Why Should I Spend Money On Your Brand?

Kind of an odd title right? Well, think about it. We all have our favorite products we use each and every day. Many times you make purchases on products without even thinking twice of switching to a different brand. People typically don’t like change. This is especially true when they feel like their needs for a particular product are 100% satisfied. I am one of these individuals and I am writing today to explain a new type of thinking about why I decide to spend money on a particular brand over others.

Wine - O

Just the other day I was in a local grocery store shopping for my weekly rations (yes, I eat a lot) and I came across what seemed like an endless supply of wine. I thought to myself, “Why the hell are there so many brands of the same type of wine?”. I also thought, “How am I going to decide between all of these choices?”. Now don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of different types of wine out there but inside my head, I think of wine as pretty much what you would expect it to be when you remove the cork and pour. Total aside but I typically prefer a Cabernet or Merlot for any wine junkies out there. Anyways...

I found that the more often I shop for a bottle or two, I pay more attention to a wine bottle’s branding over most of the factors that go into purchasing a quality bottle of wine. Some wine is insanely expensive while others are too cheap to waste your money on. For me it boils down to a few characteristics I set in place when I commit to buying a bottle:

• Is the brand/label well designed or named?
• Is the price within the range I’m willing to spend
• It’s not on the bottom shelf is it?

As a designer, I put most faith in product branding when it comes time to buy. I stick to a cabernet or merlot and usually decide from there. Price is certainly a factor and sometimes I will splurge but I usually stick to a mid-priced bottle that has packaging and product placement that impresses me most. This all may vary with other consumers but I think a lot of people go against the expression

“Don’t judge a book by its cover”

in this specific case. Unless there was a taste testing for every wine on the shelf present, (which I highly doubt) most will decide what to purchase based on the look and the price. There’s a bit of psychology involved when you enter a store on the search for your favorite products.

Product Placement

Product placement matters. Some brands will pay extra to have their products housed in a certain area of a marketplace. Whether it’s on a custom display or just higher on the shelf, more people will pay attention to it based on where it is located. This applies to almost every product in the market. Products on the bottom shelf are much cheaper but still perform well to those interested in spending less. Beware of these products as sometimes less isn’t more. The cheaper the product the cheaper it was made.

Movie Buffs

Have you ever watched a movie and noticed within a scene all the actors or actresses are using a specific type of product? Interestingly enough, those products you see are there on purpose. Some value was exchanged between the movie makers and the companies trying to promote their brand indirectly.

image credit: Paramount Pictures

The movie Wayne’s World makes things funny by making it so apparent that the product, Pepsi in this case, is being advertised that it’s making fun of the idea altogether.

Other common products in movies these days are cellphones and computers. Moviemakers make an effort to make each character use a specific brand of device to essentially market it to anyone watching the movie. The end result is the hope of product marketing to produce more sales based on those who watched the movie. You can think of this as both product placement and advertising.

Sponsorship and Events

Some brands go above and beyond to sponsor events such as golf tournaments, races, and sports teams.

Golf tournaments sometimes involve a lot of random brands that put up the costs of having the tournament in return for the promotion of their brand to the players, the public, and anyone tuning in on television.

Specific athletes or sports teams are sponsored with companies like Gatorade, Powerade, Budweiser, and Miller Lite.

These brands are recognized by consumers who attend or tune in to watch these sports and thus are encouraged to purchase the brand’s products.

Some events even have free tastings or promotions for the consumers which actually allows the consumer to try the product before they commit to buying. This is a great way to earn the trust and faith in any consumer even though the brand is possibly losing money.

The same concept for sports applies to celebrities. How many commercials have you seen where a celebrity is promoting a brand? You can bet someone was paid to do this. Even if the celebrity wanted to do the sponsorship/promotion there is still a lot of work being done behind the scenes to compensate anyone involved. It can be a shady situation but brands do it because it works to drive sales. It's all part of doing business and growing as a business.

Finishing Up

Just because a brand is flashy or well designed and fairly priced doesn’t always mean it’s the best. Plenty of brands stack up to the big boys when they are lower on the chain. I personally pay more attention to the visual aspects of a product over other factors when considering to buy. I don’t always go by price point but then again I don’t always go by the look as well. Some consumers like myself don’t sweat the details and just buy what they know will satisfy their needs the best. In the end no matter what brand you choose you are looking for something to get the job done and or provide the most benefit to you.

What things come to mind when you decide to purchase a product? Do you pay more attention to the branding and packaging like me or focus more on price?