Chris Bosh Facing the realities of Brand Erosion.

Brand is defined quite simply as the “Promise of an Experience”.  Make sense? Good. 

Brand “erosion” begins once that promised experience begins to wane in its delivery.  For example, we see this quite clearly with NBA star Chris Bosh.  While in Toronto, Bosh built a reputation for being a fierce competitor and leader, putting up numbers consistent with that image.  In his current role as a member of the Miami Heat however, that promise is not being delivered and as a result, his reputation and credibility (what we might call equity) amongst fans is being questioned. Essentially, the Bosh brand is eroding.

In understanding consumer buying habits, we know that when an individual is interested in purchasing an item for the first time in a category where there is choice and is familiar with an options brand (promise), the decision is made all the easier.  

This summer, the fans of the Miami heat, felt certain that in acquiring Chris Bosh from the Toronto Raptors that they were getting an all-star worthy of being mentioned in the same sentence as a LeBron or a Wade.  This while most southern Americans hadn’t actually seen him play. That was the value of his brand.  Erosion of that promise however has set in, in as little as 10-games.

This phenomenon is not by any stretch remarkable. We see brand erosion every day, each time we go to McDonalds and are not greeted with a smile, or when we receive poor customer service from the telephone company who promises great service. Bosh, like any brand has a window of opportunity for which to recover from an under performing promise. For a professional athlete, failure to make the necessary adjustments often leads to trades, reduced playing time, loss of sponsor support, etc. For a corporation, the realities can be remarkably similar, often leading to reduced revenues (unless you happen to enjoy a monopoly), increased competition or complete consumer disinterest leading to withdrawal and ultimately a corporation left to pick up the pieces.

Consumer expectations are ultimately driven by the brand. Meaning that corporations are the ones who are telling the public what to think of them. If like Mr. Bosh they prove unable to produce on those claims, the public’s confidence will begin to waver and the onset of brand erosion will set in. 

Buckley’s the horrid tasting cough syrup sold in Canada has build a promise around the fact that their product tastes like turpentine.  And works.  See commercial. It is really quite likely that if Buckley’s were to develop a strawberry flavored syrup for adults that consumers might question its effectiveness.

Chris Bosh like any regional brand looking to go national must be very careful to maintain the promise that consumers or in his case, fans are expecting, or suffer the consequences.

Dean Lloyd is Principal of Verb Marketing & Creative in Toronto, Canada, and is also co-founder of Cornucopia (The Association of Ethnically Diverse Marketing & Communications Professionals) and can be reached at dean@verbiage.ca.