What’s in your Brand Bank Account?

When I spoke at the Marketing Pioneers event in Amsterdam, one presentation got me thinking.

Huib Van Bockel, marketing director for Red Bull in the Netherlands and who also coaches other Red Bull marketers throughout northern Europe, spoke about what he calls a Brand Bank Account.

While Huib’s presentation was in the Dutch language, I was able to speak with him several times before and after the presentation to learn more.

The concept is that each brand has a virtual bank account with items being deposited into the account and withdrawn from the account at all times. Huib says that when a brand gives more than it receives, it will grow (just like when you deposit more money over time into your bank account than you withdraw, your net worth will grow).

“I based these ideas on The Art of Loving by Erich Fromm,” Huib says. “Everyone says ‘how can I get people to love me?’ But instead the right question is ‘How can I develop my ability to love?’"

"It’s the same with marketing a product," Huib says."How can we do more for our buyers?”

The Brand Bank Account

Brands add to their accounts by creating things of value and giving them to people. For example, Apple has the genius bar and their free seminars. Corporate social responsibility is another form of giving (adding to your brand bank account).

Brands withdraw from their accounts through the attention that they demand from consumers in the form of television commercials, print ads and the like.

"Probably about 90% of current marketing is shouting at the consumer; 'buy me!'" Huib says. "Whether it is on TV, web or radio, people are watching a movie, checking out a website or listening to a song when a commercial is forced upon them. Marketing people tend to think people like their commercials, they have worked so hard on, to me it is obviously a withdrawal."

Give it away

Huib’s ideas are totally consistent with what I’ve said for years about removing gates from free content (such as ebooks) and making that content totally free. Just say NO to squeezing your buyers, I say. When you give away valuable content with no registration, you are adding to your brand bank account, making your brand more valuable.

These ideas are also consistent with Seth Godin’s concepts about gifts as he talks about in his new book Linchpin.

Every brand should figure out ways to give that are consistent with their brands.

For example, in the Netherlands Red Bull works with one or their core buyer personas - BMX bike riders – to create dirt tracks, contests and other things of value to this audience, adding to their brand bank account. Check out this terrific video to see what I mean. Direct link to Red Bull Backyard Digger Zoetermeer 2008.

And for the creative buyer persona, Rooms of Red Bull is a place for creativity, a place for artists to get inspired, create and expose their work. Rooms of Red Bull is another way the company adds to their brand bank account.

I really like Huib’s concept.

What about you? Does this idea resonate with you?

Comments

[mike mcallen]

This idea does resonate with me. In fact I have been fiddling with podcasting, blogging for years and lately getting tired and not showing much from it business wise. I think I will try and take this approach to heart for the rest of the year. (2 late for a new tears resolution?)

Thanks for this post it helped me.

mike

[Renaud]

It is actually similar to Steven Covey's idea that trust gets built little by little, as one deposits some "trust currency" on a virtual bank account.
Very applicable to marketing! I had never made the connection. And Red Bull seems to be doing an excellent job at it.

[Margaret Ebeling]

Another insightful post, David. I am not surprised to hear Huib's philosophy, as it what has made Red Bull such a massive player on the world stage.

The analogy of a savings account was intriguing to me, as "savings" in the traditional consumer banking sense has become elusive and a low priority for many Americans. There has been a shift towards spend now, get it now, and there has been little reward for the consumer to save (less than 1% return at most banks today.)

Maybe businesspeople are viewing their brands the same way right now - let's put all of the resources behind our brand, blow the message out, and receive (hopefully) immediate satisfaction. No need to save brand equity, cultivate and let it grow - competition is much too fierce so reaction is swift and loud. Companies might feel they need to demonstrate ROI now for investors and they will worry about tomorrow, tomorrow.

In my opinion, that approach is not sustainable. Yours and Huib's approach is.

[David Meerman Scott]

Mike - keep it up. It will pay off for you.

Renaud - I hadn't realized that Covey had written about similar ideas. I'll check it out.

Margaret - thanks for mentioning American's low savings rates and tying that to companies doing the same thing. That's an insightful comparison.

David

[Cathy Hofknecht]

This idea absolutely resonates with me. Companies that freely provide value to both prospects and customers develop a much deeper and lasting relationship. They recognize that their brand is not simply about their product, but about every interaction they have with their customers.

It comes back to the guiding principle of focusing on and connecting with your customer. You certainly have talked about it in your books. Seth Godin has talked about it in in a very personal way in Linchpin. And Robert Brunner and Stewart Emery have talked about it in Do You Matter - explaining how design driven companies are able to build successful brands by focusing on the complete customer experience.

There is no doubt in my mind that the companies that are committed to providing value to their customers are the ones who will gain a loyal following and thrive in the decades to come.

[David Gordon Schmidt]

Only point that raises a caution flag: advertising, categorically withdraws from the bank account. Print ads don't demand my attention...good ones select an audience. By the way, I'm essentially a PR and corp communications guy, so I have no vested interest in advertising. But at heart, I'm a marketing guy - and advertising accelerates awareness when it creatively presents a Unique Value Proposition.

Detroit (yes, Detroit) was a hotbed for funny retail TV spots back in the old days, via W. B Doner, now the largest independent ad agency in the world. Founder Brod Doner used to say: "Reward people for watching your damn ad." He's still right - screaming doesn't work, entertaining and educating does.

[David Meerman Scott]

Thanks Cathy!

David - I agree with you (in some cases). I like the ads in Vanity Fair for example, and I'm more interested in Super Bowl ads than the game...

[Elaine_Fogel]

David, where do you think Toyota's brand bank account is now? Do you think it will recover from this recent fiasco?

[David Meerman Scott]

Elaine - Yes, Toyota will most certainly recover. I lived in Japan for 7 years. The problem is that very old men with rigid ideas run Japan's largest companies. Until that changes, many Japanese companies will have this problem.

[David Gordon Schmidt]

I'm not saying, by the way, that advertising saves a weak brand. In fact, when the brand is strong, audiences are more open to advertising. Environment and expectation is important also - like the Super Bowl, as you mention.
I love so much the tremendous value of being able to create my own radio stations on a whim, with Pandora.com, at no cost, that I'm more-than-usually likely to click-through to an advertiser. Good will indeed.

RE: Toyota - I think the damage to market share will be real, at least for the next 5 years or so. The Japanese "higher quality" perception has faded, as well it should. Trust is gone.

[veronica reynolds]

i love this post. definitely something that can be hard to have trust in as it's antithetical to most marketing campaigns that i've worked on, but i've found it to be true! thanks!

[Therese]

This is so very true. Also most advertising is simply a product push and it is not conveying how their product or service can solve a problem, or it is not part of a bigger campaign that can give back to the buyer; so to me, advertising is absolutely a withdraw.

To me a lot of social media, new media is common sense. People are influenced by what they read, hear, etc., so if you give free helpful information, they are going to be influenced by this and remember that you are a person that knows the information that they need. If you lock everything up, companies have no idea if you know what you are talking about or if you are simply trying to sell a service or product.

When it comes to an organization having a social cause, I think that people are more likely to buy from an organization that is giving back, specifically in an area that is consistent with their messaging. People can see if your messaging and actions are not matching up, if you say your green, but you make a practice of sending out direct mail. I think we are now more sensitive to these types of contradictions.

Therese

[Marilyn Wilson]

I totally agree with this concept. We recently published a paper called Stop Advertising and Start Edutizing which plays off the concept of providing valuable insight and support to customers to build your brand bank account. Instead of using the "me me me" approach, use the "Give to Get" approach. Businesses that practice this philosophy are much more likely to be successful and gain the trust of their customers as long as they pay off their brand promise of course.

http://waves.wavgroup.com/gaining-an-edge-with-edutizing

[David Meerman Scott]

Wow - some more great comments. Thank you all for jumping into this discussion. Sounds like the Brand Bank Account idea resonates.

[Huib van Bockel]

Great to see it resonates so well.
Renaud - you are right, like S.R. Covey said there is an emotional bank account between two people, I say there is a brand bank account between people and brands. And if you make enough deposits it is OK to now and then make a withdrawal.
David Gordon - building on that idea I think, like you, it will be very difficult for brands to stop with all old school advertising, sometimes you need it for your top of mind awareness or promote actual prices you are selling at your retailer for instance. But I do think these are all withdrawals, if you make sure you are depositing enough, no problem. As said in the post, 90% of current spending are probably withdrawals, it would be great if that would only be 25% in the future and then you could invest the rest of your marketing budget in giving to your potential buyers.
I also agree that some media are more taking then others. I would say the pop-up on Internet is probably the biggest withdrawal a brand can make and an advertising in a magazine the least. Or what would you all say about the different media channels? Which withdraws the most and the least? A good way to test is whether you can say 'thank you' after a brand has communicated with you. And how many times have you said that after a ad was forced upon you? I guess if you are watching the super bowl and there is an advertising break (you have to kill time anyway because there is no game) and this ad really makes you laugh, you could say thank you. And in that highly exceptional case this ad could probably be considered as giving ;o)

[David Meerman Scott]

Huib - thanks for dropping by! As you know, I love the Brand Bank Account concept. Keep up the good work.

David

[David Gordon Schmidt]

Hub:
Good points, all well said. But how is announcing special pricing or valuable discounts in an ad a withdrawal?
My work is all about creating valuable content (B-to-B, tech)- a deposit when done correctly. But, for example, Borders (books) can push their 30% off coupons out to me anytime b/c I love using them. It's a deposit. I guess the point is there must be value.

And yes, i think a laugh (at a funny TV spot) has value. I'm not expecting anything more substantive from a beer commercial.

[aion kinah]

To me a lot of social media, new media is common sense. People are influenced by what they read, hear, etc., so if you give free helpful information, they are going to be influenced by this and remember that you are a person that knows the information that they need. If you lock everything up, companies have no idea if you know what you are talking about or if you are simply trying to sell a service or product.

[Tatyana Gann]

David

I agree what you said to response to Elaine question on japanese companies. Same is happening in US. Companies run by people with old school mindset and they have to rewire their brain. It is not a wishful thing to do. It is a must thing to do!

I do love what Huib said about learning how to love.. It is so TRUE. We must develop that ability to love. From the deeper of understanding of love love is a choice and commitment to make things happen. Love does not happen accidentaly. It is CHOICE. That is why we must develop ability to love, cherish and nourish relationships with our customers by giving and never complain about giving or thinking about stopping the giving value.
Love is sort of unconditional here. Best brands know what people want and tap in the flow of giving value.

Thank you!

Tatyana Gann

[WendyBlomseth]

This term "Brand Bank Account" is almost identical to what I say to InBeaute photo headshot clients. We create 2 - 12 pictures that you can use now or later. We'll hold your Image Bank Account so you'll have the right picture at the right time/place.
Hope that's not too much self-promotion but it is 100% inline with what we do, too.
www.inbeautephoto.com

[Trevor Young PR Warrior]

Hi David,

Another insightful post - thanks for continuing to bring us these excellent examples from around the world!

The 'Brand Bank Account' concept appears similar in tone to the 'Trust Bank' concept Al Golin (PR firm Golin/Harris) coined some decades back -

To quote (SOURCE - http://bit.ly/9Gf0Pz):

"Al Golin had long believed that successful PR was based on building a relationship of trust between a firm and its customers, and during the 1970s he and Ray Kroc of McDonald's elaborated on this to develop the idea of the "Trust Bank." It was defined as the accumulated public trust built up by a company, which could be used to help weather controversies. Trust was developed by contributing to a firm's community, which in McDonald's case ranged from sponsoring Little League baseball teams to building "Ronald McDonald Houses" around the country that provided accommodations for parents whose children were in the hospital."

Either way, they're all great long-term strategies brands can use to build their standing in the marketplace.

[David Meerman Scott]

Hey Trevor. The "Trust Bank" idea from Al Golin is new to me. Many thanks for sharing.

Yes, the Ronald McDonald Houses are an excellent example of these ideas!!

[Mary Ellen]

I love this idea. It brings me back to my college days when we would be walking around campus and see the Red Bull truck coming!! They always stopped and handed out cans and cans of Red Bull to who ever was standing by, and when you are a broke college kid there's nothing better then free stuff, especially Red Bull. That turned me on to Red Bull and I still drink it to this day.

[Huib van Bockel]

Hi David Gordon, I totally agree with you (like you say on your own blog) that my statements are suggested categorically. When presenting at the event David presented, I had a half an hour to speak; impossible to come up with al the nuances that can be made. At the same time when presenting a new idea, doing it bluntly always has the most provoking value; which is always a good thing ;o). Adressing your point, it is not so much on what you communicate, whether it's special pricing or valuable discounts like you say or a new car. It is how you communicate, what medium you use and when. I am on holiday in the US at the moment and I am watching the Olympics on NBC (or at least trying too); every 5 minutes I get the same ads thrown at me. There are some pretty valuable price offs been communicated to me (I can get a footlong sandwich at Subway’s for only 5 dollars for instance), but seeing the fact I am trying to watch the downhill races it stays a withdrawal. But can you still build brands with strong advertising? Of course you can and I think it will always be part of the mix.
- Trevor, I had never heard of the Trust Bank before. It definitely sounds similar, because of the use of the bank metaphor, also used by Covey for instance. The big difference between the trust bank and the brand bank account, that the BBA is not (only) about trust, you can actually build any brand value by giving to your buyers, not only building trust for when there is a time to withdraw on that trust. The brand bank account can also be a tool to judge all your marketing spending, which part of it is actually giving and which part is taking and when you give in the right way, your brand will grow.

[JanHenkB]

@ David,

Good post with great comments.

@ Huib,

I enjoyed your story at Marketing Pioneers. Besides your story about the Brand Bank Account, you also stated that Red Bull is not high Involvement product and therefore you need the old school advertising to support the impulse purchases.

When do you think you don't need that anymore or do you think that time never comes?

gr,
Jan-Henk