Measuring Brand Evolution: The Brand Commitment Scale (BCS)
Introduction
The brand commitment ladder research initiative came from the combination of the need for a framework that would serve us as the one-fit-to-all solution for measuring the whole portfolio of brands. As someone who came across this in one of Marty Neumeier’s books, it seemed to me the perfect tool for our needs. The company portfolio comprised 7 digital brands, mostly media, a few classifieds, and one forum. The portfolio changes with time as some brands get sold and some new ones are acquired.
To ensure the privacy of the data, I won't mention the actual brand names in this case study. Instead, I'll concentrate on explaining the methodology, making it easier to grasp the assessment process without revealing specific brand details. The goal of this case study in that sense is to demonstrate the process and challenges we’ve faced as well as results and insights synthesized from it.
Purpose and Objective
This research aims to gauge the advancement of the company portfolio of brands, encompassing the spectrum from fundamental satisfaction to profound attachment. The objective is to provide a transparent metric reflecting how users perceive each brand and its position on the commitment scale. Ultimately, the insights extracted from this report are intended to assist brands in elevating their user base to the highest echelons of the scale.
Brand Commitment Scale
The Brand Commitment Scale (BCS), or Brand Ladder, translates qualitative data into numbers by using a detailed questionnaire. This involves grading 8 statements on a scale of 1-5. The goal is to understand how users connect product attributes with personal associations. Since not all brands are from the same industry, the statements are adjusted slightly based on each brand. The Brand Commitment Scale is an inclusive framework that brings value to many teams within the organization, representing one of the most user-centric methodologies.
Overview of Brand Commitment Levels
The formula used to calculate the brand score yields a single number ranging from 20 to 100. This score signifies the brand's current standing on a scale with four levels.
The first level (SATISFACTION Score 20-40) represents the basic satisfaction of users and the fulfillment of modest expectations. While satisfaction is a good sign, it is not in itself a reliable predictor of customer loyalty.
The second level (DELIGHT Score 40-60) is a delight, the user is surprised by something that goes beyond basic satisfaction. This is the moment where the brand evokes the kind of emotion that leads to loyalty.
The third level (ENGAGEMENT Score 60-80) is a real engagement with the brand. Users at this level "enroll in the tribe" and identify with other users. With membership comes increased loyalty, escalating consumption habits, and emotional attachment that transcends patronage, ie brand support. This is the moment where the brand becomes a building block in the identity of its users.
The fourth level (EMPOWERMENT Score 80-100) is the top of the scale, at this level, users attach the brand to the deepest parts of life. Emotional support, social status, personal growth, or even business success depend on the brand. Users on this level would not use another brand, they would do everything to ensure the success of the brand, happily attracting new users.
Data Collection Method
To deploy a set of questionnaires through multiple channels, we needed a powerful tool to support us. We chose Hotjar because it offers a set of features for creating and managing surveys that have proven to be excellent, providing great control over targeting and survey behavior on the website.
Sample Size and Selection Criteria
We did not want to predetermine the desired sample; instead, we applied a strategy of monitoring survey results daily with the criterion that if the survey questions' results do not change for more than 5 consecutive days, the survey is considered complete, having gathered a sufficient sample. This approach resulted in gathering insights from a sample of 1000 respondents per brand, resulting in a total of 7000 people who evaluated all 8 statements. The sampling method entails random sampling, where the entire user base of these products is considered as the population.
Survey Questions
In addition to the overall score and position on the scale, we analyzed and compared the results at each level, conducting a detailed examination of responses to each of the 8 questions.
(Q1) "Did the brand meet expectations?"
(Q2) "Is the brand fair/objective?"
(Q3) "Did the brand surprise the user?"
(Q4) "Would the user recommend the brand to others?"
(Q5) "Does the user identify with other brand users?"
(Q6) "Did the user additionally engage in brand campaigns?"
(Q7) "Does the brand have a strong impact on the user's life?"
(Q8) "Would the user feel bad if he could not use the services of the brand?"
Calculating Brand Commitment Score
By aggregating the ratings of questions from the same level of the brand ladder scale, we can calculate a score for each level and ultimately utilize these scores to compute the overall brand score on the brand ladder scale. The image below illustrates an example where the brand received a rating of 1, meaning 'strongly disagree,' on all questions. It visually demonstrates the formula or method for calculating the total score. As mentioned earlier, the brand ladder scale can result in a range from 20 to 100.
Net Promoter Score (NPS)
Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a metric used to measure customer loyalty and satisfaction with a company or brand. It is a widely adopted method for assessing customer experience and gauging the likelihood of customers recommending a company's products or services to others. According to the ratings given by users in the BCS survey, those who gave a score of 1-3 were classified as detractors, 4 as passives, and 5 as promoters.
This is important because it demonstrates a link between NPS and growth. Net Promoter Score, or NPS, measures customer experience and predicts business growth.
Higher NPS results in:
Higher retention rates
Increased upsell/cross-sell
Increased adoption
Lower cost to serve
Lower marketing costs due to word-of-mouth
A detractor can be defined as a user who does not like a product or service. Detractors have a higher propensity for leaving the company (2.3x more likely to leave).
Passive / Neutral is a user who is not satisfied or disappointed with the service.
A promoter is a loyal user who will most likely recommend a product to others.
By aggregating the ratings of questions from the same level of the brand ladder scale, we can calculate a score for each level and ultimately utilize these scores to compute the overall brand score on the brand ladder scale. The image below illustrates an example where the brand received a rating of 1, meaning 'strongly disagree,' on all questions. It visually demonstrates the formula or method for calculating the total score. As mentioned earlier, the brand ladder scale can result in a range from 20 to 100.
In this case, the result shown in the image is 20, which is also the minimum possible number and can only be obtained if each of the 8 questions predominantly received a rating of 1 from respondents.
Insight: Positioning Overview
Upon examination of the brand ladder scale, it is evident that the company's portfolio spans across various tiers, with a slight inclination towards the upper echelons. This trend indicates positive momentum. However, it is crucial to address the need for closer evaluation of brands positioned at the lower end of the scale, as this segment presents opportunities for improvement within the portfolio.
Insights: Across Four Levels
Brand A consistently achieves the highest ratings on all questions, resulting in a maximum score across all four levels and the overall scale score.
Brands B and C have attained maximum scores on the first three levels, leaving room for improvement solely on the fourth level, "Empowerment".
Brands D, E, and F have achieved maximum scores on the first two levels, indicating successful delivery of delight to their users. However, there is still room for improvement to enhance engagement.
Brand G has delivered basic satisfaction to users and achieved maximum scores on the first level. However, it fell short in delighting users and positioning itself higher on the ladder.
Brand H performs minimally across all four levels, obtaining the lowest overall score, and failing to deliver even the basic satisfaction.
Insights: Customer Sentiment and Industry Trends
When we look at the stacked bar chart counting detractors, neutrals, and promoters, it tells us similar things as when we compare different brands' performance. This makes sense because brands with lower performance usually have fewer promoters. What's interesting is that only two brands, A and B, have more than half of their customers as promoters. Brand C is almost there too with 45%.
To understand how well the entire portfolio is doing, we add up all the brands. That gives us 39% of happy customers (Promoters), 15% who are neutral (Neutrals), and 47% who aren't happy (Detractors). By using this stricter method of sorting customers into these three groups (1, 2, 3 = Detractors; 4 = Neutrals; 5 = Promoters) instead of a more lenient one (1, 2 = Detractors; 3 = Neutrals; 4, 5 = Promoters), we can say the portfolio is well balanced. This is especially noteworthy considering the news industry, which has seen a drop in reader loyalty over the past few years, is a big part of this portfolio.
Insights: Brand Commitment vs. Reach
Upon synthesizing insights from the aforementioned analysis, we aimed to investigate any correlation between brand performance on the Brand Commitment Scale (BSC) and the number of real users.
Brands that aim for a larger audience tend to decrease customer commitment towards the brand, leading us to hypothesize that mass media outlets aim to deliver basic satisfaction to as many people as they can so that revenue can grow, however, this makes them struggle to deliver value from the higher levels of Brand Commitment Scale.
Bias
Selection bias, a common concern in research, may significantly influence the outcomes of this study. Selection bias occurs when certain groups or individuals are systematically excluded or included in a way that distorts the true representation of the population under investigation. In this research, participants that didn't took the survey are representing the missing data to have a complete and accurate picture of the results.
Also, to read: Survivorship Bias: The Ghosts of Data
References
Neumeier, Marty. "The Brand Flip: Why customers now run companies and how to profit from it" 30 July 2015, Official Book Website: https://www.martyneumeier.com/the-brand-flip
The Co-Foundry. "A simple test to measure brand equity" The Co-Foundury, 1 March 2023, URL: https://www.usertesting.com/blog/gestalt-principles
Billings, Maxwell. "What is the ROI of Branding?" EightySeven, 29 January 2023, URL: https://www.madebyeightyseven.com/blog/can-you-measure-the-value-of-a-brand
