With the marketplace in constant flux, how your brand is perceived from the outside is one thing; however, the ultimate long-term success of your brand is determined not only by the legacy and staying power of your brand name, but by the sustainability of your competitive advantage.

Nigel Harris of PowerStick.com Inc. recently submitted this food for thought.  How does this apply to our industry on a whole, and in your opinion, what do we need to do to not only stay relevant, but increase the marketshare of our established and very powerful advertising medium?

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How We See Brands

For years, companies such as Burberry, Tiffany, and Gucci have grown their brands by focusing on those people who wish to be identified with their products and the accompanying exclusivity. Advertisements for these products appeared in publications such as Vogue and featured an elegantly dressed woman on the steps of a Tuscan villa leaning casually on her Jaguar XK150.

When Chinese manufacturers started getting adept at replicating these items, the allure faded because the real McCoy was often mistaken for a fake.

This same exclusivity applies to technology products, where Apple became the aspirational brand. For a long time the brand was expensive and apps proliferated because developers were able to charge far more for IOS apps than for Android apps. As time has progress,  the situation has changed.

Apple now has many competitors with similar features at much lower cost. As exciting as the Apple Watch buzz is, there are already dissenting voices questioning why we should be wearing an iPhone on our wrists. Furthermore, those people who like to be first with an expensive and original piece of technology are frustrated with Apple's plans to dilute the iWatch brand with many different versions of the product in months to come.

Those who enjoy being asked "What is that and where did you get it" might no longer be automatically jumping at new mainstream Apple products. An original, feature-rich and elegant piece of technology from a hitherto unknown designer might just be more appealing.

No longer can a brand rely on the cache of its name to guarantee ongoing success. The future belongs to those who can keep stimulating the attention of buyers with feature-rich products that incorporate great design and innovation.

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