Risky for the brand? Diana, Fergie and Andrew in Klosters, 1987
Much marketing and brand management teaching is conducted through case studies, a method made famous by Harvard Business School. Though they would find the thought unpalatable in the hotbed of republicanism that is Cambridge, Massachusetts, I believe that Britain’s royal brand provides an excellent demonstration of some of the key issues that marketers and their agencies have to grapple with.
Only the greatest brands, for example, cope well with a name change. As a young thing at Saatchi, I was involved in the switch from Marathon to Snickers, and I know how carefully these transitions need to be managed. What could be more problematic than a national brand bearing a name derived from your most hostile competitor? In 1917, with Britain at war with Germany, the royal family was forced to ditch its own name, Saxe-Coburg, and change overnight, without the benefit of even a “co-branded transition phase,” to the more acceptable Windsor. That the brand survived this is no small achievement.
Having successfully managed this jolt, our brand faced other great challenges. It is, for example, particularly difficult when you are selling longevity and your brand manager, as happened in 1936, resigns from his position after only 325 days.
At M&C Saatchi, we believe that great marketing communication requires simplicity and, ideally, a brand’s equity should be reduced to just one word. In the case of the royal family, I believe that word is “continuity.” In a world of uncertainty, change and diminishing trust in institutions, it is immensely reassuring that the personification of our nation is a constant.
Two great royal brand managers reinforced these values during the 20th century. One, as we have been reminded recently, who found it very difficult to make presentations to his consumers; the other, the present incumbent, who has been magnificently stewarding the brand for 59 years. However, under her management there have been numerous attempts to modernise the brand—not all successful. It is a difficult tightrope to walk and many an agency’s heart sinks when the client confusingly demands: “We want to be traditional but in a modern manner.” This can often lead to inappropriate line extensions. It is fair to say that two such new product attempts, involving first a blonde and then a red variant, had unintended consequences: the first tragic and the second more comic. More recently, the erratic behaviour of an overseas sales manager has demonstrated how carefully the brand values need to be stewarded.
A brand surrounded by centuries-old mystique also needs to be very cautious about becoming too accessible. Gentle documentaries are fine, but forays into It’s a Royal Knockout and the prospect of the brand manager herself, rather than her office, tweeting, are clearly off-brand.
So the message from the mad men of Soho is that it would be folly to compromise the core brand equity of “continuity.” But by all means encourage huge on-brand events that remind consumers of the continuing core values and symbolism wrapped up in the next-but-one-brand manager and his trainee…
Also in Prospect’s monarchy special:
Simon Jenkins: What’s the point of the monarchy?
Will Self argues it’s time to give the royals the boot
Vernon Bogdanor on crown and constitution
Prospect/YouGov poll reveals the nation’s feelings about the monarchy in 2011
Edwina Currie, Alex Salmond, Bonnie Greer, Yann Martel and other public figures say whether the monarchy is good for Britain
Much marketing and brand management teaching is conducted through case studies, a method made famous by Harvard Business School. Though they would find the thought unpalatable in the hotbed of republicanism that is Cambridge, Massachusetts, I believe that Britain’s royal brand provides an excellent demonstration of some of the key issues that marketers and their agencies have to grapple with.
Only the greatest brands, for example, cope well with a name change. As a young thing at Saatchi, I was involved in the switch from Marathon to Snickers, and I know how carefully these transitions need to be managed. What could be more problematic than a national brand bearing a name derived from your most hostile competitor? In 1917, with Britain at war with Germany, the royal family was forced to ditch its own name, Saxe-Coburg, and change overnight, without the benefit of even a “co-branded transition phase,” to the more acceptable Windsor. That the brand survived this is no small achievement.
Having successfully managed this jolt, our brand faced other great challenges. It is, for example, particularly difficult when you are selling longevity and your brand manager, as happened in 1936, resigns from his position after only 325 days.
At M&C Saatchi, we believe that great marketing communication requires simplicity and, ideally, a brand’s equity should be reduced to just one word. In the case of the royal family, I believe that word is “continuity.” In a world of uncertainty, change and diminishing trust in institutions, it is immensely reassuring that the personification of our nation is a constant.
Two great royal brand managers reinforced these values during the 20th century. One, as we have been reminded recently, who found it very difficult to make presentations to his consumers; the other, the present incumbent, who has been magnificently stewarding the brand for 59 years. However, under her management there have been numerous attempts to modernise the brand—not all successful. It is a difficult tightrope to walk and many an agency’s heart sinks when the client confusingly demands: “We want to be traditional but in a modern manner.” This can often lead to inappropriate line extensions. It is fair to say that two such new product attempts, involving first a blonde and then a red variant, had unintended consequences: the first tragic and the second more comic. More recently, the erratic behaviour of an overseas sales manager has demonstrated how carefully the brand values need to be stewarded.
A brand surrounded by centuries-old mystique also needs to be very cautious about becoming too accessible. Gentle documentaries are fine, but forays into It’s a Royal Knockout and the prospect of the brand manager herself, rather than her office, tweeting, are clearly off-brand.
So the message from the mad men of Soho is that it would be folly to compromise the core brand equity of “continuity.” But by all means encourage huge on-brand events that remind consumers of the continuing core values and symbolism wrapped up in the next-but-one-brand manager and his trainee…
Also in Prospect’s monarchy special:
Simon Jenkins: What’s the point of the monarchy?
Will Self argues it’s time to give the royals the boot
Vernon Bogdanor on crown and constitution
Prospect/YouGov poll reveals the nation’s feelings about the monarchy in 2011
Edwina Currie, Alex Salmond, Bonnie Greer, Yann Martel and other public figures say whether the monarchy is good for Britain
