Greetings from Ray Kotcher - Perspectives - Ketchum's Online Communications Quarterly

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Greetings from
Ray Kotcher

Global Roundtable:
How to Build Brand Magnetism and Believers

Global Roundtable:
Building Brand Believers Among Women 25 to 54

Brand Believers for the Hostess Twinkie

Street Smarts

What’s Hot at Ketchum

•	Ketchum senior partner and CEO Ray Kotcher maintains that a critical challenge for public relations and the entire marketing communications community centers on mastering how to build brand believers who stay loyal.

•	Douglas Atkin, author of The Culting of Brands, and three other brand-marketing experts look at how best to communicate a brand’s magnetism to consumers and how to avoid damaging a brand icon.

•	Listen to a podcast in which Douglas Atkin chats about how to build brand believers.

•	Kodak’s director of worldwide advertising and other experts on marketing to women explore how to build brand warriors among women ages 25 to 54.

•	A group of young Ketchum professionals, the creative ImagiNation, dishes up an array of ways to bolster the Hostess Twinkie brand.

•	Heard of Twinsumer, offline marketing and teen shadowing? They’re among cutting-edge brand-marketing trends in Street Smarts.

•	eKetchum Director Adam Brown takes you into the world of blogs and podcasts as he welcomes you to Ketchum Personalized Media.

In a world where change comes so rapidly, how can communications help you build brand believers who stay loyal?

This is a serious challenge for public relations practitioners and the entire marketing-communications community. It’s also the subject of this issue of Perspectives, Ketchum’s online magazine.

We explore “Building Brand Believers Through Communication” in two global roundtables with panelists who deeply understand brand communications and consumers.

The first roundtable group looks at how best to communicate a brand’s magnetism to consumers and also delves into how to avoid damaging a brand icon. Among the panelists is Douglas Atkin, author of The Culting of Brands, which has received significant buzz in our industry.

The second group focuses on a specific demographic: Women ages 25 to 54. It’s a demographic that’s increasingly important to marketers because women in this age group are potent consumers and decision-makers in their households. It has become such a powerful audience that Ketchum has introduced a specific communications product that helps companies reach it.

We’ve enlisted a group of young, creative Ketchum employees – Ketchum Midwest’s ImagiNation – to offer their advice on reviving a brand icon that has fallen on tough times: the Hostess Twinkie. I think you’ll find their insights into how to make Twinkie fanatics of today’s younger generation quite fascinating. I certainly did.

What’s hot at Ketchum? It’s Ketchum Personalized Media, a brand-new global offering that advises organizations about the fast-emerging world of online and wireless media – from blogs and podcasts to mobile marketing. Ketchum Personalized Media helps organizations know how, why and when to integrate these media tools into their overall communications strategy and strategic communications goals. eKetchum Director Adam Brown offers insights into this world and offering, gleaned from recent interviews.

And, finally, there’s "Street Smarts," a Perspectives feature that many of you say you read closely to gain cutting-edge insights into marketing and communications trends. This time we’re focusing on emerging brand trends.

As usual, I welcome your feedback on this issue of Perspectives. Please write me at ray.kotcher@ketchum.com.

•	2004, Issue 2: Unlocking Corporate Communications...

•	2004, Issue 1: Lessons Learned...

•	2003, Issue 2: The Changing Face of Marketing

•	2003, Issue 1: The First 100 Days of 2003

•	2002, Issue 2: Focusing on Innovation

•	2002, Issue 1: David Maister Interview (PDF).

Additional Reading on Building Brand Believers

BOOKS

The Culting of Brands: When Customers Become True Believers, by Douglas Atkin, Portfolio Hardcover, published June 2004

Brandchild: Remarkable Insights Into The Minds Of Today's Global Kids And Their Relationships With Brands, by Martin Lindstrom, Butterworth-Heinemann, published November 2004.

Building Brands & Believers: How to Connect with Consumers Using Archetypes, by Kent Wertime, Wiley Publishers, published January 2003.

How Brands Become Icons: The Principles of Cultural Branding, by Douglas B. Holt, Harvard Business School Press, published September 2004.

Lovemarks: The Future Beyond Brands, by Kevin Roberts, powerHouse Books, published April 2004.

The Power of Cult Branding: How 9 Magnetic Brands Turned Customers Into Loyal Followers (and Yours Can, Too), by Matthew W. Ragas and B.J. Bueno, Crown Business, published June 2002.

ARTICLES

Americans Continue to Be Loyal to National Brands, Marketing Today, Aug. 24, 2005.

Brand Rehab: How Companies Can Restore a Tarnished Image Knowledge @ Wharton, September 7-20, 2005

The Everyday Life of Consumer Brands, NOP World Perspectives, Spring 2005

Marketing Spending Effectiveness: How to Win in a Complex Environment, McKinsey & Co. White Paper

BLOGS

Marketing to a Specified Group