highest energy brands from 900 companies worldwide and incorporates consumer behaviors research conducted in London, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, and Warsaw (p. 117). This model is very practical, has real credibility and high validity, and can be applied to different products, brands, and industries.

Overall, the authors discuss practical branding management issues and introduce the five‐stage model to help managers evaluate and track brand energy across products and industries. Perhaps the most important aspect of this book is that the authors explain the innovative concept of brand energy clearly and outline how to implement this key concept. This book is quite practical from a tactical point of view. I believe that The Brand Bubble is suitable for marketers, brand managers, entrepreneurs, small company owners, and anyone who is involved in brand management. I found the book to be stimulating and fun to read, and it can serve as eye‐openers for new research avenues and new contexts in the area of brand management for academia and practitioner alike.