If you are an established brand with a household name, a loyal clientele and a solid sales record, you might ask yourself why you should even consider a complementary branding strategy. Why should a successful brand be interested in adding a “Guest” brand as a complementary offering in their venues?
Give me a few minutes and I’ll show you a few benefits you won’t be able to ignore.
Guest Brands for the Win
First, let’s get some definitions out of the way. In the complementary branding game, there are two different types of brands: The host brand and the guest brand. The host brand, as the name infers, hosts the guest brand in their physical space. They are the more established brand, with some physical space in their venue to spare. A guest brand is the one looking for a home, hopefully uniting forces with a powerful brand that will elevate their awareness (and revenue!).
A guest brand can bring incredible value to a host brand. Here are a few ways how.
Existing customer spend more time in your space
I am writing this blog post from a Capital One Cafe. If you’d have told me five years ago that I’d be working from a bank, I would have laughed. But now I spend a whole day next to Capital One employees, and you know why? Peet’s Coffee. Yes, the setup is conducive to hours of uninterrupted productivity in front of my laptop. But the real seller is the coffee. And the pastries – they have great pastries.
This is a classic example on how a complementary brand can elongate customers’ visit from a few minutes into hours, increasing the probabilities of them doing business with you.
Your customer spend more money while they are in your space
More money in your space means less money in your competitors’ space. Let’s break this down with another example.
You’re on your way to Target, but you want to get coffee before you shop. Luckily, there’s a Starbucks in your local Target. So now, instead of making an additional stop and spending more time on the road, you drive straight to Target and leisurely stroll the aisles with your double shot latte in hand. More time = more things that you JUST have to buy. Doesn’t that sound like a win for Target?
Guest brands create greater value for coming to your space
Let’s revisit the Target example for a moment. We know that Target is more expensive than Walmart. But we still go. Why? Because it offers more value.
Value is essentially if you think you’re getting a good deal for your money, but this doesn’t only have to do with price. If Target offers me carts that don’t squeak, better quality products that fit my style and solves more of my needs and wants under one roof, my mind justifies paying more for the exact same dishwashing detergent that I can find at Walmart. Because I’m there for other things that Walmart doesn’t offer. Like Starbucks – and nicer towels.
Offering greater value allows you to charge more than your competitors for the convenience and value of the experience.