I recently came across an interesting study that looks at the power of brand from a little different angle.
Anyone reading this is probably familiar with the concept of the placebo effect. The subject of countless articles, it was first defined over 60 years ago. It identified the important role that perception plays in physical health. What fewer people may be familiar with is how the placebo effect can also be a powerful force in brand marketing.
A recent study by Dr. Frank Germann, a marketing professor at Notre Dame’s Mendoza School of Business, looked at how applying the placebo effect to branding can actually improve performance.
In a simple experiment, two groups were given a putter and asked to sink a golf ball in the hole. Half the group was given a Nike putter and half were given a no-name putter. In reality, the putters were identical, but the group with the Nike putters consistently took fewer putts to sink their golf balls.
Researchers found that, based on their positive perceptions of the Nike brand, the test subjects believed that their superior equipment would help them successfully complete the task. In other words, using the Nike putter “empowered” them to perform better. Believing this, they did significantly better than those with the non-branded putter.
Dr. Germann found that the brand placebo effect applies not just to physical performance, but also to mental performance as well.
In a second test, volunteers were asked to do math problems while wearing noise-cancelling earplugs to block out sounds and distractions. Half of the group was given 3M brand earplugs, the other half non-branded earplugs. Again, the earplugs were exactly the same, and again the participants wearing the 3M branded product, showed markedly better results.
Dr. Germann explains that a well-regarded brand makes people feel better about themselves. It builds “task-specific self-esteem,” which in turn, lowers performance anxiety and ultimately results in better performance. He does note that the effect was stronger among participants who identified as “novices” in their respective tasks. Participants who self-identified as “experts” typically got less of a boost from the use of branded products.
Catalogers with a strong, well defined brand position can benefit from the placebo effect. Take catalog brand Orvis for instance. One of the oldest mail order retailers in the country, they have a reputation as the authority in the fly-fishing industry. Does the Orvis name on a fly rod make you a more skilled fly fisherman? Not necessarily. But the belief that it will improve your skill-level can make a difference in your performance. And that will sell a lot of fly rods!
I’ve always had a strong belief in and respect for the power of brand. There’s no question that dollars spent building your brand help distinguish your product from its competition, create demand and support higher price points. Adding increased performance, however illusionary, to that list of brand benefits is, as my grandmother would say, icing on the cake.
If I’d only known this when I took my SAT… who knows where I’d be today!
Need help improving your brand’s performance? Email me at chrish@jschmid.com or call 913-236-2415.
Tags: branding, marketing, Strategy