Branding by not Branding

Being on holiday and in the festive spirits made me not think about branding quite often.
Christmas being what it is, and despite being exposed to a plethora of commercial brands, one tends to go about one’s way in a rather oblivious state. Considering it is the season of happiness, love and togetherness, it is also quite spectacularly the season of multi-billion dollar branding and marketing campaigns.

But what about entities that do not actually require branding at all? Companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Coco-Cola and the likes? (Despite the fact that they still do) And then consider entities of which the stakeholders prefer not to brand. Imagine the idyllic scene of Ibiza without the masses of party-goers, a section of undiscovered land with only but a handful of local citizens. Could this be heaven?

On the opposite side of this commercially driven island, a far cry from the internationally clogged celebrity hangout, you will find a peaceful, serene and unbranded little town I frequent during my yearly break.

The town of Pringle Bay, a smallish inconvenient drive from Cape Town is one of the few non-branded, non-commercial holiday destinations in South-Africa. And the locals go out of their way to keep it this way.

Branding by not branding. The image of a peaceful and laidback holiday destination without the mad rush of tourists, shoppers, party animals and the hype of properly marketed coastal towns is maintained by the low key and reserved nature of the precious few that have discovered this peace of heaven.

When a product, service or in this instance a holiday destination, is ‘branded’ by not branding, the return on investment for the supplier (and consumer) is focused on quality as opposed to profits. (I haven’t given this much thought, and will be looking to explore this a bit in depth still)

If you think branding is a complex mechanism then a whole can of worms have been opened when trying to strike the balance between branding by not branding and still make viable business sense.

In cases like these the objective hinges more towards quality consumer responses and word of mouth marketing than it is about massive profit scores through the use of explosive campaigns.
A campaign as such to spread the word of peace and serenity, only to the truly selected and like-minded few that would comprehend the essence of the product (destination) and realize the importance of keeping this sacred balance.

Many fly by night businesses continue to splash the cash in an effort to make a quicker buck during the immediate future that they sometimes neglect to provide the much needed substance (quality) to secure a lasting relationship. The fundamental principles of branding by not branding might just unlock the thinking behind the effect that quality (sometimes fewer) loyal customers have on a proper brand than just marketing for the sake of filling up the coffers.