In recent years, we have seen a growing increase in consumers’ purchasing power for various types of products, with them becoming more selective in choosing brands that represent the desired item or commodity. Given this new market authority, is companies’ power in this relationship declining? Who sets the rules of this game now? And how can business owners prepare to try to gain a bit more authority over sales?
The buyer-seller relationship has been built in our society since ancient Egypt. In an article titled ‘A Short Story of Branding,’ the author highlights that the first commercial use of brands was as a sign of ownership. By placing their name or symbol on an asset, such as cattle, the owner could mark their possession. The ancient Egyptians were the first to use brands as signs of ownership at least 5,000 years ago. And it was from there, of course, that the word ‘brand’ came.
At their core, brands today serve to literally mark a type of product and declare that it belongs to an entity. This need arose when civilizations began to prosper, and in this idea, everyday items began to have multiple producers, which created the need for a way to differentiate the origin of each.
However, in the past, brands did not have the strength and message they began to exhibit after the Industrial Revolution and the growing number of competitors for commodities and everyday products. Something more was needed than just a name that could be synonymous with quality—after all, competitors could acquire the same machinery and use the same production methods—whether through company storytelling, their viewpoints, charitable activities, or other strategies.
What was once a unique activity became a continuous process. Today, we can see that most companies seek to reach an audience that, incidentally, may even be the same niche for many of them. However, their strategies, values, stories, and ways of adding value to their products are different, and therefore, their approaches are also different.
Currently, however, there are so many brands for specific market niches that customers can choose among ten, twenty, thirty competitors, considering only the differentiating points each finds important. Essentially, the consumer makes an evaluation by comparing various points and analyzing whether they align with their ideals.
This has led, for example, to many companies starting to care more about social causes, values, social responsibility, innovation, personalization, convenience and speed, post-sales service, and fair pricing, entering the battlefield to try to differentiate themselves from their competitors and attract potential consumers with the intention of retaining them.
Since the beginning of brand usage and the creation of branding, consumer power, or authority, has only grown with technological advancements, gaining increasing authority to select desired products. Today, they have more choice power than ever before.
Given this scenario, it is clear that authority in the purchasing process has shifted considerably from brands to consumers, who now play an active and discerning role in selecting what they consume. If a recognized name was once enough to guarantee a sale, today it is necessary to go further: understand the desires and values of the audience, establish authentic connections, and build a presence that directly engages with their expectations.
Thus, brands’ authority has not disappeared but has been redistributed. Now, it must be constantly earned, sustained, and renewed through strategies that value not only the product but also the experience, identification, and purpose shared with the consumer.
