H2M | Creativity At Work™

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Behavioral Architecture

In a universe of functional parity, H2M approaches work on its portfolio of client's brands through the prism of human experience. We are, in essence, Behavioral Architects, whose main function is design brands that are differentiated in the consumer's mind and provide meanings beyond the brand's functional benefits. We also remain acutely aware that our mission is to increase the value of our clients brands through increased dollars in their coffers. Our mission is capitalism at its finest. Greed is not a factor as indeed, without profits, there is no economy. The process of designing brands to outsiders may appear circuitous at times, but years of very smart people and years of marketing research agree: it's a daunting task that requires insight, creativity, discipline, consistency and performance. It demands as much faith in intuition as it does facts. Branding is a very human endeavor that does not allow for shortcuts and tricks. Pandering will kill your brand. Over promotion will decrease your margins and without constant care and feeding will kill it.

A Brand Is A License To Charge A Premium
Good brands also facilitate the willing suspension of belief. Just think about how the power of a brand can actually allow you want to believe one athletic shoe is better than another. Or that one hamburger is really tastier than another. As we move undifferentiated offerings towards a distinct differentiation, consumers experience the change and reward the experience with a willingness to pay a premium and repeat purchase over time.

And just how powerful are brands? Brand names are among children's earliest lexical acquisitions. M&M's are right up there with momma and papa. What child doesn't know what a Happy Meal™ is instead of the capital of Vermont? Brands live so much closer to home that we often take their power for granted. The brand giants of yesteryear clearly understood that a brand transcends the product or service it portrays. The best brands become cultural touchstones.We don't "tape" tv anymore, we Tivo™ it, even though Tivo is a brand name and not a verb. We "verbize" to coin a word. Brands that become icons for the things we rely on in life. They become mental and emotional shortcuts to the things we need and desire in our rich personal lives. They also imbue our social activities with meanings well beyond the artifacts of the product offering itself. We use brands to tell others and ourselves who we are. And no, it's NOT shallow, as these symbols of affluence, economy etc have evolved from human activity which always reflects our deeper inner yearnings, whether we consciously are aware of them or not.

Brands And Risk Avoidance
H2M's psychological approach to brand design and implementation is always based on sound psychological principles. For instance, one of the most formidable obstacles for buyers is fear of loss. Buyers always favor known and familiar alternatives. Of the hundreds of brands of dish soap, they will usually only buy from out of 3-5 brands at the most, which, in marketing terms, is called the 'considered set'. The untried alternative is risky and buyers will pay a premium JUST to avoid the risk. One of the major strengths of a strong brand position is that it allays the fear of loss through familiarity. Familiarity builds trust.

Tangiblizing The Brand
In our post-industrial age, most of the brands we become aware of are experiential brands, which means they must be experienced first before a judgment can be made about how well they perform and meets needs and expectations. For example, an automobile may be experienced before purchase by test driving it or visiting a showroom and sitting in the vehicle. An Italian restaurant, however, can not be 'trialed' in the same way without a purchase. Neither can a law firm nor a beautician. Once a purchase has been made for a trial, expectations rise accordingly and it becomes even more imperative that the customer enjoys a positive experience with the brand, as a true 'loss' will have occurred if they don't. They have lost their money on an experience that did not live up to expectations. Study after study shows consumers make their choices more for avoiding a loss than for making a gain.

Win/Loss Orientation
Self-regulatory focus describes how a person's internal motivations regulate their consumption patterns. Most people either use a promotion focus or a prevention focus when they approach different consumption possibilities. A promotion focus is used when one is looking for a desirable outcome, a gain, when purchasing. On the other hand, a prevention focus is utilized when trying to avoid a loss. These are very important distinctions because the individual's win/loss orientation affects their behavior dramatically. If we use automobiles again as a demonstration, we would note that a Dodge Ram with a Hemi is geared towards a promotion orientation;the gain of a big, strong truck. On the other hand, Volkswagen is now appealing to a prevention orientation when it shows an unexpected traffic accident and the passengers remain unhurt. This approach appeals to those wishing to avoid a loss.