Individual brand owner must see brand as a lifetime relationship. As we know, relationships have responsibilities and its headache. Sometimes it works and sometimes it fails.

With every strong relationship there is need for change in perspective with regards to process rejuvenation, lubrication for the relationship to work out to the best advantage of every party. As we have noted in one of the earliest posts, brand must be capable of bridging the gap between the present and the future. In doing this, the target audience must be carried along otherwise the brand is engaged in a solo walk. Let us examine some of the avenues available to brands in this regard.

1. Brand owners must constantly do something that makes the audience feel, think and make them keep the brand in conversation. This conversation must evoke high emotional response and attachment.

2. Impression must be managed; real interest must be created in the brand by engaging the audience through shared ideas.

3. Delight the audience: Keep the audience engaged by delighting them through e- materials, ezines, and newsletters etc

4. Connect on deeper level: every effort to connect with your audience must be made. In branding, out of sight is often out of mind. Particularly where there are myriad of options. Brand owners can organize networking events, customers’ forum to constantly connect with their audience and to get feedbacks from them all.

Brand equity is the sustained value that customers placed on your brand over others. Brand equity is built through a consistent and sustained delivery of promise. This suggests that brand equity is built over time. Equity is not built in a day. Merely understanding the equity markets is enough should tell an individual something vital about equity building.Brand equity is value is viewed in terms of trust, dependability, security and more importantly perception.

When a brand has gained equity, it guarantees the fact that less amount of money will be spent on marketing activities without much concern for what the implications will be. When brand equity is built, efforts need to put in place to ensure it sustainability. Like every structure, it takes time to build something but within hours, days, a permanent damage can be made that can make the structure goes under. If in doubt, think about the experience of September 11, in the United States.

Having established that, let us look at what may contribute to the brand equity’s debit.

1. Poor customer service: many brands often forget what bring them to the top. Because they now have more customers, they treat their old customers as nobody. May be because they feel they can no longer pay their bills. Watch against this and remain focused.

2. Unrelaible product/service quality: many brands start to cut corners to make more profit. This will erode brand equity. I was discussing with one of the third generation banks’ official about the quality of the service we now have at a particularly branch in Lagos which was far away from what it used to be before and the response I got was shocking. He said ‘the crowd has become too much and because of that the staff has no option but to shout on their customers’. I smiled and concluded a time is coming and that will be soon when such answer will not be tenable.

3. Changes that reduce perceived values: Some brands just make some internal changes that are not called for just to show off. When such changes are made particularly those that affect point of contact with the brand, the brand image suffers immediately. That is why people who hold the baton in every brand must be keen observers so they can have accurate assessment of the changes that need to be made.

Every brand that has been successful has managed its relationship with its stakeholder beyond clients-provider level. Because people buy brands like the way they make friends. There is a level of intimacy that is involved. A genuine interest has to be established. Like in the religious world, ‘one spirit must enter’ both parties. For emotional connection to occur among brand’s stakeholders, each party must speak a common language. Without strong emotional connection with the brand, brands become unattractive, useless and eventually fail.

Let us examine factors that guarantee strong emotional connection with a brand.

1. What does your audience holds high: If you understand what their values are and what they cherish most. Not this alone, finds out what is their topmost priority for the value you are adding. For car makers, people may want safety over comfort, luxury over any car that can carry them around. Half-dressed musicians carry the day with teens than with adults

2. Common origin: Does your brand shares common origin with your brand? People with origin, source always flow. Check churches and mosque if you are in doubt. Leadership skin color, tribe, origin often influences followership. Even though religion, beliefs should be a unifying factor. There are few exceptions though.

3.  Shared value: This is also a common source of strong bonding with a brand by its stakeholders. Just look at NGOs, people of like passion flock together. Ensure that your brand engage in causes that touch your audience. People connect with brand that touches them positively.

4. Fashion and taste: This has to do with visual images. The brand’s identity, packaging can make audience connect with you strongly. Watch what your visuals are saying. Be concerned about your brand’s environment too. Brand You fashion/dress sense is important here.

5. Shared favorite pass-time: How does brand You unwind? Music that brand you enjoy, different sport bring people together. Is there any of these that your brand can use? There should be. Plan and sustain your effort here.

It’s a great new year. It is a year that promises great dividends for those who know how to harness opportunities inside it. Despite the economic crunch. Knowing what to do will pay. Individual brand must know how to build emotional attachment to its own brand. The foundation of every emotional connection has been traceable to psychology-persuasion in this instance. No brand can actually survive without emotional interaction with the target audience. But the recurrent issue is that many brand strategists do not place emphasis on this foundation. This has accounted for many brands’ failure.

In a recent research by Ulli Appelbaum, he established that ‘reaching, engaging and bonding with customers is becoming increasingly challenging for marketers…consumers have become savvy, critical with higher expectation…evolution and increasing complexity of today’s media environment represent new challenges’. So to be successful in the journey of persuasion, Ulli identified the following steps.

1. Rewards: This is a common motivator for human being. Brand owners must emphasis the reward or what we all call benefits. The advantage of the rewards must be hammered so well that it is clear to all.

2.Threats: No one enjoys a threat to life, so when a brand owner identifies the threat to human existence that the brand can help prevent, emotional connection can begin from here. Antiseptic soap makers have stressed this to their own advantage.

3. Expertise: the brand must demonstrate its expertise and use it to the maximum benefits of the target audience. What is in it for me-WIIFM still holds water.

4. Liking: Be a likeable brand and you will have followings. People sometimes bend rules for those they like and this includes brands too.

5. Scarcity: We all believed that something that is scarce is valuable. That is general perception. Limit your level of exposure, availability. Know when to withdraw your service and your brand from the market.

6. Social proof: One of the reasons why people get connected to a brand is social proof. This has to do with what others have to say about a brand, offerings. Long queue in front of a shop always convince people that it must be a great one while others do not have one customer. Think of how to start building emotional connection with your brand today.