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Find the shared interest: A route to community activation and brand building
Journal of Brand Strategy,
2
(2),
134-145
(2013)
Abstract
A digital marketing programme designed to communicate a firm or brand will not in most cases get traction. Instead, it is better to find the customer's sweet spot, discover what customers are interested in — or even passionate about — and make the brand a partner with this ‘shared interest’. Such a shared interest can activate customers and create a community. The result can elevate a brand by creating energy; enhancing likeability and credibility; and forming a relationship. The programme can be integrated into an offering, linked to the brand, or a stand-alone sponsorship. If a shared-interest programme cannot realistically get traction, an option is to attach to an existing programme.
Keywords: shared interest; digital marketing; social media; customer relationships; customer connection; digital strategy; customer community
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
David Aaker is the Vice-Chairman of Prophet and professor emeritus at Berkeley-Haas. He has received recognition for contributions to the science of marketing (the Paul D. Converse award), marketing strategy (the Vijay Mahajan Award), and the theory and practice of marketing (the Buck Weaver Award). He has published over 100 articles and 15 books, including Building Strong Brands, Spanning Silos and Brand Relevance: Making Competitors Irrelevant. His books have sold over a million copies and have been translated into 18 languages. A recognised authority on brand strategy, David blogs at davidaaker.com and HBR.
