What's the next big deal in consumer brand marketing? (page 1 of 2)

It's not regulatory changes, which will continue to create an abundance of new "consumer products," from electricity to prescription diet pills. It's not interactive TV, which will--yes--change the Internet. It's not targeting models that will make our communications more effective.

It's the fact that despite these changes, the bulls eye won't move a bit.

What matters most in brand marketing always has been, is now and always will be, the relationship between a brand and its consumers. And the key to the brand relationship - as it is in any relationship - is trust.

People want to do business with companies they trust. People buy brands they trust to deliver on what they promise. Line extensions succeed when they come from a brand people trust.
Is trust an old-fashioned concept? Yes. That's the beauty of it. Trust is fundamental. It's the glue of human relationships. And, trust is more important now than ever because everything everywhere is constantly changing and moving faster. People are bombarded with messages and information they don't have time to sort out. They're too busy to take chances with the unproven or the sketchy or skeptical. They want products, brands, stories, businesses and people they can believe in.

The need to build trust stays constant. But the space around the bulls eye changes. Here are 10 things that will happen over the next few years to help us zero in on it:

1. We'll understand what global branding means and how to do it.
The U.S. will catch up with the rest of the world, which already has adopted a global mindset. Marketers will come to understand the difference between global branding-which is the right thing to do-and global marketing, which isn't. The mantra "think global; act local" will be extended to "brand global; market local." Brands should have universal trust, appeal and a single-minded vision, but marketing programs that support them have to respect local culture or they won't get anywhere.

Because public relations can make the global brand message believable, while being easily tailored for local needs, our business will continue to see dramatic growth all around the world.

2. We'll understand, finally, that the customer is in charge.
We say this today, but do we know what it means? Are we ready for a marketplace where the individual consumer is in a position of total power? This sea change is happening, and it should stand every marketing model in the world on its head.

Old marketing habits die hard, but some of them will die in this new age. Others will emerge stronger than ever, particularly those that strengthen the bond between brands and the people who buy and use them.

Marketers and their agencies will need to know not how to reach consumers but what they care about and why, how they think, shop and behave, why what they say often differs from what they do. Today's research methods don't tell us, but tomorrow's will.

3. The media will become more important.
Wait. Isn't the media less important with the Internet and all that comes with it? Today, yes. Tomorrow, we'll see the pendulum swing back, for two reasons: Direct communication will continue to grow in importance, and the media will join right in. Media will be customized and personalized. Order up what you want to know about, and they'll oblige.

But there's another reason the media will become more important. People will get tired of being in total control, which is empowering but confusing and overwhelming at the same time.