Benefit of benefits

The best way to go about this is to explain using elements we can all relate with, no matter what status or location you are in this world. Every brand whether product or services, personal or corporate requires a purpose, a vision and a mission to be in business. Every activities in branding rest on these major pillars.

The ultimate goal of purpose is profitable business relationship whether in cash or kind. Vision is purpose in pictures. Vision inspires and treats while mission is the principal thing. The output of mission is performance. The benefit of the benefits of purpose, vision and mission is arriving at our ultimate goal of self actualization and also helping others to arrive there. Arriving at this point is the interplay of the forces of internal and external factors. The internal being satisfaction, fulfillment and actualization while the external being relationship, treatment and performance. The internal factors and the external factors are the energies that influence the purpose, vision and mission of brands. The revelation knowledge, deeper understanding of the wisdom behind these factors will enable the brand to achieve its goal.

Branding has left the surface level of mere satisfaction by delivering products or rendering services to its target audiences but has moved into the realm of meeting customers or clients at their point of aspiration or ultimate want in life by offering the benefit of benefits. For instance, Coca Cola sells open happiness; MTN sells connecting people everywhere. I’m selling transformation (You can be transformed by the renewing of your mind…)! What are you selling?

The benefit of benefits is arrived at when you have a blend of the internal (purpose, vision and mission) and a perfect blend of the external also (relationship, treatment and performance). What is obtainable now is, you have organizations striving to achieve the mix and by default leaning on one of the pillars as mentioned above. Ideally, every organization’s mission is to be a performer in whatever field or ventures. Performance is the principal thing and in getting it, you must lay hold on treatment. With performance a business is built, by treatment, it is established and by relationship, all the inner chambers of the business are endowed with precious gifts.

But if a business is by default leaning on one of the pillars, it will at best deliver mere satisfaction. It will only be able to provide the benefits of its products and services like every other businesses and not the benefit of the benefits because it lacked the know-how.

One very important fact, I have discovered is that most businesses who for instance, are leaning on mission, do not really deliver on their promises or expectations or aspiration of their target audiences. Let take for instance, a lady who is beautiful, does her facial/makeup right, dresses very well. In fact, she’s got the looks. If she decides to be in the business of making others look beautiful, her performance will be a natural thing to her and her target market. But what her target audience will require of her is relationship. They will naturally be drawn to her because of her beauty and packaging. But if she lacked relationship skills, there will be disconnect between her and her audiences. Relationship should be her benefit of benefits whiles the abilities of making other people beautiful (which is given, anyway by her nature) are her benefits. But her ultimate goal really is to get her customer to a point of self actualization (But this, she will not be able to achieve by leaning on just one pillar)

In summary, benefit of benefits is what the customer need that only you can offer; the way only you can offer it (it is the ‘perfect mix’ of the interplay of the forces of internal and external influences that act on your brand energy) while the other benefits are what you can offer that your competitors or anyone can also offer to your clients. It has a lot to do with your faith rather than your works. Like they say, faith without works is dead but works without the benefit of benefits is like a beautiful business without a solid capital base. When economic crunch comes, it will fold up. It has to do with the right mix of revelation knowledge, deeper understanding and wisdom of your environment or community, your products and services and your target audiences.