Mark | GCMO

When to Make Brand the Strategy

When to Make Brand the Strategy

—

by

Mark Gabrielli
in

When to Make Brand the Strategy | #MarkCMO

When to Make Brand the Strategy

When to Make Brand the Strategy

Most companies treat brand like a garnish—nice to have, but not the main course. But what if brand isn’t just a tactic? What if it’s the strategy? In this article, we’ll explore when and why brand should lead the charge, not follow the funnel. We’ll challenge the performance-first mindset, dissect the ROI of brand, and show you how to build a brand that doesn’t just look good—it drives the business. If you’re a CMO tired of chasing short-term wins while your competitors build empires, this one’s for you.

Brand Isn’t a Department—It’s the Business

Let’s get one thing straight: brand is not your logo, your color palette, or your “About Us” page. Brand is the sum total of how your company is perceived—by customers, employees, investors, and even your competitors. It’s the strategy that shapes every decision, from product development to pricing to hiring.

Still treating brand like a side hustle? That’s like trying to win a Formula 1 race with a Prius engine and a Red Bull sticker.

Why Most Companies Get Brand Wrong

  • They treat it as a marketing function, not a business function.
  • They measure it with vanity metrics instead of business outcomes.
  • They build it reactively—after the product is built, after the market is saturated, after the competition has already won hearts and minds.

Here’s the truth: if you’re not building brand as your strategy, you’re building someone else’s.

When to Make Brand the Strategy

Not every company needs to lead with brand. But if you check any of these boxes, it’s time to stop thinking of brand as a garnish and start treating it like the main course:

  • You’re in a commoditized market: If your product is one of many, brand is how you stand out.
  • You’re selling a premium product: Price follows perception. If you want to charge more, you need a brand that justifies it.
  • You’re building a category: New categories require new narratives. Brand is how you educate, inspire, and lead.
  • You’re scaling fast: Growth without brand is chaos. Brand gives you a compass.
  • You’re recruiting top talent: The best people don’t just want a job—they want to join a mission. Brand is how you attract them.

Case Study: Airbnb

Airbnb didn’t win because it had the best tech. It won because it had the best story. “Belong anywhere” wasn’t just a tagline—it was a worldview. That brand strategy shaped everything from product design to customer service to community guidelines. And it turned a scrappy startup into a global movement.

The ROI of Brand: Yes, It’s Measurable

Let’s kill the myth that brand can’t be measured. It can. You just have to know what to look for:

  • Pricing power: Strong brands command higher prices and better margins.
  • Customer loyalty: Brand reduces churn and increases LTV.
  • Lower CAC: A trusted brand converts faster and cheaper.
  • Talent acquisition: Brand attracts better candidates at lower cost.
  • Market resilience: Strong brands bounce back faster in downturns.

Still not convinced? Ask Apple, Tesla, or Patagonia what their brand is worth. Spoiler: it’s more than their factories, patents, or codebases.

Framework: The Brand-First Playbook

Here’s how to make brand the strategy—without turning your marketing team into a bunch of arts-and-crafts enthusiasts:

1. Define Your Brand Narrative

Start with a clear, compelling story. Not a mission statement. A story. One that explains who you are, what you believe, and why you exist.

  • What problem are you solving?
  • Why does it matter?
  • What makes you different?

2. Align the Org Around It

Brand isn’t just for marketing. It should shape product, sales, HR, and customer success. If your engineers can’t explain your brand, you don’t have one.

3. Operationalize It

Put your brand into action. That means:

  • Hiring people who live the brand
  • Building products that reflect the brand
  • Creating content that reinforces the brand
  • Measuring success in brand-aligned KPIs

4. Invest in Brand Media

Don’t just run ads. Build media. Podcasts, newsletters, YouTube channels—whatever it takes to own the narrative and build trust at scale.

5. Play the Long Game

Brand isn’t a quarterly play. It’s a compounding asset. The longer you invest, the more it pays off. Just ask Nike.

Truth Bomb

If your brand doesn’t drive your strategy, your strategy is driving blind.

Brand-Led Companies Win—Here’s Why

Let’s look at a few companies that made brand the strategy—and

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *