Is Your Brand Old, Tired and Irrelevant?

Is Your Brand Old, Tired and Irrelevant?

KraftHeinz just lost $18 billion in its market capitalization this week. And, it replaced its CFO. Why? Because its legacy brands aren’t serving up what consumers want today. Think about it. When was the last time you…?

1. Bought Kraft Macaroni & Cheese?

2. Brewed a pot of Maxwell House?

3. Placed Lunchables in your kids’ lunch?

4. Made pineapple Jell-O?

5. Grilled a batch of Oscar Mayer hot dogs?

For me, the answer is at least 25 years ago. These brands are no longer relevant to Americans looking for fresher, healthier, organic, and natural foods. Do you really want to know why your mac & cheese is that color? Or, what’s in that hot dog? NO!

So, the question is how do you keep a brand fresh? By tuning in to what consumers want today. A common thread from successful start-ups is that the company is socially responsible, environmentally friends, and wraps its products around the experience.

Allbirds, for example, not only touts the most comfortable shoes in the world, but planet-friendly too with wool, recycled plastic and cardboard. The same standard holds true for Rothy’s, another shoe manufacturer. The model hoisted by TOMS – buy one and the company gifts one – is now followed by Warby Parker (eyeglasses), Bixbee (backpacks), Bombas (socks), and Smile Squared (toothbrushes).

Heinz has tried to tune into the market by leveraging the success of its iconic Wienermobile into an Airbnb experience. And, to remain relevant, it partnered with Ed Sheeran to introduce Edchup.

But the real questions are:

1. When was the last time you took a hard look at your brand including sales numbers, market share, logo, and image?

2. What are your customers saying about your brand? (I assume you already have both a social listening system as well as social networking sites.)

3. What do customers really want?

4. How can you modify, revise, repurpose, or reengineer your brand to make it more relevant?

5. What initiatives can you start to create a more transparent, ethically sourced and environmentally friendly company? These answers are the first step to starting a pivot. Questions? Fire away!