Plumbing and Mining the Consumer.

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Over the years, obesity has been a subject I have studied quite closely. I’ve endeavored to understand and strategize obesity surgery, weight loss programs, post-surgery protein drinks — and I even wrote the brand and marketing plan for a physician-supervised weight-loss modality launch in the United States.

Understanding the personalities and influencers involved has always been part of the deep dive. The obese, their family, physicians, other care providers – even payors (insurance approvers) are all part of the picture. It is an emotional, layered, personal condition with lots of psychological underpinnings. (Guess what the word “salad” means to an obese person?)  And sadly, the weight regain recidivism rate for the obese is higher than prison recidivism. Much.

The ability to submerge oneself into a target, to know the targets’ sensitivities, cues, tells and thoughts is what brand planners do.  As a kid in the business, making ads and taking names, I hadn’t a clue about the target. Today, the target is everything.

When explaining brand planning I say it is a process of understanding what customers care about and what a brand is great at. The hardest part of the process is the plumbing, mining and prioritizing of consumer careabouts.

The payoff?  Better brands, better marketing and better, more humane brand planners. Puh-eace!