“Mental Availability” as a Measure of Brand Strength

“Mental availability” is the measure of the strength of a brand in the mind of the consumers. It is a different measure from the ‘brand image’, psychologically subtler, but more powerful.

The thought about a brand in the mind of the consumers can travel in two directions.

One is from the brand to the consumer: if the customer sees or hears one or a combination of brand assets (name, logo, mascot, combination of colours, music…), this should elicit some associations that consumers attach to that brand – all the memories, experiences and emotions that they may have about a brand, competition, category etc. This ‘mental map’ that a brand may activate is the ‘brand image and, as many have indicated, that should ideally correspond with the brand’s market positioning.

However, ‘mental availability’ is when the thought travels from the situation of need (the ‘cue’) towards the brand; in other words, whether consumers will recall the brand in their memory when they need something that a brand may provide, without being exposed to the brand at that moment? For example, they may be reminded that a brand X does stylish causal fashion when they see its logo, but whether they will recall the brand when they think ‘I need something stylish, but casual, for work next week’ without the brand asset being present? It is a very different thing.

Whether a brand will be recalled in those situations that trigger various attributes that describe ‘category entry points’ (CEPs) – why people are buying those products in the first place – determines the strength of the brand in the minds of consumers.

Which brand do you think will be triggered most often when people think ‘I need a drink to refresh me when it’s hot’ or ‘to give me an energy boost’ or ‘to help me digest better’ or ‘it’s fun with friends and family when I’m out’. Of course, Coke. That is what they were (and still are) building for more than a century! Bigger and stronger brands simply have stronger associations across more CEPs than their weaker competitors.

So, do not just pay attention to your brand image, build ‘mental availability’ first and with even more effort. That is how brand really grow… For more on this, read this book by Jenni Romaniuk and Byron Sharp.

Prof. Lazar Džamić

Ex-Googler, Professional Journalist, Marketing Consultant and Author, Associate Professor Lazar Džamić shares his wealth of experience and knowledge with MBA students at Business School Lausanne, teaching Digital Marketing & Social Media.