Examples of Brand Benefits - Happiness

Few things are more desirable than happiness, and despite the fact that one of our culture’s favorite sayings is that “you can’t buy happiness,” people are constantly trying to do just that. Because people seek to find and oftentimes buy happiness, claiming to be able to help make people happy can be one of the best-selling points you can have. Happiness is a strong brand not only because it is highly desirable but because it is easy to show. People instantly recognize happiness even when there are no humans in the ad. Depicting it with bright, cheerful graphics can portray the emotion. When done well, happiness provides an instant, gut reaction that draws people into your message and helps them to remember it. Finally, happiness helps to justify indulgences such as soda, ice cream, and candy.

Coca-Cola, whose brand is valued at some $55.4 billion, making it the third most valuable brand in the world, uses happiness as its primary selling point. Although Coke’s product is very basic and fairly easily replicated, it dominates its industry. It does this by being more than just a soda; it does it by working to craft an emotional image so that people have feelings for it beyond its role as a tasty beverage. Coke’s slogan “Open Happiness” says it all. To them and to many of their customers, their product is more than just a mix of corn syrup and water. Their product is a way to improve the day, an experience to share with friends. Coke brands itself this way by showing its product bringing people and the world together. It also shows Coke as a product which makes the world a more magical place. Coke is the most international beverage in the world because of their strong branding efforts.

While few products actually lead directly to happiness, happiness is an emotion that is very often based on social convention. In other words, happiness can be taught which means that the happiness created by Coke and Disney aren’t any less real then other forms of happiness. What good branding efforts do is create real emotions and desires in people. When many people see a blue box from Tiffany’s, for example, they get a sudden rush of adrenalin similar to the rush many get as a child when they are told they are going to McDonalds. Creating a product which helps to make people’s lives a little bit better through branding efforts is both emotionally fulfilling and financially rewarding.