Brand Value: Skype, iPhone, Google

I took a look at The Brand Bubble's BrandAsset Valuator (BAV), "the world's largest database of brand perceptions." Market research data visualization from Young & Rubicam Group.

This valuator compares four attributes: brand strength through differentiation and relevance, brand stature through esteem and knowledge.

Here's how they define the terms:

• D. Energized Differentiation. A brand's unique meaning, with motion and direction. Relates to margins and cultural currency.
• R. Relevance. How important the brand is to you. Relates to consideration and trial.
• E. Esteem. How you regard the brand. Relates to perceptions of quality and loyalty.
• K. Knowledge. An intimate understanding of the brand. Relates to awareness and consumer experience.

So I compared three global brands we know and love: Skype, the Apple iPhone, and Google.

You can see they each score well on Energized Differentiation. There's nothing else like Skype, iPhone, or Google.

Skype and iPhone are both much less relevant to the average consumer than Google. Google is well understood and used by many more people.

Esteem and Knowledge both show a similar pattern: the brands with more experience and time have more stature in the minds of consumers. 

The BAV compares strength to stature in the next chart. You want to be in the upper-right quadrant with Google and eBay.

Skype is moderate strength, low stature. So while Skype is defining its unique value proposition well, people don't feel they know or respect it. That will come with education, hands on, and time.

What three things should consumers learn about Skype in 2009? What can Skype do with its product strategy to move from the upper left to the upper right?

tags: skype, branding, brand, marketing, esteem, knowledge, relevance

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