Today, we’re here to help you determine if complementary branding is right for your business and, if so, whether you’re considering the right complementary branding production.
You’ve heard about great partnerships like Nike and Apple, Redbull and GoPro, Starbucks and 7/11, and your brand wants in on that cross-promoting success. Complementary branding is one of those things that works fantastically when it works and can be a complete flop if the market or idea isn’t right. Partnering with another brand and deciding to offer paired products is where all complementary branding begins. Actually building a complementary product that generates value for both brands and the customers requires some real strategizing.
What is Complementary Branding?
Complementary branding is when two brands team up to offer a paired product that their shared customers will love. Let’s take everyone’s favorite example of Nike and Apple. Nike targets athletes and people who go running, and everyone knows that runners often listen to music to make their runs more enjoyable. So, Apple developed a chip that allows runners to track their progress through their iPods and iPhones and developed athlete-oriented playlists.
The two brands identified where their customer-bases overlapped and created a new product, Nike+, that takes advantage of that overlap to create value for everyone. And their customers love it.
What Brand Partnership Are You Looking to Build?
Start by asking yourself what kind of brand partnership you’re looking to build. Who will be your co-brand? What will your complementary product offer entail? To analyze whether complementary branding is a good idea, you must judge each possibility on a case-by-case basis. Perhaps you are building a packaged kit for your users that is enhanced by featuring another brand’s products, or perhaps you are co-producing a new product, as with Nike and Apple. Pick your potential partner and start judging whether your combined products are a valuable co-branding strategy.
How Does the Complementary Product Add Value for Customers?
Next, ask yourself how your proposed combined product ads value to the customers. Why will your shared audiences clamor for the item? Does it expand their options, innovate a popular product with new technology, or combine two great things they love into one conveniently complementary purchase? Your new product must add value for the customers for it to be a hit.
Will Complementary Branding Add Value to You and the Other Brand?
But what about value for the other brand? Many companies considering a complementary branding proposal can think of many ways the partnership would benefit your brand. However, it’s easy to overlook whether the partnership will provide equal value to your partner.
Does the Partnership Offer:
- More Sales
- Greater Satisfaction
- Resource Efficiency
- Incremental Costs
Will This Partnership Generate More Repeat/Return Visits?
The next question is how much return traffic and increased interest will be generated by the complementary branding. Gauge whether it will result in more people coming into the store, or more people returning to your stores on a regular basis. Traffic is very important when it comes to co-branding. You are looking to share and increase your audiences and get the customers more engaged.
How Will the Partnership Translate Into Additional Sales of Existing Products?
If the new product is exclusive, then how will its creation generate more interest and additional sales of your existing products, or those of your partner? Consider how a great combo-product might introduce audience members to your other products. This might increase interest or even need for them when the co-produced product is sold. This may mean more people browsing your shops, or even generate demand for your other products as a result of using the co-produced item.
What is the Competitive Advantage of Complementary Branding?
You may also want to calculate how the complementary branding efforts will give you a leg-up on the competition. Complementary branding is often disruptive to the normal flow of two contemporary brands competing. Uber and Spotify, for example, both achieved a competitive edge by their partnership because other ride-sharing and music-streaming options do not have a music-while-you-ride feature.
3 Options for Competitive Advantage
- Draw Market Share
- Expand Market
- Minimize Competitors with a new Category
These are not yes or no questions, but the answers should give you a very clear idea about whether complementary branding is the right direction for your business. Often, it’s a matter of workshopping the complementary product. Do this by choosing the right partner and crafting a product both audiences will love. But not every idea is going to turn into gold. For more insights on complementary branding best practices and how to determine your potential ROI, contact us today!