In brand building, successful marketers and entrepreneurs are looking for the “Big Idea.” So what do they mean by “big idea.” As my old boss, Al Ries, now in the Marketing Hall of Fame used to tell me, “It’s not enough to have a “better” product, you need to a product that’s “different” in an important way- a mold breaker.
That’s the premise of the book, “Pattern Breakers,” by Mike Maples Jr. and Peter Ziebelman. Successful entrepreneurs look for “inflections,” a “change in the power of a technology, a change in people’s attitudes, a change in regulations.” These are the forces that change how people think, feel and act that lead to different even radical ideas.
It’s an important distinction to understand because so many entrepreneurs tell me when their business idea doesn’t take off, “I don’t get it. My product is better, than the leader in the category.” But does it leverage an inflection point? Likely not.
You don’t have to launch a technology startup to take advantage of an inflection point. I was reminded of that truism when I was observing the new beauty and makeup line by Bobbi Brown called Jones Road that’s running heavily on TV and in social media. Brown started out as a makeup artist who made her own homemade lipsticks. One thing led to another, and in the 1990s, Bobbi Brown sold her namesake makeup line to Estee Lauder. Now that her twenty-five year non-compete was finished, Brown felt she “wasn’t done yet.
The makeup and skincare category if notorious for its abundance of competitive brands and specialty products. Brown felt there was a change in attitude toward makeup that no brand was satisfying. In her kickoff campaign, the positioning is different and counter-intuitive.
It’s not about transforming your look through makeup like other makeup brands. Brown wants the Jones Road to be the brand that’s for women like herself that want a no-makeup look.
Rather than dozens of specialty products, most of Jones Road products are hybrid and can be used on your face, contouring your cheeks, for eye shadow or lipstick. Brown has created a different brand experience with products like Miracle Balm that have to be released with your fingers to give your skin an inner glow. (Directions on the website)
When Bobbi Brown launched Jones Road, fashion skeptics questioned whether women would want a no makeup look that was more about glow than coverage. But Jones found a vibrant community of brand fans who want to go au naturel (with a little smoothing out). She even eschews modeling agencies and finds her models on the streets so she has real people with freckles or a gap tooth.
#branding, #JonesRoad, #BobbiBrown