Branding: Shifting gears

Marketing is sometimes a reflection of life in general. You try to build relationships with people, get them to trust you, show them you're worthy of their time and attention, and then if successful, try to maintain that brand loyalty. But sometimes you lose their trust and you market to them in ways that they don't like. It is during these times that your brand equity is put to the test. If you were good to them before, if you did your best to provide a good product, perhaps they will continue to listen to your message and not write you off completely.

Too many times marketers will try to oversell in the wake of a big snafu. Sometimes it's best to just ride it out and let the customer remember the good 'ol days. Things weren't always bad. All brands change in the face of profits, generations, or culture. Sometimes you lose certain demographics in that change. Sometimes they follow the brand.

Many brands have thrived when they take a new marketing direction. Some fall flat on their face because they failed to plan or were naive to the market. Before taking a brand in a new direction, make sure you know what you're getting into. Loyal customers are loyal to the brand they know, and you'll need to make them loyal again to the reinvented one.