Chanced on two posts on brands/brand value today almost at the same time…
- Seth Godin: The brand formula
- Brand = [Prediction of what to expect] times [emotional power of that expectation].
- Millward Brown, FT Study: Google becomes the world’s most valuable brand
- Google Brand Value = $ 66,434 Million .
Hmm, so what do you expect of Google, what is the emotional power of that expectation and can you value that expectation at USD 66,434 Million? If yes, then will that expectation hold true in case of Google in future?
I don’t think anyone will think of Google as the best way to “organize their information“. The Google brand stands for an offset of that mission. The first thing that comes to mind (my mind at least!) and what the brand stands for is of a search engine, so simple and so brilliantly efficient that you know you can always trust it to quickly give you the information you are looking for.
Don’t know the specifics of the ‘brand definition’ based on which Millward Brown did its valuation. But if you think of it, Google has been branching into too many things thereby diluting its equity. Sure Search, Desktop, Gmail, Books, Directory etc., organize information and add to the expectation from Google. But there are so many other Google products that don’t fit the bill!
So far Google managed to be a valuable brand because it stands for so few things with most people. If you look at this survey results, you will understand what I mean.
To cut a long story short, borrowing a few things from Seth and adding my own… Google may value whatever it has been valued at as of now, but if ‘they do so many different things and because the value of what they create has little emotional resonance’ they might be eroding their brand!!
