DANA POINT, CA: Intel, the technology group, has successfully reinvigorated its brand by focusing on how its tech products can drive and deliver compelling experiences.
Steve Fund, CMO at Intel Corp., discussed this subject at the Association of National Advertisers' (ANA) 2017 Brand Masters Conference.
And he reported that the firm's decision to focus on the immersive, empowering and engaging experiences its products and technology provide in its marketing constitutes a major shift from the brand's iconic "Intel Inside" positioning.
"Intel was known for what it was, not for what it is – or where it's headed," he said. (For more details, read Warc's exclusive report: How Intel marketing remade the brand.)
The company, according to Fund, needed to make sure that consumers know it is responsible for much more than making the processors which help drive computers.
"We didn't evolve our brand; we evolved our business. We didn't invest sufficiently to keep the brand relevant and fresh. The brand was stuck in the past and [everybody] thought it was a microprocessor inside of a PC," he said.
"We needed to demonstrate the relationship between the brand and the business, and relate the brand promise to what the engineers do.
"To have a healthy business, you need to have a healthy brand. Business performance always eventually follows brand performance."
Partnerships with actors Jim Parsons, singer Lady Gaga and quarterback Tom Brady have all added an element of star power to its marketing, too.
And emphasizing experiences also offers a clearer path to engaging millennials. "Our consumer base was ageing, and older consumers refresh PCs slower than younger consumers," said Fund.
"We needed to become more relevant to millennials and go from being the PC component to an experience exponent – to go from being stuck inside to enabling amazing experiences outside.
"We've inserted Intel into pop culture, showing up when and where millennials were receptive to our message. We're leveraging their passion points: music, sports, entertainment and gaming."
Steve Fund, CMO at Intel Corp., discussed this subject at the Association of National Advertisers' (ANA) 2017 Brand Masters Conference.
And he reported that the firm's decision to focus on the immersive, empowering and engaging experiences its products and technology provide in its marketing constitutes a major shift from the brand's iconic "Intel Inside" positioning.
"Intel was known for what it was, not for what it is – or where it's headed," he said. (For more details, read Warc's exclusive report: How Intel marketing remade the brand.)
The company, according to Fund, needed to make sure that consumers know it is responsible for much more than making the processors which help drive computers.
"We didn't evolve our brand; we evolved our business. We didn't invest sufficiently to keep the brand relevant and fresh. The brand was stuck in the past and [everybody] thought it was a microprocessor inside of a PC," he said.
"We needed to demonstrate the relationship between the brand and the business, and relate the brand promise to what the engineers do.
"To have a healthy business, you need to have a healthy brand. Business performance always eventually follows brand performance."
Partnerships with actors Jim Parsons, singer Lady Gaga and quarterback Tom Brady have all added an element of star power to its marketing, too.
And emphasizing experiences also offers a clearer path to engaging millennials. "Our consumer base was ageing, and older consumers refresh PCs slower than younger consumers," said Fund.
"We needed to become more relevant to millennials and go from being the PC component to an experience exponent – to go from being stuck inside to enabling amazing experiences outside.
"We've inserted Intel into pop culture, showing up when and where millennials were receptive to our message. We're leveraging their passion points: music, sports, entertainment and gaming."
Data sourced from WARC
